Writers are using transitions to show connections between pieces of information.
Those connections are helpful for the reader to understand the writer’s purpose and the content.
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Transitions are helping in a way that they are creating cohesive writing by linking some sentences together and linking various paragraphs together. Transitions are all used with the purpose of connecting to the author’s thesis.
Authors may use transitions in a number of ways, but two of the most common methods are the use of transitional phrases and words and repeating key ideas that will create pattern transitions.
Transitional Words, transitional Phrases
Authors use transitional phrases and words to demonstrate connections between pieces of information.
| Common Transitional Words and Transitional Phrases | ||
| Additionally | For example | Otherwise |
| After | Hence | Similarly |
| Also | However | Therefore |
| Consequently | In the end | Thus |
| First/Second | On the other hand | Then |
Writers can choose from several other transitions as well when they try to achieve a specific effect in their essays. This may include the use of transitions for showing exemplification, comparison & contrast, definitions, processes, or cause & effect. These tables below are showing examples of transitions that are working well with all writing styles:
| Transitions That Show Exemplification | ||
| Another example | For example | Specifically |
| As an example | For instance | Such as |
| As evidenced by | Including | To illustrate |
| Especially | In particular | To show this |
| Transitions That Show Comparison & Contrast | ||
| Also | However | In the same way |
| As opposed to | In addition | Likewise |
| But | In comparison | On the other hand |
| Conversely | In contrast | Similarly |
| Transitions That Show Definition | ||
| Another definition | As defined by | As supported with |
| Another meaning | As evidenced by | As these examples show |
| As compared with | As explained by | Is complicated by |
| As contrasted with | As illustrated by | To define |
| Transitions That Show Process | ||
| Afterward | Concurrently | Then |
| Another step | Finally | First |
| At this point | Next | Second |
| Before | Subsequently | Third |
| Transitions That Show Cause & Effect | ||
| Accordingly | Consequently | On account of |
| As a result | Hence | Since |
| Based on | In the end | Therefore |
| Because | In view of | Thus |
Pattern Transitions
One more way of connecting information is the use of pattern transitions. When using this technique, authors will repeat key ideas and words for keeping paragraphs cohesive and for keeping the attention on a specific idea. Authors will often be referring back to the essay’s main idea or thesis statement throughout their essays.
To give you an example, when an essay’s topic is “college admission application process,” the author will often be referring to that topic by writing phrases like “Another crucial step in the college admission process…” or “To gain admission to your favorite college is…”
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