The Best Guide To Ielts Writing PDF

Collected and shared by Tran Manh Trung – Hong Duc University – Thanh Hoa
Collected and Shared by Tran Manh Trung – Foreign Language Department

Hong Duc University – Thanh Hoa Province
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THE BEST GUIDES

TO IELTS WRITING
Thanh Hoa City 12/2012
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FORMAL AND INFORMAL WORD LIST

(Collected and selected by Tran Manh Trung – Hong Duc University)
Rules for formal writing are quite strict, though often unstated. Formal writing is used in academic and
scientific settings whenever you want to convey your ideas to a wide audience, with many possible backgrounds
and assumptions. Unlike casual conversation or emails to friends, formal writing needs to be clear,
unambiguous, literal, and well structured.
Table 01:
Ord INFORMAL/EVERYDAY FORMAL/ACADEMIC VIETNAMESE MEANING
01 a lot of/ loads of/ plenty of a great deal of /numerous/ several nhiều
02 a bit Somewhat (before adj. or adv.)/ slightly một chút ít
03 to get together to collaborate with sbd on smth cộng tác
04 to start/to begin to initiate/to commence smth/v-ing bắt đầu khởi đầu
05 big large (number/percentage), considerable lớn, to lớn
06 thing device/object vật dụng/vật thể
07 stuff material chất liệu, vật liệu
08 to find out to ascertain/discover tìm ra, tìm thấy
09 to do again to repeat lặp lại
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10 to do well to succeed thành công

11 to set up to establish thiết lập
12 to cut down on to reduce giảm bớt
13 to go up to increase tăng lên
14 to come up with to create tạo ra
15 to look into to investigate điều tra
16 to go up and down to fluctuate dao động
17 to bring up a question to raise a question đưa ra vấn đề
18 to get rid of to eliminate loại bỏ
19 to turn down smth to refuse từ chối
20 to turn out smth to produce làm ra, tạo ra
21 to take smth back to retract (a statement) rút lại
22 to put off smth to postpone smth hoãn lại
23 to put up with to tolerate chịu đựng
24 to put away smth to save tiết kiệm, để dành
25 to put down to smth to attribute to quy cho, gán cho
26 to come about to occur xảy ra
27 to give up to relinquish từ bỏ
28 to go back/give back return to swh/ smth trở lại/ trả lại
29 to give off smth to produce (heat) sản sinh, tạo ra
30 to give away to betray tiết lộ, phản bội
31 to carry out smth to conduct tiến hành
32 to seem to appear hình như, dường như
33 to climb to ascend đi lên, tăng lên (số lượng)
34 to help to assist/ aid giúp đỡ
35 to stop to cease dừng lại
36 to use to consume dùng, tiêu dùng
37 to shorten to decrease/ to abbreviate giảm bớt/ rút ngắn
37 to show to demonstrate chỉ ra, chứng minh
38 to go to depart đi, khởi hành
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39 to want to desire mong muốn

40 to end to finish/ to terminate kết thúc
41 to tell to inform thông tin, cho biết
42 to keep preserve/ retain giữ gìn/ giữ
43 to say no to reject từ chối
44 to free to release/ to liberate trả tự do, phóng thích
45 to mend/ to fix to repair sửa chữa
46 to need to require cần
47 to live to reside ở tại, trútại
48 in the end finally/ultimately cuối cùng
49 at once immediately ngay lập tức
50 at the same time simultaneously/ concurrently đồng thời, cùng lúc
51 at first initially đầu tiên
52 on and off intermittently gián đoạn, lúc cólúc không
53 mainly principally/primarily chủ yếu
54 next subsequently tiếp theo
55 again and again repeatedly lặp đi lặp lại
56 so therefore/ consequently vìthế, vìvậy
57 understanding comprehension sự hiểu
58 lack deficiency sự thiếu hụt
59 chance opportunity cơ hội, dịp
60 sweat perspiration mồ hôi
61 house residence nơi cư trú (count)
62 sight vision khả năng nhìn, thị giác
63 friendly amiable thân mật
64 whole complete toàn bộ
65 lively energetically/animated đầy sinh lực/ sống động
67 lucky fortunate may mắn
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68 childish immature/ infantile như trẻ con (tính cách)

69 wrong incorrect/questionable sai/ cóvấn đề
70 worse inferior to thấp kém hơn
71 cheap inexpensive rẻ
72 dim indistinct không rõràng, mờ
73 mad insane điên
74 to lay back to relax thư giãn
75 in charge of responsible for chịu trách nhiệm
76 enough sufficient đầy đủ
77 better superior to tốt hơn, giỏi hơn
78 clear transparent rõràng
79 empty vacant trống không
80 to ask for to require/ to request đòi hỏi, yêu cầu
81 hot (topic) controversial đang gây tranh cãi
82 more and more Increasingly/ unceasingly/non-stop tăng lên không ngừng
83 to get to obtain/ to receive đạt được, lấy , mua
84 bad disappointing tồi tệ, đáng thất vọng
85 to get worse to deteriorate trở nên xấu đi
86 horrible unacceptable không thể chấp nhận, kinh khủng
87 to come in to enter đi vào
88 to talk about to discuss thảo luận
89 to go down to descend đi xuống, giảm xuống
90 to come up with to suggest gợi ý, đưa ra
91 to look at to examine xem xét
92 to pin down to determine quyết tâm , dứt khoát
93 to experience the influence of to be influenced chịu ảnh hưởng
94 Let’s consider … It is important to consider … hãy cân nhắc, xem xét
95 I love/like/prefer Personally, I favour … Tôi thích, tôi ủng hộ
96 On top of that Another point is … một điểm khác nữa là
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97 Government must make laws There is a need for laws cần cóluật về …
98 In a nutshell To state it briefly/ In brief tóm lại
99 Every coin has two sides There are advantages and disadvantages to mọi vấn đề đều cóưu điểm vànhược điểm
100 by chance Incidentally nhân tiện
101 to try to attempt/ to endeavor cố gắng
102 to swap to exchange trao đổi
103 as far as x goes in respect of / with respect to đối với, về phần
104 to skip omit/not attend smth bỏ qua, không tham dự
105 by accident accidentally ngẫu nhiên, tình cờ
106 kids infants/offsprings trẻ em
107 O.K acceptable/ satisfactory được, chấp nhận được
108 to make up for to compensate for đền bù, bùlại
109 to catch on smth to understand nắm bắt, hiểu
110 to go down with a disease to contract a disease mắc bệnh
111 to go up to increase tăng lên
112 to get in touch with to contact liên hệ. liên lạc
113 to let somebody know to inform cho biết
114 to call off to cancel huỷ bỏ, bãi bỏ
115 to sort out to resolve giải quyết, đi đến quyết định
116 to deal with to handle/ to address giải quyết, xử lý
117 small minimal/limited/ modest nhỏ, bé
118 to think of to conceive of/imagine nghĩ về, suy tính
119 about an estimated, approximately, roughly khoảng chừng
120 to do (research) to carry out, perform, undertake tiến hành (nghiên cứu), đảm nhiệm
121 hard difficult, problematic,challenging khó khăn
122 to keep up to maintain duy trì
123 a lot a substantial amount, a considerable sum nhiều
124 stand for denote, represent chỉ, thay cho
126 next adjacent kề cận
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127 prove confirm khẳng định

