Connectors

Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

CONNECTORS

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Connecting ideas or adding new ones

1. And/ or 2. Both .............. and (used to combine similar things): Both Paul and John are in Italy 3. Either ................. or (is used to link two sentences which describe two or more possibilities): You can have either tea or coffee.

4. Neither ............... nor (used to link two negative ideas together and is used with an affirmative verb.): She neither knows nor cares 5. Not only .................... but also (used to connect two ideas, the second of which is usually more important then the first.): Not only she lost her passport but her money as well.

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Introducing opinions

1. As far as I am concerned ..................

2. I agree that .......... / I disagree that ................ / I think that ............... / I believe that ........... / It seems to me that ................

3. In my opinion ............ / In my view ............../ From my point of view / 4. I want to begin by saying ................

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Giving more information

1. Again: They might go but again they might not.

2. Also: I would like to see you tomorrow, and also the next day 3. And 4. And then 5. Besides: We could sell the car; besides, we don’t use it much.

6. Equally: (at the same time) 7. Furthermore: Furthermore, we need to consider his motives.

8. In addition to this: 9. Moreover: It appears, moreover, that he was related to her 10. Next: Next I’d like to discuss the problem of...

11. What’s more: I don’t know and, what’s more I don’t care.

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Giving importance 1. above all: He longs above all to see his familly again.

2. ............ and far more important: 3. last but not least (used before the final item in a list): And last but not least there is the question of adequate shoes 4. on top of it all

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Expressing transition 1. As for ..... ( como en el caso de ............. ) = with regard to: As for the hotel , it was very uncomfortable and miles from the sea.

2. By the way (used to intriduce a comment or question): Oh, by the way there is a telephone message for you.

3. Incidentally: (used to introduce sth additional that the speaker has just thought)= by the way.: Some people, and incidentally that includes Jim, just won’t come to my party.

4. Let’s turn now to .........

5. Regarding: with reference to, concerning .......: She said nothing regarding your request.

6. Talking/Speaking of ........................

7. With reference to ..............: I’m writing with reference to your job application.

8. With regard to ................: I have nothing to say with regard to your complaints.

9. With respect to .................: This is true with respect to English but not to French.

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Telling a story 1. Afterwards: Let’s go to the theatre first and eat afterwards 2. Later, then 3. Meanwhile: I went to college, meanwhile all my friends got well-paid jobs 4. One day 5. When 6. While: He fall asleep while he was doing his homework

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Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

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Introducing a series of ideas 1. First, second : First I don’t like seafood, second I hate boats 2. Eventually / Finally .............: He fell ill and eventually he died 3. In the first place............... / First of all ................. / Firstly .............. / To begin with .... (in the first place): To begin with I don’t have a ticket, and secondly I don’t like the play.

4. I want to make a final point .............

5. Secondly, Thirdly (fourthly... ) 6. There’s still another thing ...............

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Expressing contrast 1. Although : We lost the game although/though/Even though we tried our best.

2. But 3. By/In comparison with : The tallest buildings in London are small in comparison with those in NY 4. Despite / In spite of : They had a wonderful holiday, despite the bad weather.

5. For ......... / against 6. However: She felt ill. She went to work, however, and tried to concentrate.

7. In contrast: In contrast with their system, ours seems very old-fashioned 8. Instead: I couldn’t go so she went instead.

9. Nevertheless / none the less:The weather is nasty; nevertheless, I’m going to drive to Montreal 10. One reason is ............... / the other reason is ...............

11. On the contrary ..........: It doesn’t seem ugly to me; on the contrary, I think it’s rather beautiful 12. On the one hand ...................... / on the other hand ....................

13. Regardless: paying no attention to: I protested, but she carried on regardless 14. Yet: He earns a huge salary; yet can’t pay his debts.

15. The advantages ................

16. The disadvantages ........................

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Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

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To show comparison 1. again (on the other hand): Again, what do they know about art?

2. also: She is not only the boss’ daughter but also the company vice-president.

3. in the same way : We walk to work in the same way as we usually do.

4. likewise: similarly, also (Asimismo, de la misma manera, igualmente) Pleased to meet you – likewise (encantado de conocerle – lo mismo digo).

5. once more/again: I’ll tell you how to do it once again/more

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To show examples 1. after all: After all, everybody makes mistakes 2. for example: An apple does not contain, for example, as many calories as a cheese cake.

