Did you know that words such
as however, instead meanwhile, and therefore can help your
speech to flow? In other words, these words create smooth transitions
from one sentence to the next. I like to think of these words
as building bridges between our sentences or ideas, and without those bridges there
can be unexpected or abrupt gaps between those ideas
leading to confusion among our listeners right now, you might
be thinking, that sounds great, Annemarie would love to use
those words and improve my flow, but I'm not really sure how to use
them or what these words mean and I totally hear you. That's exactly why
I'm doing this lesson today. Moreover, these linking words are a
crucial component to fluent cohesive communication in English. They help us connect ideas, show the relationship between
sentences and create a logical flow of thought. In this particular
Confident English lesson, we're going to focus on linking words
that help you compare and contrast show, cause and effect, indicate progression and
much more along the way, you'll learn what common
linking words such as, however, meanwhile and therefore mean and
I'll share with you how to use them using practical examples.
By the end of this lesson, you'll have a solid understanding
of how to use these linking words in your English communication for
improved fluency and cohesion. But before we start, if
you don't already know, I'm Annemarie with
Speak Confident English. Everything I do is designed to help you
get the confidence you want for your life and work in English. One way I do that is by sharing weekly
Confident English lessons where I highlight my top fluency and
confidence-building strategies, targeted vocabulary lessons, and a focus on grammar topics such
as this lesson on linking words in English. While you're here, make sure you subscribe to
my Speak Confident English
channel so you never miss one of these Confident
English lessons. To start, let's get a clear understanding
of how these linking words in English or conjunctive adverbs
work and why they're important. A conjunctive adverb is an
adverb such as however or accordingly or an adverb
phrase such as on the other hand or as a result
that are used to connect ideas together, creating a bridge or a smooth
transition from one idea to the next. These conjunctive adverbs
are also known as linking words. What's most important about these words
is that they have a job to do in a sentence. This job includes showing
the connection between ideas or thoughts shared
within one sentence. They also link ideas mentioned
through two or more sentences, and finally they clarify the
relationship between ideas. What this really means is they
help us clearly indicate when we are making a comparison
or drawing contrasts. They help us show cause and effect. They clearly indicate a
progression or sequence and so much more. Before we take a look at our first
category of conjunctive adverbs used for contrast, I want to talk about how we use
these linking words in written and spoken communication in
writing, for example. There are few specific
rules we need to follow. I want you to take a look at this
sentence and notice where we have the conjunctive adverb. My daughter
broke her arm while climbing a tree. Consequently, she won't be able to write her homework
for school for the next few weeks. When a conjunctive adverb
connects two ideas within one single sentence, we use a semicolon before
and then a comma after the conjunctive adverb. On the other hand, when a conjunctive adverb is used to
connect ideas across several sentences or indicate a relationship within a
sentence, it is followed by a comma. Here are two examples. Imagine your
office is having a two day meeting. Everyone is attending the first
day except for one person. After you indicate who is joining on
day one, you might say Lena however, is joining us for the meeting
tomorrow or however Lena will be joining us tomorrow.
With those rules in mind, let's take a look at our
first group of conjunctive, adverbs or linking
words used for contrast. Here we're going to look at
however, conversely instead, and on the other hand, the word, however is used to indicate contrast or to contradict something that has been
said previously and it means despite whatever manner, way, or degree. Let's take a look at another sentence
where we use the word however to indicate that contrast or contradiction. There may however be a good reason
Nina couldn't come to the party. The initial assumption of course might
be that there would never be a good reason to not attend a party, but we're contradicting that assumption
or belief with the statement that perhaps Nina did have a good reason. Our second word conversely means in
a reverse manner or the opposite way. For example, Kelly has a
sweet tooth. Conversely, her husband prefers savory foods. The word instead is used
to indicate substitution or replacement. An alternative. For example, we had planned to go to
dinner and then to a movie, but we were running late and by the
time we got there the movie was over. Instead, we decided to go straight to
the restaurant and just have dinner. The last one in this category is on
the other hand like the word. However, this indicates contrast to a
statement that was previously stated and we use it to present a different
point of view. For example, I'd love for us to implement this new
social media strategy. On the other hand, I think it's going to take much longer
than we anticipate and we already have a number of projects that
we're working on right now. While linking words for contrast
allow us to indicate opposing or contradicting statements, we can also use linking words
for comparisons or similarities and two words we often use
to do this are the words, likewise and similarly. Likewise means in the
same way. For example, we offer a great benefit package
to our employees. Likewise, we offer competitive salaries as well. The word similarly is used
to mean in a like style manner or way. For example, we all know cars need to stop
at red lights. Similarly, cyclists must stop at red lights as well, and now let's take a look