128 rich affluent, wealthy, prosperous giàu có
129 the same as equivalent to giống nhau, tương đương
130 drink beverage (count) đồ uống
131 man male đàn ông
132 old people senior citizens, retirees người cao tuổi
133 crooks offenders, lawbreakers tội phạm
134 great, awesome preferable, desirable tuyệt vời, đáng ao ước
135 sick of, fed up with dissatisfied with không hài lòng
136 feature characteristic đặc điểm
137 before Prior to trước
138 to think (that) to assume (that) cho rằng
139 Because Owing to or due to the fact that/As a result of vì
140 Nobody can say It is impossible to predict … Không cóthể dự đoán trước
141 I think that It seems that/ It could be argued that nNười ta nói rằng
142 About Regarding/ Concerning Về, về phần
143 And as well as còn, cũng như
144 but while/whereas nưng, khi mà
145 to write a cheque to issue a checque viết tờ ngân phiếu
146 carefull/cautious prudent (imprudent)/prudential cẩn thận, thận trọng
147 to check to verify kiểm tra
148 to agree with to be bound by đồng ývới
149 to go over exeed vượt quá, quámức
150 to hand / to give to submit trình lên, nộp
152 In accordance with Pursuant to Phùhợp với
153 to involve to entail kéo theo, kèm theo
154 lost inadvertently mislaid vôtình thất lạc
155 to make sure to ensure để đảm bảo rằng
156 to order to authorise uỷ quyền
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157 to pay to settle trả tiền, thanh toán

158 to supply to furnish cung cấp
159 to take away to withdraw lấy ra, rút (tiền) ra
160 when we get … On receipt of … Khi nhận được …
161 Whenever we like / want Without prior notice … Không báo trước …
162 One after the other At regular intervals Đều đặn
163 There are no big differences between No significant differences emerges between Không cósự khác biệt đáng kể nào
164 This shows that This demonstrates that Điều này chỉ ra rằng
165 to put smth into action To be implemented/ carried out Được tiến hành, được đưa vào hoạt động
166 etc./ and so forth./ and so on. among other examples vàv.v
167 i.e namely, / that is, tức là, chẳng hạn
168 e.g For example, vídụ
169 vs. versus/as apposed of chống lại, ngược với
170 nice/ cute attractive hấp dẫn, lôi cuốn
171 smart intelligent thông minh
172 come arrive đến
173 lifestyle way of life / manner of life lối sống
174 19th century The nineteenth century Không viết tắt
175 workmate colleague đồng nghiệp
176 tired exhausted mệt mỏi
177 drunk intoxicated bị say rượu
178 sad dejected buồn, chán nản
179 who whom ( đại từ tân ngữ, sau giới từ) ai
180 to get your money back refund your payment lấy lại tiền
181 to pay your bills to settle your account trả tiền hoáđơn mua hàng, thanh toán
182 really extremely cực kỳ, vôcùng
183 to go up to to reach lên tới (con số), đạt tới
184 to work to function hoạt động
185 breathing respiration sự hôhấp
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186 meat-eater carnivore động vật ăn thịt

187 chance opportunity cơ hội
188 wrong erroneous sai sót
189 died out extinct tuyệt chủng
190 relevant pertinent thích đáng, đúng chỗ
191 relatives kindred họ hàng thân tộc
192 copy imitate bắt chước
193 break fracture đập vỡ
194 mix blend pha trộn
195 preference predilection sự thiên vị
196 to come across to find tìm thấy
197 to do away with to abolish bãi bỏ
198 to build up to accumulate tích luỹ
199 to finish off to conclude kết luận
200 to back up to support/to advocate ủng hộ
201 to put forward propose đề xuất, đề nghị
202 to put across to express biểu lộ, bày tỏ
203 to obey a law to comply with a law tuân thủ pháp luật
204 poor country developing country nước nghèo
205 That’s why/ why For this reason, … / … the reason for … Vílýdo này
206 new novel mới
207 dependence surbodination sự phụ thuộc
208 quarrel debate/dispute Cãi nhau
209 In the same way Similarly, Tương tự như vậy
210 to look for to seek Tìm kiếm
211 way manner/solution giải pháp
212 money currency tiền tệ
213 to imagine to conceive / conceivably tưởng tượng
214 place location nơi, vị trí
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215 viewpoint stance lập trường, quan điểm

216 fast/quickly rapidly/ as a matter of urgency nhanh
217 how much to what extent (not applicable to price or amount) tới mức độ nào
218 when (conj) At the time of … Khi mà
219 In/For many years During a considearble period of years Trong nhiều năm
220 to make smth better /to get better to improve/to upgrade cải thiện, làm cho tốt hơn
221 To put on weight to gain weight Tăng cân
223 verb + not + any + noun verb + no + noun … không (cái gì)
224 verb + not + many/much + noun verb + few/little + noun … không (cái gì)
225 to give to provide đưa cho, cung cấp
226 as you can be seen as can be seen như ta cóthể thấy
227 wood timber gỗ
228 to describe to depict môtả
229 to learn by heart to memorise ghi nhớ
230 to go on to continue tiếp tục
231 may be possibly, perhaps cólẽ
232 somehow in a certain way bằng cách nào đó
233 job occupation nghề nghiệp
234 to take on employ thuê
235 to give donate, contribute cho, tặng
236 dad father bố
237 plane aeroplane máy bay
238 (not) smoke. to refrain from smoking không hút thuốc
239 to follow these guidelines. to adhere to these guidelines. theo sự chỉ dẫn
240 gran/granny/nana grandmother bà
241 every year/ each year annually hằng năm
242 glasses spectacles kính đeo mắt
243 shop retail outlet cửa hiệu
244 fridge refrigerator tủ lạnh
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245 TV/ telly television tivi

246 boss employer ông chủ
247 change transform chuyển đổi
248 phone you back return your call gọi điện lại
249 bin man refuse collector người thu rác
250 and so on. / and so forth / etc. among other examples. / or avoid using them v.v.
Academic Language
The term academic language commonly refers to the language that is used in formal situations such as
classrooms, college or universities. Moreover, it is the language of textbooks and exams. Academic language is the
language used by teachers and students in order to acquire new knowledge and skills. It differs in structure and
vocabulary from language used in daily social interactions. This means that academic language includes
specialized vocabulary, as well as conventional text structures such as the use of nominal groups, i.e., groups of
words that provide more information about particular concepts. For example, the language of linguistics includes
words like morphology, language acquisition, or language learning.
Features of Academic Language
The uses of specific linguistic features depend on the discipline for which an assignment is written. For
example, an essay in history may contain a number of past tense verbs than a paper that discusses the dialects
spoken by a particular speech community in which the present tense verbs are used. The three features of academic
languag are lexical, grammatical, and discourse”.
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IELTS Writing Task 2: Useful Language

Memorising set phrases for use in the IELTS test is a highly effective way of achieving a higher score. Try
learning the following signposting language which will make you sound more confident and sophisticated when
writing an opinion or argument essay in Task 2.
Introducing the topic
 Some people argue that…

 Have you ever considered… ?
 The question raises the issue of…
Stating an opinion (thesis statement)
 I believe that…
 It is my belief that…
 This essay will argue that…
Indicating the scope of the essay
 In this essay, I will state…

 This essay will examine…
 … will be covered in this essay.
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Giving reasons
 One reason for this is that…

 This can be explained by…
 This can be attributed to the fact that…
Giving further reasons
 Not only that, but…

 A further reason is…
 It should also be stated that…
Citing general opinions
 It has been claimed that…

 It is widely believed that…
 There is a widespread belief that…
Refuting opinions
 I would dispute this, however.

