Frequently Used Sentence Structures in IELTS

Compositions
Introduction:

1. At present / currently /lately / recently /

nowadays / these years / in the past
several decades / over the last several
years
2. at the turn of the century
3. Thanks to the recent opening-up policy,
…… has witnessed great economic and
social progress in the past two decades.
4. With the (rapid, marked, , considerable,
tremendous , remarkable, immense,
enormous, massive, enormous)
development / progress / growth /
advancement / improvement of economy /
society / industry / living standard, great
changes have taken place in … …
5. Due to the ever-accelerated updating
of science and technology, there are rapid
changes in all aspects of our everyday lives.
6. With the arrival / advent of … … / the
information age / the 21st century / the
economy age,
7. We are now entering a brand new era.
The 21st century is a time of advanced
scientific and technological knowledge.
8. The human race has entered a
completely new stage in its history. We
have just crossed the threshold of the 21st
century…..
9. We are blessed with new
opportunities…...
10. With the increasingly rapid economic
globalization and urbanization, more
problems are brought to our attention.
11. As … … develops/grows/progresses,
12. Along with the development of … …,
more and more … …
13. In the past few years, there has been a
sharp growth / boom
/rise/expansion/development/ decline in/
dip/ drop… …
14. With the steady growth in the country’s
economy as well as the people’s living
standard,
15. While the rhythm / pace / tempo of
people’s living is speeding up, a lot of
changes have taken place in … …
16. With the great spur both in industry and
in economy in the country, the number of
… … is on the rise.
17. As living tempo / pace quickens,
18. It is commonly believed that the rise in
… … is the inevitable result of economic
development.
19. In recent years, the country has
experienced an alarming increase in … …
20. The issue of whether we should … …
has widely been debated in the business
circle recently.

It is an important issue because it concerns

fundamental moral and economic questions
about the way we … … a variety of different
arguments have been put forward about
this issue. This essay will consider
arguments for … … and point to some of
the problems with these views. It will then
enumerate the reasons for the … …

21. Nowadays more and more people begin

to realize / be aware of / notice the
importance / significance / seriousness
(gravity) of the problem(issue) of

/ pollution / unemployment.
22. We often find ourselves caught /
involved in a dilemma whether or not… …
23. There is a growing worldwide
awareness of the need for … …
24. Recently the issue / problem of …… has
been in the limelight / brought into focus /
brought to public attention / concern.
25. A recent report released by the
government has caused nationwide
repercussions.
26. Recently the phenomenon has aroused
wide concern.
27. One of the (universal / pressing /
burning / urgent) problems / issues we are
faced with (confronting us) is that ……
28. Recently the problem / issue / conflict
has become the focus / concern of the
public.
29. There is a (public / general / heated / )
debate / discussion / controversy today /
nowadays as to / over / on / concerning the
issue / problem of … …Those who criticize /
oppose / object to … … contend /argue that
… … They believe that … … But people who
advocate / favor / are for … …, on the
other hand, maintain /assert that … …
30. A public debate has arisen as to the
phenomenon of … …
31. Recently, there has been a
vehement(intense,heated) discussion on
the issue of … … those who criticize … …
argue that … … They claim that … … But
people who firmly advocate … …; on the
other hand, argue that … …
32. There has been a long-running debate
as to whether … …
33. It is undeniable that …. Has become the
biggest concern of the present-day world.
34. Now it is commonly / generally / widely
believed / held / accepted / recognized that
… … They claim / argue / hold that … …
But I wonder / doubt whether it … …
35. According to a(n) survey /
investigation / analysis / statistics / report
released (conducted )/ made by … …, there
is a growing / increasing / declining number
of … … who / which … …
36. Once in a newspaper / magazine, I hit
upon (came across) a / the report that … …
37. Which is a better choice, A or B?
Different people have different answers due
to their respective point of view. However, I
side with the opinion that A is far better
than B, for several reasons addressed
below.
38. This case has aroused echoes
throughout the country, with more and
more people following its lead, but ideas
about it vary widely.
39. The discussion about whether or not …
… is a very controversial one. There are
people on both sides of the argument who
have very strong feelings.
40. Those who criticize / oppose / object
to / are against … … contend /argue / hold
that … … But people who advocate / favor /
are for … …; on the other hand, maintain /
assert / claim that … …
41. Some argue / hold that … …, but others
set forth a totally different argument about
the issue of … …
42. Of course, there are a larger amount of
arguments which may be advanced in
defense of … …
43. Some people say that … …; other
people suggest that … … But I can hardly
share this point of view for several reasons.
44. Some people place more stress in the
former while others attach heavier weight
to the latter. If asked to make a choice
between the two, I would not hesitate to
choose the latter over the former for
several sound reasons.
45. Some people advocate that … … They
claim that … … My opinion is identical with
theirs.
46. Personally, I side with the former /
latter opinion.
47. I am of the opinion that priority should
be given to … …
48. Personally, I stand on the side of … …
49. As far as I am concerned, I am in favor
of the opinion that … …
50. For my part, I completely agree with
the former / latter.
51. To be frank / to tell the truth, I should
second the former / latter attitude /
position in preference to the latter / former.
52. People from different backgrounds,
however, put different interpretations on
the same thing.
53. Views on the issue in question vary
from person to person / vary widely.
54. People rarely reach an absolute
consensus on a controversial issue.
55. People’s views, however, are divergent
on the matter in question.
56. The other side of the coin has voiced
strong opposition saying that … …
57. Some people are of the opinion that …
…
58. Some people hold the belief / view that
……
59. Many people have the idea that … …
However, many others disagree that … …
Both sides of the question of whether … …
are well supported by sound reasons.
60. To some people’s mind / From some
people’s point of view, there are several
advantages in / of … … The first
advantage is that … …
61. I fully agree with the statement that …
… The reasons are chiefly as follows:
62. As to me, I am in favor of the first /
second view. There are many reasons for
my inclination, but the following ones are
most important.
63. Before giving my opinion, I think it is
essential to look at the argument on both
sides.

