Plagiarism unethical copying – UGC NET Question

Plagiarism is an unethical practice in which someone uses another person’s ideas, data or wording without giving due credit through proper citation or quotation. It violates academic integrity and misleads readers about the true source of the work. Institutions often have strict policies and penalties for plagiarism because it undermines trust in scholarship. Since the stem describes presenting others’ work as one’s own without acknowledgment, plagiarism is the correct term.

Option A:
Ethical writing requires acknowledging all sources that have influenced the work, using quotation marks for exact wording and providing references for paraphrased ideas. It is the opposite of plagiarism because it is based on honesty and transparency. Therefore, ethical writing cannot complete the stem, which focuses on unethical copying.

Option B:
Paraphrasing involves restating someone else’s ideas in one’s own words, but it still requires citation to credit the original author. Properly paraphrased and referenced material is acceptable academic practice. However, the stem refers to using others’ work without acknowledgment, which goes beyond paraphrasing and constitutes plagiarism, so paraphrasing is not the correct answer.

Option C:
Citation is the practice of giving credit to original authors by indicating sources in the text and in the reference list. Correct use of citations prevents plagiarism by making sources explicit. Because the stem describes absence of acknowledgment, citation is actually the safeguard against the problem, not the name of the unethical act itself.

Option D:
Plagiarism covers both direct copying and close paraphrasing without citation, and can involve text, data, images or ideas. It is considered a serious academic offence and may lead to retraction of publications or disciplinary action. These features fit perfectly with the behaviour described in the stem, confirming plagiarism as the appropriate completion.