 However, this is not necessarily the case.
 There are some faults with this reasoning, however.
Hedging strategies
 It could be argued that…

 One explanation might be that…
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 This suggests that…
Strengthening an argument
 There can be no doubt that…

 Therefore, we can say beyond any doubt that…
 These are just some of the reasons why…
Concluding and summarising
 To sum up, … / In summary, … / In short, …

 Overall, … / On the whole, …
 To return to my original idea,…
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IELTS Writing Task 1: Useful Language

1. THE LANGUAGE OF APPROXIMATION
In report writing it is good style to use approximation. Approximation means describing numbers or
statistics by using a fraction that is similar to the exact number. There are a number of reasons for doing this.
Firstly, it is easier for people to understand and remember. Secondly, the numbers or statistics may be more
detailed than necessary.
Table 02:
Ord numbers/statistics similar fractions Ord numbers/statistics similar fractions

1 65 % about two-thirds of 13 1,043 over a thousand
2 28 % just over a quarter of 14 115 over a hundred
3 21 % about a fifth of 15 9 fewer than ten
4 49 % just under a half of 16 2 a small number
5 74 % almost three – quarters of 17 4 a few
6 33.333 % a third of 18 6/7 several
7 92 % most of 19 749,982 about three-quarters of a million
8 98,5 % almost all 20 1,256,890,534 over 1.2 billion
9 19.98 % about a fifth of 21 101,997 about 100,000
10 26 % just over a quarter of 22 248.112 a quarter of a million
11 48.873 % almost a half of 23 1,695,193 about 1.7 million
12 74.25 % nearly three - quarters 24 97 just under a hundred
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2. THE WORDS AND PHRASES TO DESCRIBE TRENDS:
Table 03:
a rise
an increase
a surge
a growth
a peak
a fluctuation
a variation
Nouns
a period of stability
a plateau
a fall
a decrease
a decline
a dip
to rise
to increase
to surge
to grow
to peak
Verbs to skyrocket
to fluctuate
to vary
to fall
to decrease
to decline
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to dip
to dive
to plunge
to show an upward trend

to show a downward trend
to hit the highest point
to hit the lowest point
to reach a peak
to show some fluctuation
to fluctuate wildly
to remain stable
to remain static
to remain unchanged
Phrases to stay constant
to reach a plateau
to level off
to flatten out
the highest
the lowest
the second highest
the third highest
compared to
compared with
relative to
sharply
suddenly
Adverbs rapidly
abruptly
dramatically
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significantly
steadily
considerably
markedly
slightly
gently
gradually
wildly
sharp
sudden
rapid
abrupt
Adjectives
dramatic
steep
significant
steady
considerable
marked
slight
gentle
gradual
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MORE WORDS AND PHRASES TO DESCRIBE TRENDS:
A. Introduction
1. The graph (biểu đồ)/table (bảng)/ shows (cho thấy)/indicates (chỉ)/ illustrates (minh hoạ)/ reveals (tiết lộ)/
represents (trình bày) … 2. It is clear from the graph/table …
3. It can be seen from the graph/table … 4. As the graph/table shows …
5. As can be seen from the graph/table … 6. As is shown by the graph/table …
7. As is illustrated by the graph/table … 8. From the graph / table it is clear …
B. Verbs
1. to constitute/ make up: tạo thành 2. to comprise: bao gồm
3. to account for: chiếm đến 4. to amount to : lên đến (số)
5. to stand at: giữ ở (số) 6. to treble: gấp ba lần
7. to double: gấp đôi 8. to increase three fold: tăng gấp ba lần
9. to halve: chia đôi, giảm đi một nửa 10. to diminish: sụt giảm, làm sụt giảm
11. to slow down: chậm lại 12. to remain the same/ unchanged: không thay đổi, giữ nguyên
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13. to deplete: làm giảm 14. to lessen: giảm bớt, làm giảm bớt
15. to escalate: leo thang, tăng nhan 16. to stand at the same level: giữ nguyên
17. to fall to … %: giảm tới … % 18. to fall from … %: giảm xuống dưới … %
19. to fall by …%: giảm khoảng … % 20. to drop to … : giảm tới … %
21. to rise to … %: tăng tới … % 22. to rise by … %: tăng khoảng
23. to rise from … %: tăng từ … %
24. to increase at …% /reduce at … %: tăng/giảm … %
25. to increase to … /reduce to … : tăng/giảm tới … (số)
26. to remain relatively steady: vẫn duy trìtương đối ổn định
C. Adverbs
1. exceptionally: cábiệt, khác thường 2. remarkably: đáng chúý
3. moderately: vừa phải 4. extremely/enormously: cực kỳ, rất
5. substantially: to lớn, đáng kể 6. marginally: hơi, đôi chút
7. hardly/ scarcely: hầu như không 8. slowly: chậm
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D. Prepositions and prepositional phrases
1. In/within the range of … and … :Trong phạm vi
2. For/During the first six months, …: Trong sáu tháng đầu
3. During the remainder of the year, …: Trong thời gian còn lại của năm …
4. During the first half of this century, …: Trong nửa đầu thế kỷ này …
5. Between 1950 and 1960, …: Giữa năm 1950 và1960 …
6. In the period from 1960 to 1990, … :Trong giai đoạn từ 1960 to 1990 …
7. In the period between 1950 and 1960, … : Trong giai đoạn giữa năm 1950 và1990 …
8. From that time on: Từ thời gian đó trở đi
9. Over a ten-year period, … : Trong giai đoạn 10 năm
10. Throughout the nineteenth century: Trong suốt thế kỷ 19
11. Unlike …: Không giống với …
12. In contrast to …: so với … /tương phản với …
13. In comparison with … : so sánh với …
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E. Nouns and noun phrases
1. overview: cái nhì

n khái quát, cái nhì
n tổng quan
2. a large number /percentage of … : một số lớn /một tỷ lệ phần trăm lớn của …
3. the whole/total amount/quantity of … : tổng lượng của …
4. the total number of … : tổng số của … 5. An increase of … %: sự tăng lên … %
6. trend: khuynh hướng 7. correlation: mối liên hệ
8. a drop of … %: sự giảm … % 9. an increase in … : sự tăng về …
10. a slight increase: sự tăng nhẹ 11. a drop in …: giảm về ….
F. Comparison
1. Comparing the figures for 1990 and 2000 …: So sánh các con số của năm 1990 vànăm 2000 …
2. Compared to/with x, y is …: So với x, y thì…
3. Comparing with x, y is more …: so với x , y thìhơn…
4. Comparing X with Y we find that … : So sánh X với Y chúng ta nhận thấy …
5. Comparing x with y, it can be seen by us that …: So sánh x với y chúng ta cóthể thấy rằng …
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Types of Trend
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THE RULES SHOULD BE MEMORISED

PRIOR TO WRITING ACADEMIC ESSAYS
Rule 01: Avoid using contractions or abbreviations. (Ex. Use can not instead of can’t)
Avoid contracted auxiliary verbs and negatives. These are very common in informal speech and writing, but
are considered inappropriate in academic writing.
Non-academic: I don’t think that I’m working hard.

Academic: I do not think that I am working hard.
For example: can’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t, didn’t, I’ll, I’ve, I’d, won’t, etc…
Note that “cannot” is one word.
Do not use abbreviations or symbols.
Spell the words out. Ex: & = and; dept. = department
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Rule 02: Use third person voice or impersonal language.
(Ex. One can interpret...instead of You can interpret...)
In other words, the impersonal language should be used. Most formal writing aims to establish an air of
objectivity and impartiality, an air with which the personal pronouns I, me, and my seem inconsistent. In truth,
objectivity results from proper use of evidence and logic rather than pronoun choices, but there is something to be
said for seeming as well as being objective. Moreover, some professors prohibit their students from using first-
person pronouns as a kind of discipline: many students do inject personal opinions and unexamined assumptions
where persuasiveness demands objective evidence, and prohibiting personal pronouns seems to help curb this
tendency.
The convention in much academic writing is to write with minimal reference to yourself as an author. The
reason for this lies in a tradition of needing to present your work "objectively", as the work of a dispassionate and
disinterested (that is, unbiased) researcher. So, one of the features of academic writing is a general absence of the
first person pronoun "I". This can be difficult, as lecturers often say, "tell me what you think". Well, they do want
to know what you think, but presented as a rational, objective argument. For this reason we also avoid using
emotive language; instead we let the "facts" - or our reasoned argument - make the point for us.
It is important to note that while the avoidance of "I" has long been part of the academic tradition, these days
some academics consider its use to be acceptable. So, you may encounter different views about the use of "I" over
the course of your degree. In any case, you will need to develop the flexibility in your writing to play down the
"personal element". Your lecturer, Cathi Lewis, for example, has stated that she prefers undergraduates to avoid the
use of "I" in Introduction to Sociology (See the Lecturer's Advice section of this tutorial). Regardless of your
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particular lecturer's views, you will need to learn how to use "I" sparingly. So let's look at how we can write
passages without reference to the first person pronoun.
Avoid personal "I", "you", and "we", except for the thesis statement. So, instead of: "As I mentioned
above...", write" "As was mentioned above..." except for the thesis statement. So, instead of: "As I mentioned
above...", write" "As was mentioned above..."
There are several ways to avoid using the first person pronoun "I":
One way is to let the assignment "speak for itself": for example,
"I show..." becomes "The report shows..."
"I interpret the results as..." becomes "The results indicate..."
Another way to avoid the first person is to use the passive voice construction:
Instead of write
"We administered the questionnaire..." "The questionnaire was administered..."
(active voice) (passive voice)

