Useful Linking Words and Phrases
Useful Linking Words and Phrases
Linking words help increase your score for fluency and coherence in the speaking exam and
help you to get a higher score for coherence and cohesion in the writing exam. They are also
useful in the listening and reading test to help you see how ideas are sequenced and to catch
the main ideas. The following table is from my IELTS ebook for part two of the writing test.
Sequencing the first
idea
Adding supporting
ideas
Adding a
contrasting idea
Making general
statements
Another reason is
As a general rule,
Furthermore,
However,
Generally,
Moreover,
Nevertheless,
In most cases,
Although,
Giving examples
Giving an
explanation
Clarifying an
opinion
Drawing a
conclusion
For example,
To be more
precise
As a consequence,
This is because
More specifically
This is due to
By this I mean
First of all,
In the first place,
For instance,
In particular,
Therefore,
As a result,
In other words,
Partially correct
statements
Other people's
opinions
Making a
concession
From my perspective,
somewhat
agree/disagree
From a political
point of view,
It is sometimes
argued that
to a certain degree,
Admittedly,
to some extent,
However,
Some people
believe
To give advantages
To give
disadvantages
To express cause
A major advantage of
this is
Owing to
Therefore,
Another
disadvantage is
As a consequence,
Another important
merit is
The final benefit is
to express effect
As a result