Body:

1. My argument for this view goes as

follows:
2. There is considerable evidence in favor
of … …
3. One very strong argument for … … is
that … …
4. Firstly / first / in the first place / first of
all / to begin with / above everything else /
in the first instance
5. Secondly / in the second place
6. Besides / in addition (to) / furthermore /
moreover
7. Finally / last of all / last but not least /
lastly / in the last place
8. Admittedly / I admit / conceding that / I
concede
9. To be frank / frankly speaking / honestly
speaking
10. The birth / invention of … … has made
an enormous / essential difference to … …
But it does not mean that … …
11. Many people hold an erroneous view
towards … …
12. In my opinion, both views are lop-
sided.
13. … …, as the product of modern
civilization, have been playing a vital part in
the daily activities of human society.
14. … … has changed the way our society
develops. But its bright side should not
keep us from following closely its dark side.
15. But we must not lose sight of the fact
there are disadvantages / benefits to doing
something.
16. As to whether it is a blessing or a curse,
however, people take different attitudes /
positions.
17. … …, if made the best / the worst of,
will bring some distinct advantages /
disadvantages to … …
18. There is a good side and a bad side to
everything, and that includes … …
19. … … is a two-edged sword.
20. Obviously, … … like anything else, have
more than one face. While they are
indispensable to mankind, they also bring
us serious problems.
21. There is merit in both these points of
view. / There are merits to both of these
two arguments.
22. There is probably some truth on both
sides.
23. There is probably a little bit of truth in
both arguments.
24. … … is both a blessing and a curse for
mankind.
25. As the proverb goes: “Every coin has its
two sides.” … … is no exception.
28. There are two sides to every questions.
29. Everything has double folds.
30. Every medal has its reverse.
31. I cannot totally accept the idea that …
…, because, in my point of view, I believe
……
32. There are numerous reasons why … …,
and I would explore only a few of the most
important ones here.
33. There is another reason why I cast my
preference for … …
34. There are many good reasons against
doing something.
35. The social and economic advances, the
quickening of living tempo and the ever
increasing competition are deemed as the
main contributors to … …
36. There are some major causes for … …
One cause is … … Another cause is … …
And the most frequently stressed cause is
……
37. It cannot be denied that … …
38. Nowadays it is generally / widely /
commonly / prevalently held /accepted /
assumed that … …
39. It goes without saying that … …
40. There is no denying that … …
41. It is a common saying that … …
42. It is probably no exaggeration to say
that … …
43. It is a traditional practice to … … in our
society.
44. No one can cast any doubt on the fact
that … …
45. It will have / exercise / exert /
produce / bring about a decisive / profound
/far-reaching / beneficial /disastrous /
unfavorable) effect / influence / impact on
……
46. It may create / cause / result in / lead
to / give rise to a host of / a set of / a
series of problems.
47. There are several advantages in / of …
…
48. The advantages of A far outweigh / are
much greater than / carry more weight
than the disadvantages of B.
49. The pros outweigh the cons.
50. For all the disadvantages … … has, it
has its beneficial effects.
51. However, though it has brought
mankind merits, some undesirable side-
effects have gradually come to the surface.
52. Despite the adverse effects … …it has
its advantages.
53. But every coin has its two sides. The
negative aspects are also apparent. To
begin with, … … To make the matters
worse, … … Worst of all, ……
54. Obviously, it has its drawbacks /
disadvantages / negative effects as well as
merits / advantages / positive effects.
55. The side-effects … … has produced on
us can be boiled down to three major ones:
56. Undeniable, … … is good in many
aspects; however, it has its disadvantages,
too. For one thing, it … …; for another, it …
..
57. It is no easy job to render the reasons
for this complicated phenomenon which
involves several factors.
58. A number of factors could account for /
contribute to / lead to / result in the change
/ success / increase.
59. There are a variety of reasons for this
phenomenon.
60. A thorough examination proves the
groundlessness of arguments supporting
… ..
61. It is essential to examine every angle in
order to fully understand the nature of a
perplexing problem.
62. At first thought, it may seem to be an
attractive idea, but it doesn’t bear closer
analysis, we find … …
63. Superficially, it seems to be a sound
solution, but when carefully weighing in the
mind, we find that … …
64. A close scrutiny of these arguments
would reveal how fallacious they are.
65. There is some element of truth in these
arguments, but they overlook a deeper and
more basic factor that … …
66. On the surface of it, this may seem to
be a good solution, but if thinking again,
we would … …
67. However logical and valid the
arguments may be, they only skim the
surface of the issue.
68. … …, but I do not think that this view
can hold water.
69. We should take a more critical view of
……
70. They may be right about … …, but they
seem to fail to take into account the fact
that … …