"I surveyed the literature" "The literature was surveyed"

"I took a sample..." "A sample was taken"
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NOTE: for further help with using the passive voice, go to the passives tutorial in the Grammar section of this
Website.
- The second-person singular pronoun - you - raises a similar issue when used to refer to a hypothetical rather than
a real individual. Consider the following sentence:
You eat peas with a fork, not with a knife.
- This you is not a definite person who chooses to eat peas with one utensil rather than another. The meaning of the
sentence is actually something like, "Peas should be eaten with a fork, not with a knife." This you is a fictional
character who in sentences of this kind also frequently goes by the name one, and who is standing in for a whole
class of persons.
- The fictional you is a welcome character in speech and informal writing but is perhaps best left out of formal
writing. Since your reader, too, is you, the hypothetical or indefinite you may seem to cross a little too far into the
reader's space for the maintenance of an impersonal air.
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Rule 03: Be sure to use transitions between points, within a paragraph.
Use appropriate linking words/phrases to show the links between paragraph, as well as to link sentences
within paragraphs. Do not use simple linking words (e.g. and, but, so) except for variety.
Conjunctions: avoid weak conjunctions such as "but." This is a VERY weak word with which to begin a
sentence. Look in the thesaurus for others, such as "however," "moreover," "nevertheless," "nonetheless,"
"regardless," etc. Although it is grammatically correct to begin sentences with "And", “Or”, and "Because," you
should be careful and avoid doing this because many students do not do so correctly.
- Coordinating Conjunctions (and, but, or, yet, so):
Put a comma before these conjunctions. (Don't use them at the beginning of a sentence in more formal writing.)
example: The movie has already started, but my friend has not arrived yet.
- Correlative Conjunctions (These have two parts: either . . . or):
* Put a comma before the second part if it connects 2 clauses (complete sentences).
example: Eric is not only an outstanding teacher, but he is also a gourmet cook.
* You don't need a comma if it only connects words or phrases.

example: Eric is not only an outstanding teacher but also a gourmet cook.
- Transitional Words and Phrases:
* Put a comma after these if they are at the beginning of a sentence.

example: I like to travel. Specifically, I enjoy places with old cathedrals.
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* Use a semicolon to connect the two sentences.

example: I like to travel; specifically, I enjoy places with old cathedrals.
* Use a comma before and after the transitional word/phrase in the middle of a clause.
example: I like to travel, and, specifically, I enjoy places with old cathedrals.
Some Common English Transition Words and Phrases

Adding Information Examples
and We have seen the movie twice, and now we want to see it again.
not only . . . but also Not only did my brother break his leg, but he also bruised his rib.
also My friend speaks Korean and English. She also speaks Chinese.
moreover (more formal) Cheating is dishonest. Moreover, it hinders students from learning.
furthermore (more formal) Students should be on time. Furthermore, they must be prepared.
in addition (more formal) You must complete this essay by 5 p.m. In addition, you must do the exercises on page 47.
Giving Examples Examples
for example I have been to many countries. For example, I have been to Russia, Canada, Mexico, and
for instance Spain.
specifically He often eats strange foods. For instance, he once ate cow brains.
in particular I like to travel. Specifically, I enjoy places with old cathedrals.
The first (second, another, etc.) I love fruit. In particular, I like bananas, pineapple, and berries.
example/reason is . . . My friend hates skiing for several reasons. The first reason is that she dislikes being cold.
Another reason is that she often falls.
Showing a Contrast Examples
but Bill earned an A on his essay, but Susan got a B.

however We wanted to leave at 8:00. However, Mike arrived too late.
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on the other hand She hates housecleaning. On the other hand, she doesn't mind cooking.
otherwise Students should attend class. Otherwise, they may lose their status.
instead I am not going out tonight. Instead, I will stay home and watch a video.
in contrast (more formal) Women usually enjoy shopping. In contrast, men often dislike it.
Showing a Concession Examples
yet He knows that he should do his homework, yet he never does it.
nevertheless (more formal) I need to wear reading glasses. Nevertheless, I hate how I look in them.
even so I know you don't like to study. Even so, you must pass your exam.
however There are many benefits to exercising. However, you must take some precautions to avoid
although injury.
even though Even though the book is difficult to read, it is very interesting.
despite the fact that . . . Although the book is difficult to read, it is very interesting.
despite Despite the fact that Kate is good at tennis, she lost the match.
Despite Kate's skill at tennis, she lost the match.
Showing a Similarity Examples
likewise (more formal) Math was hard for me in high school. Likewise, it is hard in college.
similarly (more formal) Houseplants require much care and attention. Similarly, outdoor plants must be cared for
in the same way properly.
Rock climbing takes much practice and skill. In the same way, learning to write well
requires a great deal of practice.
Showing a Result Examples
so Janet passed her exam, so she is very happy.

as a result Tim was late. As a result, we could not go to the concert.
therefore James is not feeling well. Therefore, he will not be here today.
thus (more formal) The committee voted against the proposal. Thus, we must consider another idea.
as a consequence I forgot that the cake was in the oven. As a consequence, it burned.
consequently (more formal) Tina lost her keys. Consequently, she could not drive home.
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Establishing Time Relation or Examples

Sequence
First, I think that she is studying hard.
first Second, I believe that she is a bright student.
second Finally, I know that she has great potential.
finally In conclusion, I feel that she deserves to win the scholarship.
in conclusion In summary, we should offer her some financial help.
in summary Jeff was working hard to clean the house. Meanwhile, his brother was watching television.
meanwhile
Showing a Condition Examples
or I must study hard, or I will fail my exam.

whether . . . or Whether you are coming or not, I am still going to Amy's party.
if . . . (then) If you want to get good grades, then you must do your homework.
Explaining or Emphasizing Examples
in fact The bookstore sells cards. In fact, they have the best cards around.
actually James is actually the first person I have known who has been to Africa.
in other words He was late to class again. In other words, he didn't wake up on time.
namely (more formal) The plan needed only two things to succeed—namely, time and money.
Giving an Alternative Examples
or We can go to the beach, or we can go to the mountains.

either . . . or You can either ride the bus or walk to my apartment.
neither . . . nor (more formal) I like neither that person nor his brother.
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Rule 04: Use present tense
In writing about literature the present tense must be used.

