Cohesive Devices / Important Linking words

Expressing sequence Showing results Showing similarity

Firstly Hence In the same way
To initiate with Thus Accordingly
First of all Therefore Like wise
To begin with So Equally important
The first reason is As a result Similarly
Initially On this/that account
Next It follows that Expressing the “condition “
Afterwards Eventually If
Then Consequently Unless
After this/that Asa consequence Whether
Earlier/later Thereby So that
Following this/that In that case Provided that
Finally/lastly admittedly For depending on
Expressing Time Expressing “Example” Showing “Reason”
When for example Due to
Whenever Particularly Owing to
Since For instance The reason why
Before Namely Cause
After To illustrate Leads to
Ago A case in point As
Until In particular So
While Such as Since
Meanwhile To exemplify In other words
As soon as Just as
No sooner than This is to say
Just as
Showing “Certainty” Positive Linkers “(addition”) Negative Linkers (contrast)
Of course Also However
Undoubtedly And Rather
Obvious In addition to On the other hand
Plainly Moreover On the contrary
Certainly Furthermore But
Unquestionably Likewise Otherwise
Assuredly Similarly In spite of
Without question As well as Though
Beyond question And then Although
Indisputably Too Even though
Undeniably Not only….but In contrast
Irrefutably Besides this/that Alternatively
That is not all Whereas
Whilst / While
Expressing “Summary” Expressing “Definition”
To conclude Means
To summarise Consist of
In conclusion Contains
To sum up That is
In summary Refers to
In a nut shell
In short
Finally
To recapitulate
All in all
In closing
Lastly
 Vocabulary for IELTS writing essay

Expressing personal opinions:

• In my opinion ….
• Personally, I think that ….
• It seems to me that ….
• I must admit that …..
• I believe/suppose that ….
• In my experience ….
• As I see it ….
• I cannot deny that ….
• As far as I’m concerned, …..
• I would argue that …..
• I would like to point out that …..
• I think that ….
• I’d like to say that ….

Expressing strong opinions:

• I am sure that …..

• I am convinced that …..
• I am certain that ….
• I am clear that …..

Example: I am sure that climate change has started to affect the Earth.

Providing your arguments:

• It is attested/proven by ……
• It is evidenced by ….
• It is testified by ….
• It is endorsed/supported by ….

Example: It is evident that students get distracted easily by today’s technology.

Expressing general point of view:

• It is (generally) claimed that …..

• It is (generally) said that …..
• It is (generally) thought that …..
• It is (generally) considered that …..
• It is (generally) perceived that …..
• A common purpose is that …..
• A popular belief is that …..

Example: It is generally believed that household chores are meant for women, which is wrong.

Outlining facts:

• The fact is that …..

• It is obvious that …..
• It is clear that …..
• There is no doubt that …..
• This proves that …..

Example: It is obvious that fashionable clothes are expensive.

It is generally believed that household chores are meant for women, which is wrong.

Generalising:

• Generally speaking, …..

• On the whole, …..
• Typically, …..
• By and large …..
• Overall …..

Example: Generally speaking, cycling is a good sport.

Giving examples:

For example, …..

For instance, …..
A good illustration of this is ….
Evidence for this is provided by …..
We can see this when …..
Namely …..
Such as …..

Example: To learn a new skill you need consistency. For instance, when you read a newspaper
everyday, you will learn English quicker.

Concluding:

• To summarise, …..
• In conclusion, …..
• Overall, …..
• On balance, …..
Taking everything into consideration ……
Example: In conclusion, people must save money for their future.

Vocabulary for IELTS Describe graphs

Introducing the graph

The graph/table/pie chart/bar chart/diagram/map/line graph ….

• gives information about/on …

• Provides information about/on …
• Delivers information about/on …
• Shows …..
• Illustrates …..
• Compare ……
• Explains why …..
• Describes …..
• Draws the conclusion of (a survey) ……

Example: The line graph illustrates the migrated population in the US in the 1990s.
 Types of Changes

1. Trend:Upward

verbs
nouns
rise (rose- risen)[to/by]
a rise (of)
increase [to/by]
an increase (of)
go [went-gone)
a growth (of)
up [to/up]
an upward trend
climb [to/by]
a doubling in
grow (grew -grown) [to/by]
a trebling in +n
surge
a boom (of)
get up
a peak (of)
upturn
a surge (of)
improve
a leap (of)
jump (jumped) [to/by]
peak
boom
large rises:
rocket [to/by]
soar [to/by]
leap [to/by]

0
2. Trend : Downward

Verbs
Nouns
a fall (fell-fallen) [to /by]
A fall (in)
a decrease [to /by]
A decrease (in/of)
a decline [to /by]
A decline (in/of)
a diminish
A dip (in)
a shrink
A downward trend (in)
a drop (dropped) [to /by]
A downfall (in/of)
lessen
A Reduction
go (went-gone) down [to /by]
A slump
devalue
A plunge
deteriorate
A plumet
slump
a dip (dipped) [to /by]
a plunge
a large fall
a plummet

3. Fluctuation
 Verbs
Nouns fluctuated
a fluctuation (in) varied
a variation (in) wave
a difference (in) shift
change

Description of changes
Extensive change
Adverbs Adjectives
Sharply Sharp
Suddenly Sudden
Rapidly Rapid
Abruptly Abrupt
Dramatically Instant
Significantly Swift
Considerably Rapid
Markedly Immediate
Wildly Dramatic
Clearly Steep
Strongly Significant
Distinctly Considerable
Marked
Substantial
Spectacular

Small change
Adverbs Adjectives
slightly slight
gently gentle
gradually gradual
steadily steady
modestly consistent
marginally modest
cautiously marginal
slowly moderate
moderately progressive
adequate
decent

Useful phrases

A small portion, a small part, a small number, a small fraction

A large portion, a significant amount, a big majority
Almost one-third, nearly 30%, in region of 56%, more than a half, one fourth, a quarter, more or
less ten times, exactly one in hundred, approximately 50%
Adjectives and adverbs for Degree of change
Degree Adjective Adverb
Very extensive change dramatic dramatically
huge
enormous enormously
tremendous Tremendously
Extensive change Substantial Substantially
Considerable Considerably
Significant Significantly
Remarkable remarkably

Average change Noticeable noticeably

Marked Markedly
Moderate Moderately

Small change Slight Slightly

Small N/a
minimal minimally

Adjectives and adverbs for speed of change

Speed Adjective Adverb
rapid rapidly
quick quickly
Quick change sharp sharply
swift swiftly
steep steeply
steady steadily
Slow change gradual gradually
slow slowly

sudden suddenly
Unexpected change unexpected unexpectedly
abrupt abruptly

First event Middle event Final event

At/In the beginning Then Finally
At first Next Ultimately
After this/that
In the first year Following this/that
In the firs month Afterwards
In 1999 This is followed by
In januarary …..following which……
…...after which……..
….. which is followed by…….
……until …..after which……..
……until …. Following which…..
……until…..when……..
…….before……..
During/over the next ……years
………years later