Is are a transition word

Main Transition Words Takeaways:

• Transitional words are important because they help improve the flow between words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs.
• They are important for SEO because they help make text easier to read and understand. Search engines and readers love content that is readable.
• Transition words help link ideas and statements.
• Using transitional words at the beginning or end of a paragraph can help the reader understand when you introduce a new topic.
• The four types of transition words are additive, adversative, causal, and sequential.
• Transition words and phrases don’t affect the grammatical structure of sentences and paragraphs.

What Are Transition Words?

As a writer, your primary goal is to present information and ideas to your target audience in a clear and understandable manner. The best way to do that is to use transition words. Transition words or transitional words are terms and phrases that help connect words, phrases, and even sentences together. They build connections between ideas in your content.

Transition words and phrases ensure that your written work will not look choppy and disjointed. They help your audience progress from one idea to the next. Think of them as a way to tell your readers how they should process and understand the information you are giving them. Transition words function like GPS, guiding your readers where they are going and how to get there.

What Are Some Examples Of Transition Words and Phrases?

Here are some of the most common examples of transition words and phrases:

Transition words are categorized based on their purpose. For instance, transition phrases like as a result of, due to, and as long as are used to emphasize cause and effect. Below are more examples of transition expressions that have been categorized based on their functions:

What Are Some Examples of Transition Sentences?

The best way to understand how transitional words work is to see them in action. Remember, as important as these grammatical tools are, it’s not a good idea to overuse them. Too many transitional phrases can make your text seem complicated and wordy. It could also make you seem like a chronic overexplainer, and nobody wins when that happens.

You can use transitions to go from sentence to sentence:

You can also use transition words and phrases to go from paragraph to paragraph:

What Are the Four Types of Transition Words?

There are a lot of different ways to categorize transition words. In this post, we will discuss the four main types of transition words: Additive, Adversative, Causal, and Sequential.

1. What are Additive Transitions?

These transition words add or introduce another idea. They may also reference a previously mentioned concept, identify a similarity, or clarify an idea. Additive transitional words include:

2. What are Adversative Transitions?

Adversative transitions may be used to signal opposing ideas or dismiss a previously discussed idea altogether. Some adversative transition words include:

3. What are Causal Transitions?

As for causal transitions, they’re most commonly used to denote cause and effect. They may also indicate the reason an idea or action is happening or has happened. Causal transition words include:

4. What are Sequential Transitions?

As the name suggests, sequential transitions are used to put a sequence of ideas in order (usually chronological). This helps the reader understand where ideas fall in a list or when you’re wrapping up your text. Sequential transitions include:

Are Conjunctions Considered Transition Words?

While conjunctions and transitions share the same purpose — to connect ideas between or within sentences — they are not used the same way. You must not confuse conjunctions with transitional words or expressions. Conjunctions connect phrases and clauses, whereas transitions indicate the relationship between sentences and paragraphs. Check the following examples:

Subordinating conjunctions connecting dependent clauses with independent clauses:

Read More: The Easiest Way To Get Subordinating Conjunctions

Coordinating conjunctions connecting two independent clauses:

Transition words connecting sentences and paragraphs:

Another significant difference between transitions and conjunctions is their grammatical functions. Since conjunctions join clauses, they become part of the sentence and affect it grammatically. On the other hand, transition words have no impact on the grammatical structure of a sentence or paragraph. In short, you can remove a transition word, and it won’t have any impact on the sentence at all. Check the examples below:

Do Commas Go Before Or After Transition Words?

The placement of commas when using transition words will depend on where the latter appears in your text.

If your transition phrase appears at the beginning of the sentence, it is always set off with a comma.

If the transition word or phrase appears within an independent clause, it should be preceded by and set off with a comma.

If the transitional word appears between two independent clauses in a compound sentence, it should be preceded by a semicolon and set off with a comma.

How Are Transition Words Used in SEO?

SEO, or search engine optimization, is a process that involves optimizing your content for search engines to help improve ranking. The higher you are in search results, the more visibility your content will have. The more visible your content, the more people will see and learn about your brand.