Ex: The three bears see Goldilocks and they run away.
NOT: The three bears saw Goldilocks and ran away.
 DO: When Andy tries to speak to the drunk man in the alley, he feels pain in his stomach.
 DON’T: When Andy had tried to speak to the drunk man, he felt pain in his stomach.
In English, the present simple tense is used to describe habitual actions and events, and those that are usually
true. It is said that the present simple is used to say that something happens all the time or repeatedly, or that
something is true in general. As shown in the following examples:
- I takemy breakfast every morning at 7 o’clock.
- Nurseslookafter patients in hospitals.
Moreover,it is used to express facts. For example, the planets go round the sun. In the present simple, the
verb does not take an ending with the following pronouns: I, you, they, and we. However, in the third person
singular (he, she, and it), the verb ends with “s” or “es”, as in the following examples:
- I usually goaway at weekends.
- Sarah catchesthe early train.
More precisely, in academic writing, the use of the present simple is often conventionalized and
predominantly used. For example, in linguisticsessays, it is used to explain aspecific linguistic phenomenon which
is always true.
- A child acquires language during the critical period.
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- Language is a set of signals by which we communicate.

- Code switching occurs in bilingual societies.
Tense-shifting: ─ NEVER switch tenses when answering questions on tests or when writing essays. Although the
past tense is acceptable, (as long as there is no switching to other tenses), try to always use the present tense.
Even though the novel/short story/play/poem, etc. obviously has been written in the "past," writing/discussion of
texts should be in present tense.
Rule 05: Avoid using colloquialisms (slang).

For example: kids, dude, gal, guy, homies, etc…
Don't use slang. This is the time to show off the best English you know. Find the correct way to express
your thoughts and convey your ideas, without resorting to slang. Be aware that certain expressions, such as "kids"
instead of "children" and "guys" or "gals" instead of "men" or "women", also fall into the category of slang and
should be avoided.
Rule 06: Use gender neutral language (replace he, she with they, the character, or by name)
Although in the past it was acceptable to use "he" when referring to both men and women, it is no longer
acceptable to do so now. Why? Because linguists found that language use actually does have an impact on the way
people think and act. If pronouns are always "he," and certain professions are always fireman, policeman, chairman,
congressmen, etc, then it is more likely that men -- by simple virtue of the privileged masculine pronoun and noun
use -- will fill those positions, and that women will feel that they do not belong in them. Avoiding sexist pronouns
will help you find liberation from these restricting gender roles.
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Even if you disagree with the above theory, using "he" only pronouns is a practice that is no longer tolerated
in MLA style. You should instead choose to pluralize your subject and use "they" or "their" when referring back to
that subject. Or you can choose "he or she," but if you need to write "he or she" more than twice in the sentence,
you might give your reader a headache. Try to avoid "s/he" or "he/she" simply because it is unsightly. Really the
best solution is pluralization. (When implementing the plural solution, remember the principle of agreement.
"Everyone needs their umbrella" is not grammatical, because "everyone" is a singular subject.)
o Sexist: If a medical student wants to succeed, he has to learn to budget his time wisely.
o Liberated: If medical students want to succeed, they have to learn to budget his time wisely.
o Sexist: If one wants to become a DJ, he has to be familiar with the current music styles and have a
strong sense of internal rhythm and musical flow.
o Liberated: If one wants to become a DJ, he or she has to be familiar with the current music styles and
have a strong sense of internal rhythm and musical flow.
o Sexist: A good computer programmer has to root his knowledge in practical experience.
o Liberated: Good computer programmers have to root their knowledge in practical experience.
Use non-sexist language: Avoid the word "man" and "he/his/him" when referring to general phenomena.
When writing sentences, there are two ways to do this:
A) Make it plural.
Sexist Language Good Alternative

Give each student his paper Give students their papers
as soon as he is finished. as soon as they are finished.
The average student is The average student is
worried about his grade. worried about grades.
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B) If necessary, use ONE, HE/SHE.
Sexist Language Good Alternative

If a student got an A, he did not Anyone who got an A, did not
have to do the extra work. have to do the extra work.
Anyone who wants to go to the If a student wants to go to the
game tomorrow should bring game tomorrow, she/he
his money. should bring money.
C) Also, see this table:
Usually Inappropriate Good Alternatives

mankind humanity, people, human beings
man•fs achievements human achievements
man-made synthetic, manufactured, machine-made
the common man the average person, ordinary people
man the ship staff the ship
six man-hours six staff-hours
chairman coordinator (of a committee or department), moderator (of a meeting), presiding officer,
head, chair
businessman business executive
fireman firefighter
mailman mailcarrier
steward and stewardess flight attendant
policeman and policewoman police officer
congressman congressional representative
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Rule 07: Avoid repetition.
Do not use the same word or the same sentence structure too frequently.
Repetition means that the same lexical item in several sentences subsequent to its first occurrence is repeated.
For example, in this section, the phrase “lexical cohesion” is repeated more than twice. In addition, repetition helps
to reinforce key ideas and new terms. However, the overuse of repetition in academic writing results in a text
which sounds monotonous, i.e., it does not invite the reader to read it since it contains a lot of repetitions. This
problem can be overcome by shifting the position of the repeated items in the sentence.
Use rich vocabulary: You have learned English for many years and this is the time to use what you know.
Stay away from over-used adjectives such as "good" or "bad". Instead, use more dramatic, expressive words, such
as excellent, wonderful, superb, or adverse, horrible, terrible, etc. Choose the more precise word over the more
general one. This will make your language come alive, in speech or in writing, and earn you higher marks.
Rule 08: Avoid using imperative language.
Use imperative voice sparingly in a scientific paper, because it comes across as rude (as do many of the
sentences in what you are reading right now!). E.g. do not say "Recall that ...". Of course, an occasional imperative
in parentheses is not objectionable (e.g. "(see Walker 1996 for more details).").
Rule 09: Be sure to use but and however correctly
(See examples of correct usage below)

- I do not like homework, but I understand it’s important.
- I wish I studied more; however, I still did well on the test
- I am sick today and will miss the test, however, this will give me more time to study.
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"But" and "however" are not interchangeable

The words "but" and "however" have similar meanings, but they are not interchangeable. If you take a
grammatically correct sentence containing "but" and replace it with "however", or vice versa, the result will almost
always be incorrect, mainly because of comma punctuation.
Correct examples:
"I like oranges, but I do not like tangerines."
"I like oranges. However, I do not like tangerines."
"I like oranges; however, I do not like tangerines."
"I, however, do not like grapefruits."
"I like oranges however they have been prepared."
If you exchange any of these "but"s and "however"s, then the sentences would become incorrect, and in
some cases meaningless.
Rule 10: Avoid using ‘it’ and ‘this’ at the start of a sentence.
If necessary, however, join the two sentences using a comma or semi-colon. See examples below. Use 'It' as
a subject; e.g. 'It is impossible to...'
Incorrect: I love the snow. It is fun to play in.

Correct: I love the snow; it is fun to play in.
(A comma can also be used in place of the semi-colon)
Notes: It is aceptable to use ‘it’ as a preparatory subject. (See more at Rule 28)
It is advisable to memorise the following useful phrases:
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1. It goes without saying that …/ Of course, …

2. It is quite clear that …/ Obviously, …
3. It is worth pointing out that …/ Another point is …
4. It does not seem unreasonable to suggest that …/ In my opinion, …
5. It is often argued that …/ People say that …
6. It is sometimes suggested that/ People say that …
7. It is particularly significant that … / Importantly, …
8. It could be argued that …? Perhaps,….
9. It is likely that …/ Probably, ….
Rule 11: Avoid very strong language
E.g. I know. I am sure…

