The transition words or phrases connect ideas and also introduce contrast, comparison, effect, clarification, summary, illustrations, agreement, purpose, result, conclusion, etc. Below is a list of commonly used transitional words or phrases in English which can be used by students or teachers to find the right expressions.
Transitional Words or Phrases In English
- He is not only a nice guy, but also a nice computer operator.
Following Transition words are used to show agreement, similarity and addition.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| As well as | He performs as well as the students. | Too | He has a perfect job, too. |
| As a matter of fact | He is not a student. As a matter of fact, he does not like studying. | Then | You have to study, then you will be able to compete. |
These transition words are used to show contrast, opposition and limitation.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| Of course….but | Of course, you are right, but I can’t do it. | Otherwise | They should play well otherwise they’ll lose. |
| On the other hand | He loves to work; on the other hand the doctor has restricted him from working. | Besides | They can take time besides they have to make count of the time they take. |
The following transition words or phrases in English present specific conditions, intentions and purpose.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| In order to | He talks in order to improve his speaking. | So that | He tries hard so that he is successful. |
| In the event that | He seemed so good in the event that he made his century. | With this intention | I will get the position; with this intention, he is going to challenge his rivals. |
The following transition words are used to give examples, support or to emphasis on the idea.
Transition words |
Example | Transition words | Example |
| For instance | Pakistan exports sport goods. For instance, bat, ball, football, etc. | With this in mind | He will win, with this in mind he entered the competition |
| Important to realize | It is important to realize that you have insufficient balance. | In fact |
He lies a lot. In fact he is a liar. |
These transition words are used to express effect, consequence and result:
Note: for and because are used before the cause or reason. The others are used before consequence/result.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| For | He works hard for promotion. | Because | He likes black because it is professional. |
| Thus | He could not beat his brother thus he is out of the game. | In that case | He committed crime; in that case he was arrested by the police. |
For expressing restatement, conclusion or summary, we use the following transition words:
Transition words |
Example | Transition words | Example |
| Ultimately | After a lot of hard work, ultimately, he got the deserved position. | In either case | You do it or not, in either case you will be in loss. |
| To sum up | Hadia washed the dishes, Asghar collected the plates, Mehrin arranged the hall, to sum up they all did their hard work. | Overall | Their overall performances were good in all the matches of tournament. |
The following Transition words are used to talk about time, sequence and chronology.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| Sooner or later | Sooner or later, you have to perform. | As long as | There is a hope as long as he plays for us. |
| As Soon as | He killed him as soon as he got Khaliq killed his cousin. | All of a sudden | Everything was going well, all of a sudden something exploded. |
These Transition words are used to mention place and locations.
| Transition words | Example | Transition words | Example |
| In the middle | He interrupted in the middle of class. | Between | The village is in between the two mountains. |
| Next | He sits next to his sister. | Across | He came across the road after a lot of difficulties. |