Unlike keywords or meta tags, transitions between sentences or paragraphs don’t directly help boost your search ranking. Instead, it’s all about readability and structure.

See, Google runs on algorithms and those algorithms are big fans of order and ease of use. In other words, clarity is everything.

In the olden days (you know, like the 2010s), Google was like a heat-seeking missile for keywords. Basically, the more keywords you could stuff in your copy, the better you’d rank. That led to a lot of web pages that said something like, “buckets buckets buy some buckets buckets for sale the best buckets.”

What are they selling? You guessed it: buckets!

Google (and the rest of the world) soon realized the keyword stuffing wasn’t really good for anyone. Instead, search engines began focusing on how web pages could best serve the reader. Now, algorithms analyze web content for readability, and transition words play a huge role in that determination.

Transition Words Give Direction

Transition words also help you structure your content. Remember our road map? Transitional words can act as street signs, pointing readers left or right, directing them to take a U-turn, or propelling them onward.

Bottom line: Transition words make your content easier to read and understand. For this reason, it’s vital to rely not only on helpful tools but also on your own mind. If it reads well to you, it’ll likely read well to your audience.

Transition To a Closing

Finally, you can use transitions to introduce a new section or conclude your previous one—or wrap up the entire text. You may even use a transition to reinforce the general idea of your content before ending your piece:

Quick Transition Words Grammar Quiz

Read More: How to use a question mark (?)

Transition words are words like ‘and’, ‘but’, ‘so’ and ‘because’. They show your reader the relationship between phrases, sentences, or even paragraphs.

How do you write a good transition sentence?

What are the components of good transition sentences? They make an explicit connection between ideas, sentences, and paragraphs. Good transitions use specific words. Try to avoid using pronouns like “this” to refer to an entire idea because it is not always clear who or what “this” refers to.

Is conclude a transition word?

Conclusion / Summary / Restatement These transition words and phrases conclude, summarize and / or restate ideas, or indicate a final general statement.

What is a good conclusion transition?

Examples of Conclusion Transition Words all things considered. altogether. finally. in brief.

What is the importance of conclusion in an essay?

The function of your paper’s conclusion is to restate the main argument. It reminds the reader of the strengths of your main argument(s) and reiterates the most important evidence supporting those argument(s).

Why is it important to have a strong conclusion?

Writing a Conclusion. A conclusion is an important part of the paper; it provides closure for the reader while reminding the reader of the contents and importance of the paper. A conclusion does not introduce new ideas; instead, it should clarify the intent and importance of the paper.

What are the four types of concluding paragraph?

In particular, embedded, retrospective, reflective, and projective forms are four main types of conclusions suitable for different academic papers.

• Embedded Conclusion Example.
• Retrospective Conclusion Paragraph Example.
• Reflective Conclusion Sample.
• Projective Concluding Paragraph.

What should be avoided in a concluding paragraph?

Six Things to AVOID in Your Conclusion

• 1: AVOID summarizing.
• 2: AVOID repeating your thesis or intro material verbatim.
• 3: AVOID bringing up minor points.
• 4: AVOID introducing new information.
• 5: AVOID selling yourself short.
• 6: AVOID the phrases “in summary” and “in conclusion.”

Which one is the most effective conclusion?

Conclude an essay with one or more of the following:

• Include a brief summary of the paper’s main points.
• Ask a provocative question.
• Use a quotation.
• Evoke a vivid image.
• Call for some sort of action.
• End with a warning.
• Universalize (compare to other situations).
• Suggest results or consequences.

Author: Michael L

Date: Oct 3, 2019 | Grammar

Transition words and phrases are an important part of the English language. They are used to connect words and sentences, often by referring back to one idea and signaling the introduction of a new one. Transition words can also help a passage of writing flow better, although it is best not to overuse them.

Consider the example:

• James did not go to the movies. He visited his grandparents instead.

The transition word in the above example is instead. It links the two sentences together by referring back to the first sentence and signaling that an alternative idea has been introduced.