3. for instance: There are many ways to eat rice, for instance you may use a fork or chopsticks.

4. in Fact: For 8 years she was in fact spying for the enemy 5. of course: That was 40 years ago, but of course you can’t remember it.

6. specifically:You were specifically warned not to eat fish.

7. such as (like, for example): Wild flowers such as orchids are becoming rare 8. to illustrate: This behaviour illustrates your selfishness.

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Cause & effect 1. Accordingly: I’ve told you what the situation is; you must act accordingly.

2. as a result: The flight was delayed as a result of fog.

3. because: I did it because he told me to.

4. because of: He walked slowly because of his bad leg.

5. consequently: John had to submit his paper in the morning, consequently he couldn’t go out.

6. hence: for this reason: I fell off my bike yesterday; hence the bruises.

7. so: The shops were closed so I couldn’t buy anything.

8. therefore: We had no more milk in the house, therefore, I went to the store to get some 4

Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

9. thereupon: (as the result of that): He was the eldest son and thereupon heir the title.

(Era el hijo mayor y por tanto el heredero del título) 10. thus: He was the eldest son and thus heir the title (Era el hijo mayor y por tanto el heredero del título) •

Concession 1. although it is true that (granted) 2. granted: (used to admit the truth of a statement before introducing a contrary argument) Granted, it is a splendid car, but it is very expensive.

3. I admit that: There were many people in the crowd, I admit that I was a little nervous.

4. of course: If I win the lottery, of course I will give some money to charity.

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To Show Time: 1. after a bit 2. after a few days, 3. after a while 4. afterwards 5. as long as: We can have the meeting last as long as we need to.

6. as soon as 7. at last 8. at length 9. at that time, 10. before 11. earlier 12. immediately 13. in the meantime: John was studying, in the meantime his brother was playing baseball.

14. in the past 15. lately 16. later 17. meanwhile

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Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

18. now 19. presently 20. shortly 21. simultaneously 22. since 23. so far: So far the work has been easy but things may change 24. soon 25. then 26. thereafter 27. until 28. when •

Giving conclusions 1. As a result 2. As has been noted 3. As i have said 4. As we have seen 5. As mentioned earlier 6. In all 7. In any event 8. In conclusion (I’d like to say .............. ): In conclusion, connecting words may also be called transitions.

9. In other words 10. I want to conclude by saying ...............

11. In short: The economy is doing well, in short everybody is happy.

12. On the whole 13. Therefore 14. To conclude 15. To summarise

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16. To sum up

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Departamento de Inglés Carmen Torres

COMBINE THE FOLLOWING PAIRS OF SENTENCES USING A SUITABLE EXPRESSION FROM THE LIST ABOVE: 1. The hotel wasn’t comfortable. It wasn’t clean, either. .................................................................................................................................................... ....

2. Peter plays the piano well. He also composes music. .................................................................................................................................................... ....

3. We could take the car. We could call a taxi. .................................................................................................................................................... ....

4. You need a sleeping-bag if you want to go camping. You need a tent if you want to go camping. .................................................................................................................................................... ....

5. I don’t have his phone number. I don’t have his address. .................................................................................................................................................... ....

FILL IN WITH THE SUITABLE CONNECTOR. 1. He doesn’t study at all................................................, he sits and day-dreams 2. I didn’t ask her to leave......................................................., I tried to persuade her to stay.

3. He’s rather foolish........................................................, she’s a genius.

4. On the one hand you shouldn’t be so aggressive......................................., you shouldn’t

be too timid, 5. He wanted a fishing rod. His father bought him a book .........................................

6. I didn’t invite your friend to the party. ....................................................he wouldn’t have

come.

7. He attacked the senator viciously, but he was never called before the committee. ........................, he was not an important enough figure........................................, his criticism of the senator was public

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Departamento de InglĂŠs Carmen Torres

knowledge. ..............................., there was no case for suggesting he was secretly infiltrating the government.

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There has been no progress in the negotiations between the union and the employers.

The union is determined to get more than the employers have proposed. ......................................, the employers have absolutely no intention of increasing their final offer.

9. Several of the conspirators have been arrested but their leader is as yet unknown. ............................... the police are continuing their investigations.

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