Avoid using words that express your opinion too strongly
Low certainty Medium certainty/Hedging High certainty
undoubtedly, absolutely, certainly, definitely,

seldom, rarely, never, probably, perhaps, likely, occasionally, sometimes,
incredible, amazing, unbelievable, particularly,
improbable, impossible, generally, may, might, can, could, appears to be,
very, vitally, totally, wholly, often, must, would,
unattainable ... seems to be, tends to be, suggests, considers ...
should ...
In addition to a formal voice, you should also maintain a cool-headed, objective tone. Tone usually becomes an
issue when you are writing about hot topics you feel strongly about -- religion, for example, or cultural values.
Even when you strongly disagree with an idea, avoid getting "emotional" in your expression. Avoid seeming angry,
45
or condescending, or rude. Keep your calm and remain scholarly, and try to portray yourself as one who is
objectively assessing the situation.
 Emotional: We must do everything we can to legalize gay marriage. For the sake of equality, the rights of
liberty and freedom that our forefathers fought for--it is essential!!! Don't let conservatives take over your
government and impose their puritanical moral values on everyone. This is only going to lead to dozens of
more restrictions that those white-haired conservatives will impose in their cozy congress seats!
 Objective: Keeping gay marriage illegal poses significant questions about the constitutionality of such laws.
The forefathers who wrote the Constitution believed an individual's freedom was vitally important, and that
as long as the actions did not cause directly harm to society, the actions should not be decriminalized.
Rule 12: Do not use a series of short sentences or simple sentences.
E.g. Many people think so. They are wrong.
Rule 13: You should NOT:
- use brackets and dashes to add information
- use exclamation marks (!!!) in your essay
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Rule 14: Avoid very emotional language
e.g. I absolutely detest people who…

Rule 15: Do not express personal opinions too strongly
e.g. I know…; instead, use milder expressions (e.g. It seems to me that… Express your opinion in a non-emotional
way (e.g. It seems that, I therefore feel, etc.)
Rule 16: Do not use over-generalisation (e.g. All politicians are…)
Avoid:
 Everyone knows that…
 What goes around comes around…
Rule 17: Do not refer blindly to statistics without accurate reference to their source.
e.g. "A recent study showed…" - which study?)
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Rule 18: Do not use cliches
e.g. Rome was not built in a day.
Clichés are words and phrases that tend to be overused and do not make for good writing. They should be
avoided in professional and academic writing.
Examples: Don’t count your chickens before they have hatched.
Let sleeping dogs lie.
These phrases can add colour and life to informal speech; however, in
writing, they appear to be substitutes for clear thought.
 We cannot build a new school at this point in time.

 Who would have thought that slavery could exist in this day and age?
 The Prime Minister believed that at the end of the day her policies would be vindicated.
Some more examples of clichés are:
 Raining like cats and dogs.

 Like a pig in mud.
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 Over the hill.

 In the dog house.
 Back against the wall.
 Under the gun.
 My two cents.
 Stubborn as a mule.
 Bite your tongue.
 Dyed in the wool.
 Wrong side of the bed.
 The calm before the storm.
 Hair of the dog,

 On thin ice.
 Eye for an eye.
 Tongue-in-cheek.
 The third time is the charm.
Rule 19: Do not use personal examples
e.g. In my school…
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Rule 20: Do not use colloquial language
Casual conversational language that has a wider general acceptance than slang.
Examples: - Let’s do lunch.
- I’m going to get back at him.
Colloquial language is generally acceptable in casual spoken English, but it is unacceptable in formal speaking
situations, and in written English.
Rule 21: Do not use metaphor
A metaphor takes a name or descriptive term and applies it to a person or object in a non-literal sense - for
example, 'a glaring error', 'the heart of the matter', 'pillar of the community', 'wave of terrorism', and so on.
Rule 22: Do not use similes
A simile compares a person, action or object with something else - for example, 'fly like an eagle', 'solid as
a rock', 'as happy as Larry', 'pleased as Punch', and so on.
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Well-chosen metaphors and similes can give your writing immense expressive power. Once a metaphor or
simile has become a cliché, it no longer provides a vivid image for the reader. Consequently, instead of impressing
your readers with your writing style, you leave them with the impression that you have nothing of substance to say.
Rule 23: Do not use figures of speech
Figures of speech are closely related to clichés. Like metaphors and similes, figures of speech provide a
writer with a colourful or forceful means to draw attention to a particular point but should be avoided in academic
writing.
 The cleaners were advised to lift their game or else.

 Management has been on a steep learning curve.
 It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Rule 24: Do not use euphemisms
Expressions that soften orobscure the meaning that you wish to convey.
Examples: - a guest of the government (in jail)
- pre-owned (used)
- passed away (died)
- tactical omission (lie)
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Euphemisms are good if they spare someone’s feelings, but they are bad if they obscure meaning, or give a
positive connotation to something illegal, immoral, or otherwise unacceptable.
Rule 25: Do not talk about parts of the paragraph.
 Do not write:
 this paragraph shows…
 The topic sentence is…
 A quote that proves this is…
Rule 26: Do not begin a sentence with numerals.
For example, instead of writing: "400 people..." write: "Four hundred people..."
Spell out all numbers less than 10. Ex: 6 = six Never start a sentence with a number unless you spell it out.
Ex: 15 students…. = Fifteen students …
Use numerals 10 or above. Instead of writing: "There were 9 people...", write: "There were nine people..."
Rule 27: Do not use non-specific words.
For example: stuff, things, lots, etc…
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Rule 28: Do not use ambiguous words.
For example: this, these, his, it, they, there is, there are, etc…
These words have no meaning in themselves, but in conversation the meaning is usually clear from the context.
In written text, however, the intended meaning is quite often not evident to the reader, because there are many
possible interpretations of "it" and "this".
Notes:
1. It is aceptable to use ‘this’, ‘that’, ‘these’, and ‘those’ when a noun directly afterward clarifies the meaning of
the pronoun.
Eg: “This character traits …”
2. It is aceptable to use ‘it’ as a preparatory subject. (See more at Rule 10)
If you want to indicate that an opinion or belief is widely held, you can use the passive form of a reporting
verb with it as its impersonal subject.
It is widely believed that the standard of spoken English has declined in recent years.
The following reporting verbs are often used in this way:
accept acknowledge argue claim estimate predict
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You should use tentative language when discussing findings or views in your reports and presentations.
When you want to avoid expressing strong claims or opinions you can use the verbs appear and seem. In the
sentences overleaf, the subject of appear and seem is it. As you can see, they are followed by that-clauses.
It appears that interest in Putonghua has increased since the handover.

It would seem that students in Hong Kong are less motivated to learn English than their counterparts in Shanghai.
3. It is aceptable to use ‘there is’ as a preparatory subject. (See Rule 44)
Rule 29: Do not ask rhetorical questions.
Readers want answers! So, instead of: "Do you know where the origin of tea is?" Write: "Tea originated in
southern China near the border with India."
A rhetorical question is a question for which no answer is expected. A rhetorical question is one in a written
text where the writer assumes the reader knows the answer, or where the writer goes on to answer the question in
the text. Such questions are inappropriate for academic writing: readers might not know the answer and the point
being made could be more strongly and clearly expressed as a statement. You should not risk your point being
misunderstood: make your point clear and 'up front'; for example:
54
Informal (includes rhetorical question) Formal

Industrial sites cause vast amounts of environmental The question surrounding the continued use of industrial sites, given
pollution, so why do we still use them? their vast pollution production, still remains.
What is a team? A team can be one person but will A team can include one person but usually involves many more.
usually end up including many more.
The question is, however, does the "Design School It is questionable whether the "Design School Model" provides a
Model" provide a practical solution to the problem practical solution to the problem of strategy formulation.
of how to formulate strategy?
Rule 30: Write "most people”, instead of the incorrect "most of people"
Likewise, "most women", "most animals", etc. But "most of the people" is OK.
Rule 31: Do not use the expressions and so on or etc.
Instead use such as.

