supporting details

Meaning

'Supporting details' are facts, examples, statistics, or explanations that help prove, clarify, or expand upon a main idea. In academic writing, every paragraph needs a main point followed by these details to make the argument strong and convincing.

Examples

• Your paragraph has a strong topic sentence, but it lacks supporting details.

  Your paragraph has a strong topic sentence, but it lacks supporting details.

• The author uses statistics and quotes as supporting details for his argument.

  The author uses statistics and quotes as supporting details for his argument.

• Make sure to include relevant supporting details from the textbook in your answer.

  Make sure to include relevant supporting details from the textbook in your answer.

• Without supporting details, your essay will sound like a collection of opinions.

  Without supporting details, your essay will sound like a collection of opinions.

• We need to find more supporting details to back up our scientific hypothesis.

  We need to find more supporting details to back up our scientific hypothesis.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ You need to add some support details to your paragraph.

  ✓ You need to add some supporting details to your paragraph.

  Use the present participle form 'supporting' as an adjective, not the base noun 'support.'

• ✗ Her main idea was good, but the details of support were weak.

  ✓ Her main idea was good, but the supporting details were weak.

  'Supporting details' is a fixed academic collocation and should not be rearranged into 'details of support.'

Related Expressions

Practice

• A good essay body paragraph must contain a main idea and several ___.

  💡 Facts, examples, or statistics that back up a main point.

  Show answer

  supporting details

• The researcher provided clear ___ to prove her theory during the seminar.

  💡 Evidence or information used to reinforce an argument.

  Show answer

  supporting details