Consider the example without the transition word:

• James did not go to the movies. He visited his grandparents.

The lack of a link between the two sentences leaves things a bit vague. We do not explicitly know that the two sentences are related, whereas the previous example shows that James visited his grandparents as an alternative to going to the movies.

There are 100s of transition words and phrases in English. Indeed, because of the evolution of language over time, new transition phrases can appear all the time. Often transition words are conjunctive adverbs – words like however, also, indeed, instead, still, therefore – or phrases containing conjunctive adverbs, conjunctions and adverbs. The point is that transition words cover a wide variety of language, but it’s more important to recognize their function rather than categorize them.

When to Use Transition Words?

Fundamentally, we use transition words to connect sentences and words together. They often refer back to the previous sentence or words within a sentence, and let the reader know that there is some related or new information on its way. There are different types of transition words and phrases, and not all of them have this simplistic explanation for their use.

Consider the passage below, and notice the highlighted transition words and phrases:

I do not like dairy products very much, particularly cheese. However, I make an exception for ice cream, especially chocolate ice cream. Indeed, ice cream is probably my favorite thing to eat. Admittedly, I am also aware that ice cream is very fattening, not to mention full of sugar. In other words, ice cream isn’t very healthy. Nevertheless, life is too short to worry about these things. With this in mind, I will continue to eat ice cream every day. I may end up overweight, of course. On balance, this is a price I am willing to pay for delicious – especially chocolate – ice cream.

Can you see how the transition words and phrases stitch the fabric of the passage together? They act as signals by referring to the previous sentence and introducing new ideas in the next, or by referring back to previous information in the same sentence and changing the emphasis of it. Normally, transition words and phrases help a passage of writing flow better, but it’s also recommended not to use too many transition words, as it can make the writing a bit confusing or heavy. As an example, the passage above arguably uses too many transitional words and phrases from a stylistic standpoint and would be easier to read with fewer transtions.

Types of Transition Words

As we mentioned, transition words are normally used to link words and sentences by referring back to one idea and introducing a new one. However, transition words do this in a variety of ways. With that in mind, let’s break down the different types of transition words into categories based on the way they link words together.

Here are some of the main ways transition words are used:

To introduce a new idea or opposite point of view:

• But, while, conversely, however, nevertheless, yet, instead, nonetheless, although, though, even though, incidentally.
  • I went to his house hoping to find him; yet, he was not there.
  • They told her they weren’t happy with her designs, but she nevertheless resolved to go on.

To introduce a conclusion:

• Finally, so, as, therefore, thus, consequently, in conclusion, since, as such, finally, subsequently.
  • Finally, the choir began singing.
  • Since that is the case, we have no choice but to resign.

To introduce a list or point out a sequence of events:

• First, second, third, firstly, secondly, first of all, last of all, finally, lastly, after that, until, including, next.
  • We go to Paris this Sunday. After that, Rome.
  • First of all, let me tell you what happened. Then you can decide.

To admit a concession:

• Of course, admittedly, even so, naturally, alas.
  • There is another way to do it, of course.
  • Admittedly, it was my biggest mistake.

To add emphasis or additions.

• Likewise, in addition, furthermore, also, additionally, moreover, indeed, namely, in fact, for the most part, as a matter of fact.
  • David, Benjamin and Ellie laughed. Indeed, even Daniel found it funny.
  • For the most part, the kids in the classroom kept quiet.

To introduce clauses and conditions:

• On the condition that, in light of, in order to, provided that, whenever, while, as long as.
  • You can go, as long as you are back by midnight.
  • Whenever you return, lock the door after you.

The above just shows a small selection of different transition words and phrases, but there are many more words and phrases used in this way. It can also be somewhat confusing, because sometimes the words on the list above can be used in a sentence without it being a transition word.

Consider these two sentences:

• Despite nerves, Donna came first in the race. (First is not a transition word in this sentence.)
• To win a race, first you must believe you can win.  (First is a transition word in this sentence.)