at four conjunctive adverbs
used to indicate cause and effect. For this category, we're going
to look at the words accordingly, hence, therefore, and consequently accordingly
means in agreement with or correspondingly. For example,
after a major storm in your area, you might see or hear this sentence,
classes are canceled today. Accordingly, you'll have an extra
day to study for your upcoming exam. The next word is, hence this means because of
a preceding fact or premise or a fact or premise that
has come before. For example, the project deadline has changed
and will need to finish this earlier than expected. Hence, we'll need everyone on the team to
shift their focus to this project until it's completed the next one. Therefore, this means for that reason, for that cause or for that purpose. For example, let's say you've recently reserved a
meeting location and then you discover that there was a mistake. You
might hear this conversation, we accidentally double booked
this room for your meeting, therefore we'll have to ask you to
move your meeting to a later time and lastly, consequently, this is used to mean as a
negative result of something. For example, I spent all my money
on the renovations. Consequently, I couldn't buy a new car. We have two more categories for linking
words that help you create these smooth connections in your speech. The next category is
conjunctive adverbs for sequence or progression. This is particularly useful when you're
communicating a process, for example, or giving someone instructions, and here we have four words we're
going to review subsequently. Then finally, and incidentally, the first one subsequently
means at a later time or following right after in a time or place. For example, the third quarter losses were
unforeseen and the company subsequently laid off 50 employees. In that sentence subsequently indicates
that after one thing happened, the third quarter losses, something
else happened right Afterward. Our next word then can be
used in the same way. In fact, it has nearly the same
meaning. For example, we could follow up the last two
sentences of the third quarter losses and the company layoff with then the
company filed for bankruptcy. The word finally is used to indicate
that we're at the end or the conclusion of something. It can also mean ultimately
or lastly. For example, if someone is giving an
opinion and while doing so, they give several reasons
for having that opinion. You might hear this at the end. Finally, I believe it's important to advocate for
gender equity in the workplace and our fourth word in this
category. Incidentally, this is used to introduce a related
thought or idea and it comes after the main topic or ideas
mentioned, but with less importance. Let's say you recently went to a
theater performance and you loved it, so you've been recommending it to friends. You have a friend who has decided to go, but she's never been to
this theater before. In that
conversation you might say, we loved the play incidentally, remind me to send you directions to
the theater and now our final category, conjunctive adverbs. For time. Here we're going to look at the
words meanwhile later and now meanwhile means until
something expected happens or wow something else is
happening. For example, perhaps you're following a series of
steps to bake a cake. In that process, you might see these two steps. After
you take the cake out of the oven, the cake should cool
for an hour. Meanwhile, you can begin preparing the
buttercream. In other words, while the cake is cooling, during that
time, you can begin to do something else. Our next word is lately, which
means of late or recently. For example, lately I've been walking
to work instead of taking the bus, and finally the word now, which
means at the present time, it's also used when we're beginning
to tell someone about something. Here are two examples. Now keep in mind New York is a
busy city with millions of people. In that particular sentence, I'm not
talking about the present moment. I'm actually using the word now
to begin telling someone something and now here's a second example. It took Xena many years
to sharpen her skills. Now she mentors young people across
the city and with that you have multiple examples of conjunctive, adverbs or linking words that can be
used to help you have smooth transitions and improve your flow. When you speak, I know these words can be
challenging to learn and use, so I have an in-depth practice for you. I'm going to share with you a couple
of example paragraphs, and in doing so, I want you to review the words you've
learned here and try to identify example words you could use to create
links between these sentences or ideas. Of course, you can share your example answers
with me in the comments below, and I'll include my answers
in the comments as well. Let's take a look at the
first example paragraph. Stress is a common issue in
today's fast paced world. It can be managed effectively
with some simple techniques. Taking breaks throughout the day or going
for a walk can help alleviate stress. Meditating can help as
well. What do you think? What two words might you use
in those sentences provided? And now let's take a look at a
second example. For this one, I want you to imagine a team
leader communicating in a meeting. The scope of this product launch is
much broader than initially anticipated. I'll need to reevaluate our priorities
and we'll ask a few team members to shift their focus to the launch so
we can meet our deadlines. Susan and Ahmed, I'll keep you on
rebranding the campaign for X, Y, Z company as we'll. Have some important deadlines approaching
for that project as well. Again, I'd love to know what two words
you think could be used to create clear links in those
sentences and those ideas. If you found today's lesson helpful to
you, I would love to know. As always, you can tell me in one very simple way, give this lesson a thumbs up here
on YouTube and while you're at it, don't forget to subscribe so you never
miss one of my Confident English lessons. Thank you so much for joining me and I
look forward to seeing you next time.