The expression and so on is too unclear for formal writing. Thus, instead of the informal "Japan imports
potatoes, corn, wheat, and so on," write "Japan imports food such as potatoes, corn and wheat."
Run on expressions include phrases such as 'and so forth', 'and so on' or 'etc'. Try to complete the sentence
properly; do not use these if you can avoid them; for example:
55
Informal (includes run on) Formal Alternative

Nurses must take into Nurses must take into
consideration patients' dietary consideration patients' dietary
needs resulting from allergies, needs resulting from allergies,
medication, medical conditions medication and medical
and so on. conditions.
Public transport includes vehicles Public transport includes vehicles
for public use on the roads, for public use, such as buses,
airways, waterways etc. trains and aeroplanes.
Rule 32: Place adverbs within the verb

Adverbs should be placed within the verb group rather than in the initial or final positions. In informal English,
adverbs often occur as clauses at the beginning or end of sentences; for example:
Informal Formal Alternative

Then the solution can be The solution can then be
discarded. discarded.
The blood is withdrawn slowly. The blood is slowly withdrawn.
Rule 33: Avoid phrases such as "I believe," "I feel," and "I think."
Even worse are phrases that add an adverb, such as "I strongly believe." Your tone will be much more
confident if you just make the statement without preface.
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Rule 34: Avoid words that do not change the meaning of the sentence.
Unnecessary words like "Actually", "Really" or "Basically" can be omitted. 8
Rule 35: Do not use dialogues (conversations) in a formal essay.

For example, instead of writing: "Will you come?" You should write: He asked me if I would come.
Rule 36: Do not use informal language
- In formal English one would use the word “whom” instead of the word “who” in certain situations.
Formal: Whom did they elect?
Informal: Who did they elect?
Formal - Use 'whom' as an object: Whom have they chosen for the position?
Informal - Use 'who' as an object: Who have they chosen for the position?
Formal : With whom did you study?
Informal : Who did you study with?
In informal language prepositions often come at the end of certain structures.
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Formal: To which nation does he belong?

Informal: Which nation does he belong to?
Some pronouns have different forms in formal and informal language.
In informal language we often leave out some words.
Formal: She said that she would come.

Informal: She said she would come.
Formal: Have you seen Annie?
Informal: Seen Annie?
Rule 37: Avoid using unnecessary words
Wordy phrases Using better English

1. it would appear that ... 1. apparently ...
2. with the exception of ... 2. except ...
3. in connection with ... 3. about ...
4. are found to be in agreement with ... 4. agree ...
5. a large majority of ... 5. most ...
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6. in the event that ... 6. if ...

7. a disproportionate number ... 7. few ...
8. arrive at a decision ... 8. decide ...
9. for a further period of ten years ... 9. for another ten years ...
10. such is by no means the case ... 10. this is not so ...
11. in the field of education ... 11. in education ...
12. they are without legal representation whatsoever ... 12. they have no legal representation ...
13. in the case of the third question ... 13. in the third question ...
14. at the present time, overseas companies are ... 14. overseas companies are now ...
15. there is really somewhat of an obligation on behalf of the department of health ... 15. the Department of Health is obliged ...
Rule 38: Use singular determiners with plural verbs

Determiners like each, every, either and neither are singular. They should be followed by singular verbs. Of
course, in an informal style, you can put plural verbs after them, but if you do that in your IELTS essay, the
examiner will not be too happy with you.
Non-academic: Neither of us like him.

Academic: Neither of us likes him.
59
Rule 39: Avoid idiomatic language

English is highly idiomatic, but idiomatic expressions are not always considered appropriate in academic
writing. Of course, it is not easy to avoid all of them and it is not necessary either. You can use some idioms, but
you must avoid the more ‘colourful’ ones like ‘raining cats and dogs’, ‘hit the nail on the head’ or ‘throw the baby
out with the bathwater’. Some idioms, on the other hand, are perfectly acceptable in all kinds of writing.
Rule 40: Do not start sentences with ‘And’, ‘Also’, ‘So’, ‘Or’, ‘Even so’, and ‘But’
Starting a sentence with them is sometimes considered inappropriate. A few decades ago it was considered
totally unacceptable. Even today you can find several grammar books that advise against starting sentences with
these conjunctions. However, the truth is that more and more academic writers now begin sentences with them.
You must, however, make a conscious effort to avoid them just to be on the safe side.
Instead of these, use `In addition', `However', `Hence', `Consequently', `Alternatively', `Nevertheless' at the
beginninge of the sentence.
Rule 41: Do not use informal phrasal verbs
You cannot avoid all of them in your writing. It is not necessary either. Just make sure that you do not use a
large number of phrasal verbs in your essay. (See Table 01, p2)
60
Rule 42: Use passives

Passives without ‘agents’ are common in academic and scientific writing. By using passive structures we
will be able to limit the use of personal pronouns. Passive structures are also preferred when we want to talk about
an action, but are not interested in saying who or what did / does it.
The passive voice is one of the two voices in English. It is contrasting with active voice. In the passive, the
object of the active voice becomes the subject, and the subject becomes the agent or object of the passive action.
The passive sentence is indicated through a by-phrase or omitted altogether as shown in the following examples.
- In recent years, researchers have published several analyses of survey data (activesentence).
- In recent years, several analyses of survey data have been published.
Furthermore, the passive voice is used much more in academic language than in everyday language. Certain
grammatical features like the present simple and the passive voice are dominant and used frequently in academic
writing than in general English. So, passive constructions have been identified as one of the prominent features of
academic language. Moreover, the use of the passive voice in 6 such a type of language intends to create an
indirect style and showsthe writer’s objectivity. This can be achieved by using another form of passive which is
frequently used in academic writing (it is said that…... he is said to) as shown in the following examples:
- The child acquires the language in short period of time.
61
- It is said that the child acquires the language in a short period of time.
Similarly, using the passive voice in academic language is often more suitable than activeconstructions and is
considered the most used in written genres
Rule 43: Employ tentative rather than assertive language.

- using possibly and probably in front of verbs and noun phrases; e.g. 'This is possibly caused by...' or 'This is
probably the most important factor.'
- using the modal verbs may and might; e.g. 'This may be the most important factor.'
- using appears to + V and seems to + V; e.g. 'This appears to be the most important factor.'
- avoiding always and every, and replacing them with often and many/much.
- avoiding certainly and obviously because this language can be condescending to your reader.
Academic writing argument is rarely expressed in strongly positive language. To express an idea or finding
in such a way would leave the writer open to attack by critical readers. To avoid making strong claims and
expressing subjective opinions, academic writers use tentative rather then assertive language. Compare the
tentative and assertive language in the table below.
62
Tentative expression Assertive expression
One could argue that the overall The overall standard of English in Hong Kong has clearly improved.
standard of English in Hong Kong
has improved
Modal verbs such as could, may and might are common in academic writing because they help writers
express uncertainty or tentativeness. Also common are the verbs appear to and seem to, as well as adverbs of
probability: perhaps, possibly, probably, likely, unlikely.
Of course, depending on viewpoint and the available evidence, a writer can express greater or lesser degrees
of certainty. Look at the examples in the table below.
1. Positive and assertive: Clearly, then, Hong Kong student’s standard of written Chinese is declining.
2. Suggesting likelihood: The evidence seems to suggest that Hong Kong student’s standard of written
Chinese is declining.
3. Expressing less likelihood: It may/might/could be the case that Hong Kong student’s standard of written
Chinese is declining.
63
4. Negative: It is unlikely that Hong Kong student’s standard of written Chinese is declining.
Rule 44: Use 'One' and ‘There’ as a subject