Examples of Transition Words

Below are some more examples of transition words in sentences:

• The Queen is the UK’s Head of State. Additionally, she is also the Head of State for Australia.
• We were hungry. However, because the kitchen was already closed, we didn’t eat until morning.
• One doesn’t need to attend college. There are, in fact, many ways to obtain knowledge.
• She was very tired. Indeed, she hadn’t slept for weeks.
• In light of recent weather events, the show will be cancelled.
• Finally, the car came to a skidding halt.
• You should go to the conference. Likewise, Bill and Caren should go too.
• It’s obvious you don’t want me here. As a result, I have decided I will leave tomorrow.
• We are German citizens. But we are also citizens of Europe.
• He lowered his voice, as if to underline the seriousness of the matter.
• Monkeys groom each other in order to build relationships.
• Michael and Sarah are here. I was chatting with them earlier, as a matter of fact.

Why are Transition Words Important?

Without transition words and phrases, language would be somewhat stiff. They sew words and sentences together, helping them flow better by acting as a link to what was previously stated in the passage. Yet, they are more than that, they act as signals in writing to show shifts in ideas, tone and emphasis, and introduce conclusions, sequences and contradictions.

The key to understanding them lies in the name itself: Transition words. Transition means change, and these words indicate that there has been a change or that a change is forthcoming. This change could be subtle, like a shift in emphasis, or more obvious, like the offering of a contrary idea or conclusion, but transition words, nevertheless, act as a signal for that change. In the end, this is important because it gets to the root of how we understand language, as these transition words act like bridges through words, sentences and meaning.

Do you know the Brooklyn Bridge? Now, imagine the time before it was built—like before 1883.

Obviously I wasn’t there, but I can imagine that it was a struggle for someone to move across the East River between Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Well… you could still get across but not as conveniently as using the bridge—well, maybe they used boats or built small rafts. Not convenient, right?

Bottom line? They needed that bridge.

Likewise, if you want your writing to flow coherently and have the lucidity that makes it easily readable, you NEED transition words.

It’s that STRAIGHTFORWARD. 

So what are these bridges? Transition words are words or phrases that connect sentences and paragraphs seamlessly and smoothen out any abrupt jumps or breaks between the sentences.

These words include ‘since to demonstrate’, ‘specifically’, ‘for instance’, ‘and’, ‘but’, ‘so’, and many others. These words are deliberately inserted into the text to show the relationship between phrases, sentences, or paragraphs. They are like soft-footed tour guides for your readers, helping them grasp your thoughts and where your ideas lead to.

On a basic level, we usually use conjunctions (“and,” “but” and “or”) as transition words, for example:

• They wanted to learn fast, and they completed the course with a quarter of the semester to spare.
• They wanted to learn fast, but they barely finished one module after the first month.

You can see that in the examples I gave above, the coordinating conjunctions were employed to indicate two different transitions.

• In the first case, “and” has been used to indicate a transition that connects two occurrences which were harmonized.
• The second sentence employed the conjunction “but” to introduce a contrast.

Just as illustrated in these examples, there are different categories of transition words that we use to get a point across.

Adverb as Transition Words

Apart from the conjunctions, adverbs are also transition words.  Adverbs are words that describe the manner in which an action is performed or how two actions relate to each other.

These are examples of how we use them as transition words:

• He did quite an excellent job. Nonetheless, the client seemed a bit dissatisfied with the work.
• We don’t want another costly overseas trip; besides, we can’t afford it.

Can A Transition Be a Question?

Yes, but not necessarily.

Such a simple but somewhat confusing answer. It’s not a grammar rule but an observation that I have made.

As a rule of thumb (which I picked from a very good English tutor), I don’t put a comma after “but” when I use it instead of a conjunctive adverb (e.g., however, nevertheless).

So, if I start a sentence with a “but” and proceed with a question without “pausing”, it means that I have a transition that’s also a question.

For example:

Paragraph 1: The Corporation suddenly sold their stock in the rising company.

Paragraph 2: But how do you sell stock when the expectations are that the company is about to become more valuable?

