LINKING WORDS: LEARN HOW TO USE THEM CORRECTLY

Linking words help you connect the ideas in a sentence. In this lesson, you’ll learn some common linking words to express reasons and results.

Reasons and Results

Linking Words: Reasons

Because / Because of

The difference between these two words is that because is followed by a subject + verb, and because of is followed by a noun:

• The game was canceled because of the rain.

• The game was canceled because it was raining.

In spoken English, many people say ’cause as a short form of “because.”

Due to / Owing to

Due to and owing to are also followed by a noun. These words are a little more formal.

There’s a lot of traffic today due to the upcoming holiday. (holiday = noun)

The after-school program was canceled owing to lack of interest from the students. (lack = noun)

Due to the fact that / Owing to the fact that

Use these phrases before a subject + verb. Again, these phrases are a little more formal.

Many people are still unemployed due to the fact that the economic recovery has been slower than anticipated.

The publisher rejected the author’s latest work owing to the fact that the manuscript was full of errors.

Since / As

Since and as are more informal, and they are followed by a subject + verb.

• I’m going to bed at 10 PM since I need to get up early tomorrow.

• I didn’t go to the gym today, as I had a lot of homework to do.

Linking Words: Results

Therefore / Consequently / As a result

These words are more formal, and are more commonly used in written English.

Our company’s profits have increased 150% in the past year. Therefore, we’re going to invest in new equipment and training programs.

The tennis player had knee surgery mid-October; consequently, she took the rest of the season off.

There have been heavy rains throughout the interior of the state. As a result, several areas have experienced flooding.

So

“So” is more informal, and more commonly used in spoken English.

We were hungry, so we stopped at a cafe for a snack.

Linking Words: Adding, Organizing, Summarizing

Adding Information and Examples

for example / for instance

Use these words to give one example of the idea you are talking about. Both of these expressions can go at the beginning or the end of a sentence.

There are a number of problems in this school. For example, many of the classrooms don’t have audiovisual equipment.

She has a lot of good ideas for our business – opening an online store, for instance.

Written English: i.e. and e.g

In written English, we can use i.e. to give further explanation or clarification; it means “that is” or “in other words.”

We can use e.g. to give examples; it means “for example”

I enjoy radical sports (e.g. rock climbing, hang gliding, and windsurfing).

In formal writing, these expressions always appear inside parentheses.

namely / such as

There is a difference between namely and such as.

Namely is followed by ALL of the examples you referred to, but such as gives only one or some of the examples, not all of them. ~ 11 ~

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A few of the students – namely Brian, Thomas, and Jack – failed the course.

A few of the students, such as Brian, failed the course.

also / too

Also can go in the middle of a sentence, whereas too is typically used at the end.

We did a lot of sightseeing on our vacation. We also bought a number of souvenirs.

We did a lot of sightseeing on our vacation. We bought a number of souvenirs, too.

as well / as well as

As well goes at the end of the sentence (similarly to too). As well as must be followed by another word.

• She’s not only extremely successful, she’s beautiful as well.

• She’s beautiful as well as being extremely successful.

in addition / moreover / furthermore

These linking words are usually used at the beginning of a sentence to add another idea or further develop the previous point.

People who exercise regularly have more energy during the day and sleep better at night. In addition, they tend to live longer.

Construction on the new subway has been delayed for months due to budget shortfalls. Moreover, the workers are threatening to go on strike.

Furthermore, purchase of new equipment will help cut manufacturing costs and increase

Note: In addition, moreover, and furthermore are more formal English. In informal spoken English, we usually use the expressions plus, what’s more, and besides.

Organizing and Ordering Information

Firstly / Secondly

When you are going to make a series of points, you can use firstly and secondly for the first and second points. After that, you can use “The third point,” ”The fourth point,” etc. or “in addition.”

Lastly / Finally

For your final point, you can begin the sentence with lastly or finally. These words show your audience that you are almost finished.

the former / the latter

You can use these words to refer back to two examples previously mentioned:

Our company has two factories: one in Detroit and one in Atlanta. The former is operating at 95% capacity and the latter at 65%.

In this case, “the former” = the factory in Detroit, and “the latter” = the factory in Atlanta.

Summarizing Information

Here are some English phrases you can use to give a summary of the information you have already said or written. In general, these phrases go at the beginning of the sentence and are followed by a comma.

• In short,

• In summary,

• To summarize,

• In conclusion,

• In a nutshell, (more informal)

Linking Words: Contrasting Ideas

But / However

But is more informal than however. You can use however at the beginning of a sentence, but you can’t use but at the beginning of a sentence (in written English).

I tried to lift the box, but it was too heavy for me.

I tried to lift the box. However, it was too heavy for me.

Although / Even though

These linking words are the same, and they are both followed by a subject + verb.

Although I exercise every day, I can’t seem to lose any weight.

She still loves him, even though he treated her very badly.

Despite / In spite of

These linking words are the same, and they are followed by a noun or a gerund (-ing form of the verb, which can function as a noun).

Our plane arrived on time in spite of the delay during takeoff.

We won the game despite having two fewer players.

Despite the fact that / in spite of the fact that

These phrases are followed by a subject + verb.

They arrived on time in spite of the fact that they left an hour late.

We won the game despite the fact that we had two fewer players.

While / Whereas / Unlike

These linking words are used to make contrasts. While and whereas are usually used between two complete phrases. Unlike is typically used with only a subject.

I like tennis, while my brother prefers bowling.

This cell phone plan costs Tshs.0.05 per minute, whereas that one gives you up to 800 minutes per month for a fixed price.

His boss allows him to work from home, unlike mine.

She’s very friendly, unlike her sister.