Prof. Katz points out that students often make the mistake, however good their intentions may be, of simply describing something when they are actually asked to analyze. Prof. Walters notes that when a student's answer consists only of the reiterated question or a description of information, instead of analysis, she often thinks that the student either doesn't understand the question or doesn't have the information to answer it.

While it is still important to repeat key words from the question in your thesis, in the rest of your response, you should be careful that you are not just repeating the question or giving a description of what the question already addresses. Sometimes it may be difficult to gauge how much reiteration is too much. For that reason, Prof. Clark advises students to take the question apart to see if it has been answered fully, because ultimately the goal of your essay or short answer should be to successfully answer the question.