Obviously my transition word, “but,” is not a question on its own, but the whole sentence is. Therefore, the sentence as a transition from paragraph “1” to “2” is a question.

But as I said, I’m yet to come across a general rule for this type of scenario.

What Are Some Examples of Transition Words?

There are just numerous examples of transition words. However, these words are used to perform different tasks—some are used to show turns and twists, others are employed to indicate similarity, etc.

Basically, we have categories of transition words (based on the type of transition the words represent when they launch a sentence).

These are categories:

Cause/Effect

• We lost. Therefore, we couldn’t proceed to the next round.
• He left Because he was worried about the health of his mother.

Others:

since, on account of, for that reason, consequently, accordingly, thus, hence, as a result.

Comparison/Contrast

• I’d have loved to go, but I have some urgent business here.
• On the contrary, they believed that he was a fool.
• Likewise, the driver of the white van left the boxes on his door.

Others:

Yet, and yet, nonetheless, at the same time, after all, In the same way, by the same token, in like manner, likewise, in similar, but, however, though, otherwise, on the contrary, in contrast, notwithstanding, nevertheless, similarly, on the other hand,

Examples

• Specifically, Jane likes blue shoes.
• To demonstrate its might, the empire wants to impose sanctions on its tiny neighbor.

Others:

for example, to illustrate, for instance, as an illustration, e.g. (for example).

Clarification

• In other words, he wants you to go.
• To put it another way, your company doesn’t need any more liabilities.

Others:

to clarify, to explain, that is to say, i.e. (that is), to rephrase it.

Qualification

• This is possibly the best score in ten years.
• With this in mind, the board declared him the best investment banker of that year.

Others:

Probably, always, nearly, never, maybe, frequently, perhaps, although.

Addition

• Moreover, I wanted to go hiking with her friends.
• Furthermore, the higher you go, the harder it becomes to climb down.

Others:

in addition, even more, too, also, last, lastly, finally, in the second place, again, next, further, besides, and, or, nor, first, second, secondly.

Summary/Conclusion

• Given these points, it is very apparent that she is knowledgeable about what is going on.
• In the long run, everyone will earn huge dividends from their investment.

Others:

In conclusion, to sum up, to summarize, in sum, in brief, in short, in summary, to conclude, finally.

Chronology/Time

• He wrote her a note Before left for Italy.
• During the event, you could hear them chant war cries.
• Later that evening, he arrived with a big entourage.

Others:

While, now, immediately, following, never, after, earlier, always, when, whenever, meanwhile, soon, sometimes, afterwards, until now, next, once, then, at length, simultaneously, so far, this time, subsequently, in the meantime.

Emphasis

You have to have a hard-working attitude and self-belief. Above all, you have to put all your trust in God.

Others:

Above all, most importantly, certainly.

When to Use a Transition Word

To Glue a Single Sentence

Transition words are used to link parts of the same sentence.

Here are some examples:

• The boss acts as if the employees are just little kids under his supervision.
• He prefers to go by himself rather than send someone else in his place.
• The company did not adopt his proposed marketing strategy, yet if they had savvy executives, they would have realized how innovative and profitable his plans were.

To Start a Paragraph

Before choosing a transition word or phrase, always think about the cohesiveness—between the current paragraph and the one that precedes it—the transition will bring. Are the two paragraphs carrying comparing and contrasting ideas? Are you trying to describe events in chronological order?

When we use transitions to introduce a new paragraph, they are usually phrases or clauses which refer to the preceding paragraph while launching a new idea.

The transitions that we often used at the beginning of new paragraphs may be phrases like these:

• It follows logically that entity A and B cannot be clearly distinguished by dead reckoning.
• Furthermore, the gentleman has confessed his crime and has named his accomplices.
• In conclusion, the theory does hold in reality.
• Lastly, an investigation needs to be launched to find out what really happened here.

Coherence is what your transitions are there to help you with. Therefore, you ought to place a great emphasis on the gluiness of your transitions.

