Map the source commitment
Claim strength includes more than certainty. It combines evidence relation, modality, frequency, scope, comparison, and causal status. Suggests is not equivalent to demonstrates. In this sample is not equivalent to generally. Was associated with is not equivalent to reduced. No increase is not equivalent to a decrease.
Before editing, underline the main proposition and mark every qualifier. Record citations, numbers, units, intervals, negation, direction, population, setting, time, and alternative explanations.
Use an explicit strength ladder
The findings may reflect [interpretation].
Within [scope], the findings support [interpretation].
The analysis demonstrates [directly established result].
Under [identified design and assumptions], exposure X changed outcome Y.
Do not move upward on this ladder for fluency. Moving downward can also distort a well-supported result by making it needlessly uncertain.
Verify in both directions
Ask whether the source entails the rewrite. Then ask whether the rewrite introduces any proposition the source does not entail. Compare every protected element. Use the paraphrasing guide for a full invariant checklist and search bounded claim for calibrated patterns.