Conclusion:

1. In general / on the whole / generally

2. All in all
3. From the foregoing, …
4. In brief / in summary / in conclusion / in
short / in a word / to sum up / to
conclude / to summarize
5. If it is up to me to make a choice
between A and B, I would rather choose …
… over … …
6. If I were forced to agree with one of the
two, my choice would be … …
7. From the above comparison and
contrast, anyone can safely conclude that …
….
8. When the advantages and disadvantages
are carefully compared, the most striking
conclusion is self-evident.
9. Judging from all evidence offered, we
may reasonably come to /draw the
conclusion that … …
10. All these opinions make sense, and
consequently it is hard to choose the best
of them. In my opinion, such matters must
be left to individual’s conscience.
11. From what has been discussed above,
we may safely arrive at the conclusion that
……
12. Personally, I side with the former /
latter opinion.
13. I am of the opinion that priority should
be given to … …
14. Personally, I stand on the side of … …
15. As far as I am concerned, I am in favor
of the opinion that ,,, ,,,
16. For my part, I completely agree with
the former / latter.
17. To be frank / To tell the truth, I should
second the former / latter attitude /
position in preference to the latter / former.
18. People from different backgrounds,
however, put different interpretations on
the same thing.
19. Views on the issue in question vary
from person to person / vary widely.
20. People rarely reach an absolute
consensus on a controversial issue.
21. Taking into account all these factors,
we may reasonably come to the moral that
……
22. For the reasons presented above, I
strongly commit to the notion that … …
23. All the evidence justifies an unshakable
view that … …
24. All the evidence supports an
unmistakable conclusion that … …
25. To conclude my essay, I would like to
quote an old saying “… …”
26. Both views have strong foundations;
but, overall, I tend to agree with the latter.
27. What we must do is make sure that the
positive ones are encouraged and the
negative ones are eliminated as far as
possible.
28. It is true that to do … … brings about
both positive and negative results. But we
can try our best to reduce the negative
influence to the least extent. Besides,
compared with the positive effects, the
disadvantages would not count much.
29. It is high time that we / the
government did … …
30. To achieve this goal, however, we still
have a great distance to cover.
31. It is urgent / important / necessary that
appropriate /effective / proper actions /
measures / steps / method be taken to
end / correct / improve … …
32. There are believed / expected /
supposed to be two effective measures /
practical schemes / sound solutions, one of
which is … …
33. Both governments and ordinary citizens
should join hands to make this world a
better place to live in, not only for
ourselves, but also for future generations.