Help with Transitions
By Mary Jo Buff

Definition of Transitional Devices
Frequently Used Transitions
Why You Should Use Transitions
A Word of Caution

Transitional devices are like bridges between sentences, paragraphs, and sections of you papers. They are cues that help your reader interpret ideas in the way that you-- the writer-- want them to understand.  Skilled writers use transitional expressions to continue a logical thought from one sentence to another, from one idea to another, or from one paragraph to another. Certain words also help to provide an appropriate tone for the type of essay you are writing. Furthermore, transitional devices link your sentences and paragraphs together smoothly so that there are no abrupt jumps or breaks between ideas.

There are several types of transitional devices, and each category leads your reader to make certain connections or assumptions about your thoughts. Some words and phrases lead your reader forward and imply the "building" of an idea or thought, while others make your reader compare ideas or draw conclusions from the preceding thoughts. Most importantly, transitions should help your ideas to flow.

In both academic writing and professional writing, your goal is to convey information clearly and concisely, if not to convert the reader to your way of thinking. In other words, transitions tell readers what to do with the information you present them.  Whether single words, quick phrases, or full sentences, transitional devices function as guides for readers to signal your thoughts, organizational patterns, and reactions to old and new ideas as they read what you have written.

Here is a list of some common transitional devices that you can use to cue your reader:

Add	additionally, and, again, also, and then, besides, equally important, finally, further, furthermore, likewise, too, next, lastly, what's more, moreover, in addition
Compare	yet, by comparison, compared to, balanced against, similarly, likewise, meanwhile, after all, although this may be true, just as, as if, as
Contrast	conversely, in contrast, but, on the contrary, nevertheless, on the other hand, however, while, whereas, although, instead, rather, yet, still
Prove	because, for, since, obviously, evidently, furthermore, moreover, besides, indeed, in fact, in addition, that is, thus, of course
Show Exception	yet, still, however, nevertheless, in spite of, despite, of course, once in a while, sometimes
Show Time	immediately, thereafter, soon, finally, then, afterwards, later, previously, formerly, first, next, and then, meanwhile, when, after, before, once, since, as soon as, as long as, until, subsequently, simultaneously
Repeat	furthermore, moreover, in brief, as I have said, as I have noted, as has been noted, in other words, that is, indeed, in fact
Emphasize	definitely, extremely, obviously, in fact, indeed, in any case, absolutely, positively, naturally, surprisingly, always, never, certainly, undeniably, without a doubt, specifically
Sequence	first, second, and so forth, next, then, following this, at this time, now, at this point, after, afterward, finally, subsequently, consequently, previously, before this, next, thus, hence, therefore
Example	for example, for instance, in this case, on this occasion, in this situation, take the case of, to demonstrate, to illustrate, that is, in other words
Result	therefore, consequently, thus, as a result of, for this reason, since, if, so
Place or Direction	above, below, beyond, farther, nearby, opposite, close by, to the left
Summarize or Conclude	therefore, finally, in brief, on the whole, to sum up, in summation, to conclude, in conclusion, as I have shown, as I have said, hence, accordingly, thus, as a result of, consequently, in short

Why Use Transitions?
Even the most beautifully written sentences may not be as effective if the ideas and words are not properly connected. The reader should be able to move easily from one thought to another. The unique thoughts you are trying to express will become even more poignant if you direct the reader with transitional cues.

A Word of Caution...
Be careful about overloading your text with transitional expressions just because you know these devices connect ideas. Keep in mind that transitions should smooth progression from one point to another in your writing. If you read your essay and discover none of these transitional devices are present, then you may want to insert a however, nevertheless, consequently, or therefore into your paper. You should find that these devices hold your words and ideas together at important junctions of your paper.

 

Adapted from:
Hacker, Diane. A Writer's Reference. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1999.
Kolln, Martha. Rhetorical Grammar: Grammatical Choices, Rhetorical Effects. Fourth Edition. New York: Longman, 2002.
Purdue Online Writing Lab. Available <http://owl.english.purdue.edu>