Gluing Paragraphs

Inside your paragraph, transitions have to help you explain the relationships between your ideas. You have to think about what the previous sentence before this one says and how that sentence or phrase relates to the one the transition is trying to introduce.

Do you want to add more information to the preceding sentence? Or, do you want to emphasize the subject succeeding the transition?

When we use transitional words to stitch a paragraph, we often try to make it flow smoothly. In the next example, I have used transition words to stitch together a short paragraph.

A Paragraph Without Transitions: He left his job in Louisiana. His mother was ill. She recovered, he went back to Louisiana.

A Paragraph with Transitions: He left his job in Louisiana because his mother was ill. After she’d recovered, he went back to Louisiana. But, he no longer had a job and had to start from scratch again.

Do Transitions Help in Writing a Story?

Not only do transitions help in writing a story, but they also help you quickly and easily improve your writing. There are plenty of benefits of using transitions.

Firstly, using transitions is a good way of programming yourself to transcend the subaltern practice of using a basic subject-verb sentence structure. With transitions, you have sentences which are more complex but still coherent.

Besides adding to the complexity of your sentences, the stitching factor that transitions bring to your text makes it readable and helps you create passages with a bit more refinement.

Finally, perfectly employed transitions can make your writing sound more professional. Professional writers know that there should be a noticeable difference between written and spoken language (unless it’s dialogue). Transitions give your writing a tinge of that much-needed professionalism, just enough to make it sound better than spoken English.

Signs That You Need to Work On Your Transitions

There are a couple of red flags that pop up whilst writing or when you’re provided with feedback. Here are some of the scenarios that require you to work on your transitions:

• When you submit a manuscript or an academic assignment and you’re bombarded with comments like “this is choppy,” “it’s jumpy,” “the passages aren’t flowing smoothly,” “your writing desperately needs signposts,” or “how are paragraph X and Y related?”
• When you get feedback from your readers, saying they are having a tough time following the structure and flow of your content.
• When you take separate, disjointed chunks of texts and stitch them together without adding adhesive words or phrases.
• When you are working on a group assignment and the draft includes parts written individually by several group members.

How Can I Improve My Use of Transition Words

The fact that everyone uses transition words is quite apparent. But, using them correctly or efficiently isn’t something which every writer does naturally. Using transition words effectively is a result of a couple of things. To successfully use transitions, you have to:

1. Arrange Your Thoughts and Ideas

Remember what I said about transition words acting like bridges linking your paragraphs and sentences together? Well, they are more than that.

They’re also signposts. Before writing a blog post, news article, or a book, one usually has a bunch of incoherent but lucid ideas to work with. Usually, you—the writer—know where your story is going but you need to give the reader some directions.

They have to understand and follow your arguments and you have to clearly define the relationships between different sentences or parts of writing.

Your writing needs to have a firm structure and it’s the effective use of transition words that will help you give the text that structure.

But first, you need to know how your ideas relate to each other. It needs to be clear to you which idea introduces the other, which breaks away from the original points, and so on and so forth. This means that you have an introduction, body, and conclusion.

Afterwards, you can start adding meat to the skeleton, sew the sentences together. Find jumps and breaks that present perfect slots for transitions and make sure the transitions employed make sense.

2. Know the Transition Words

This is usually a problem for non-native speakers. But, many native speakers tend to “underutilize” transition words; they simply don’t pay attention to some less frequently used transitions.

So, whether you’re a native speaker or not, it’s prudent to look up a list of transition words and study their employment. It’s not only a matter of having used the transition word before, sometimes, their usage may depend on context like the “i.e.” vs “e.g.” case which is a grammatical evil that has preyed on a lot of unsuspecting native speakers.

Knowing the words helps you contextualize the transitions.

My Final Words On Transitions

Transition words are essential for the readability of your writing. Unfortunately, a lot of people fail to utilize them effectively. If you are one of these people, don’t worry about it too much. Study them and practice a lot.

Like a lot, A LOT. Always be aware of the way you structure your text. In this way, it will be less of a task trying to choose the best transitions to use.