e.g. 'One may ask whether...' ('One' is a formal version of 'You' [plural] in general) and Use 'There' as a subject;
e.g. 'There is a serious risk of...'
Some more phrases and their alternatives
- One could say that … / Perhaps, …
- One could draw the conclusion that …/ In conclusion, …
- As one might expect … / Naturally …
- There is not a shadow of doubt that … / Certainly, …
There is the possibility that …. / Possibly, …
There can be no doubt that …/ I am sure …
There are those who maintain that … / Some people say ….
There is a school of thoughts that … / Some people say ….
There is a strong likelihood that … / Probably, …
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Rule 45: Use It is because and This is because correctly.
Language Analysis:
It is because is used in the following situations:
1. To introduce an explanation of cause and effect use It is because:
It is because of parents like her that our school is such a wonderful place. (like= similar to)
It is because of my close association with the organisation that I know all the good that it does.
It is because the body is a machine that education is possible.
It is because workers today produce far more than those in the past that we have a higher standard of living.
Structure:
It is because + cause + ‘that’ + effect.
Grammar:
It is because of + cause (noun or noun phrase) + ‘that’+ effect (clause).
e.g. It is because of your smile that I feel happy.
It is because + cause (clause with a subject and a verb) + ‘that’ + effect (clause).
e.g. It is because you smiled that I feel happy.
65
2. To refer back to a cause, then give an effect, use it is because of this:
These countries’ economies are in great turmoil and it is because of this that pollution creates a huge problem.
I know you. I understand you, and it is because of this that I love you.
A black coat appears black because it absorbs all the wavelengths of visual light that fall on it and no light is
reflected into the eye from that object. It is because of this that black clothes become hotter on a sunny day than
white ones.
Structures:
Cause + ‘and’ + ‘it is because of this that’ + effect
Cause + ‘.’ + ‘It is because of this that’ + effect
3. To give an effect first, then explain the cause, use this is because:
Examples:
- Out in space, the sky looks black, instead of blue. This is because there is no atmosphere.
- As the sun begins to set, the light must travel farther through the atmosphere before it gets to you. More of
the light is reflected and scattered. As less reaches you directly, the sun appears less bright. The colour of the sun
itself appears to change, first to orange and then to red. This is because even more of the short wavelength blues
and greens are now scattered. Only the longer wavelengths are left in the direct beam that reaches your eyes.
66
- Agents often work more than 40 hours a week. They must often work in the evenings or on weekends. This
is because most buyers and sellers are free only at those times.
4. To answer questions, use it is because, this is because, or because:
- How can it be that an “awesome” God knows me by name and loves me without reservation? It is because He
created me.
- So why is Bush taking on the thankless issue of immigration? I believe it is because he sees the consequences for
all Americans of our current dysfunctional policy.
- Teens seem to have a need to feel that fear, as evidenced by the popularity of shocker, gross-out, supernatural
and altogether scary books. Is it that the good guys and bad guys are easier to tell apart? Or maybe it is because
those vampires and werewolves go through physical transformations that make puberty feel like a bump in the road?
- Why are most large-sized tumours treated by removal of the eye? This is because the amount of radiation
required to kill a tumour which fills most of the eye, is just too much for the eye to stand.
- “Why are you doing that?” “Because I like it.”
- To answer questions, use it is because, this is because, or because
- Why are most large-sized tumours treated by removal of the eye? This is because the amount of radiation
required to kill a tumour which fills most of the eye, is just too much for the eye to stand.
- “Why are you doing that?” “Because I like it.”
5, In 'if ' and 'when' sentences use it is because:
67
- If I look confused it is because I am thinking.
- If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
- When consumers complain that prices of CDs are too high it is because they are.
Rule 46: Use Relative Structures
Formal - Use relative structures: The woman thought that it was important to be on time.
Informal - Drop certain relative structures: The woman thought it was important to be on time.
Rule 47: Use use nominalisation
Try to write noun-based phrases rather that verb-based ones.
For example, instead of

Crime was increasing rapidly and the police were becoming concerned.
Write:
The rapid increase in crime was causing concern among the police.
In general, academic writing tends to be fairly dense, with relatively long sentences and wide use of
subordinate clauses. Remember, however, that your main aim is clarity, so don’t be too ambitious, particularly
when you’re starting to write.
68
Rule 48: Use some sort of “hedging” language and to qualify statements that you make.
HEDGING/AVOIDING COMMITMENT
In order to put some distance between what you’re writing and yourself as writer, to be cautious rather than
assertive, you should:
- use verbs (often with it as subject) such as imagine, suggest, claim, suppose
- use ‘attitudinal signals’ such as apparently, arguably, ideally, strangely, unexpectedly.
These words allow you to hint at your attitude to something without using personal language.
- use verbs such as would, could, may, might which ‘soften’ what you’re saying.
- use qualifying adverbs such as some, several, a minority of, a few, many to avoid making overgeneralisations.
Rule 49: Do not start a sentence with ‘Therefore’.

Instead, write, for example, ‘They, therefore, ...’.
Rule 50: Use full names when citing.
The first time you mention the author’s or someone’s name, use his/her entire name. For the rest of the essay,
use only his/her last name.
Thanh Hoa City 12/2012
69

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Collected and shared by Tran Manh Trung – Hong Duc University – Thanh Hoa

Collected and Shared by Tran Manh Trung – Foreign Language Department

THE BEST GUIDES

Thanh Hoa City 12/2012

FORMAL AND INFORMAL WORD LIST

Ord INFORMAL/EVERYDAY FORMAL/ACADEMIC VIETNAMESE MEANING

10 to do well to succeed thành công

39 to want to desire mong muốn

68 childish immature/ infantile như trẻ con (tính cách)

127 prove confirm khẳng định

157 to pay to settle trả tiền, thanh toán

186 meat-eater carnivore động vật ăn thịt

215 viewpoint stance lập trường, quan điểm

245 TV/ telly television tivi

Features of Academic Language

IELTS Writing Task 2: Useful Language

Introducing the topic

 Some people argue that…

Stating an opinion (thesis statement)

Indicating the scope of the essay

 In this essay, I will state…

 One reason for this is that…

Giving further reasons

 Not only that, but…

Citing general opinions

 It has been claimed that…

 I would dispute this, however.

 It could be argued that…

 This suggests that…

 There can be no doubt that…

Concluding and summarising

 To sum up, … / In summary, … / In short, …

IELTS Writing Task 1: Useful Language

Ord numbers/statistics similar fractions Ord numbers/statistics similar fractions

2. THE WORDS AND PHRASES TO DESCRIBE TRENDS:

to show an upward trend

MORE WORDS AND PHRASES TO DESCRIBE TRENDS:

represents (trình bày) … 2. It is clear from the graph/table …

3. It can be seen from the graph/table … 4. As the graph/table shows …

5. As can be seen from the graph/table … 6. As is shown by the graph/table …

7. As is illustrated by the graph/table … 8. From the graph / table it is clear …

1. to constitute/ make up: tạo thành 2. to comprise: bao gồm

3. to account for: chiếm đến 4. to amount to : lên đến (số)

5. to stand at: giữ ở (số) 6. to treble: gấp ba lần

7. to double: gấp đôi 8. to increase three fold: tăng gấp ba lần

19. to fall by …%: giảm khoảng … % 20. to drop to … : giảm tới … %

21. to rise to … %: tăng tới … % 22. to rise by … %: tăng khoảng

23. to rise from … %: tăng từ … %

24. to increase at …% /reduce at … %: tăng/giảm … %

25. to increase to … /reduce to … : tăng/giảm tới … (số)

26. to remain relatively steady: vẫn duy trìtương đối ổn định

1. exceptionally: cábiệt, khác thường 2. remarkably: đáng chúý

3. moderately: vừa phải 4. extremely/enormously: cực kỳ, rất

5. substantially: to lớn, đáng kể 6. marginally: hơi, đôi chút

7. hardly/ scarcely: hầu như không 8. slowly: chậm

D. Prepositions and prepositional phrases

1. In/within the range of … and … :Trong phạm vi

2. For/During the first six months, …: Trong sáu tháng đầu

5. Between 1950 and 1960, …: Giữa năm 1950 và1960 …

8. From that time on: Từ thời gian đó trở đi

9. Over a ten-year period, … : Trong giai đoạn 10 năm

10. Throughout the nineteenth century: Trong suốt thế kỷ 19

11. Unlike …: Không giống với …