Minimum Number of Linking Words Required for Academic IELTS Writing Task 2

Linking devices are neither nouns, nor verbs. They provide a text with cohesion and illustrate how the parts of the text relate to each other. Any writing without linking words reads like a series of unrelated statements with no flow.

You need to just remember the use of the following 14 linking words for a simple but effective IELTS writing Task 2, though you should try to learn more, if you haven’t already, for your study.

First Paragraph	Second Paragraph	Third Paragraph	Last Paragraph
No linking word is required	1.       To begin with 2.       Furthermore 3.       Moreover 4.       In the same way	1.       Firstly 2.       Similarly 3.       In addition 4.       Finally	1.       To summarize 2.       I believe that
For example For instance As for example In particular (These 4 linking words should be used to elaborate & explain the points given in 2nd & 3rd paragraph) I will write about a simple IELTS writing Task 2 structure and the position of the above mentioned linking words in later writings.

If you want to learn more about the appropriate use of linking words, the following table is for you:

Giving examples For instance For example As follows That is Namely	Adding information And In addition As well as Furthermore Moreover Also Too Apart from In addition to Besides	Summarizing To summarize In short In brief In summary In a nutshell To conclude In conclusion Overall All in all	Sequencing ideas Firstly, secondly, finally The former, … the latter The first point is Lastly The following
Giving result As a result Therefore So This means that Consequently Because of this / that Thus, Hence For this / that So that, Under these circumstances	Giving reason Because Because of Due to / due to the fact that Owing to / owing to the fact that Since, As	Emphasizing Especially Particularly Above all too / enough Exactly because The more ....	Contrasting ideas But However Although / even though Despite While Whereas In spite of

You can go through some exercises of the Linking Words mentioned above HERE

Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 (Part 2)

Before you read this post, you should go through the First Part of this post.

As we have discussed in Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 (Part 1), the general layout of the second paragraph (or body paragraph) of Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 should be as follows:

Body Paragraph: Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison.

Find out some common Linking Words & Practice

The most significant aspect of Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 is that you must compare the statistics. If you only describe the data, it will not ensure a good score. So, at the planning phase, you should first decide on the “Basis of Comparison” that is to be used in your writing.

Now let us focus on the phrase “Basis of Comparison”.

Please, carefully study the following Diagram 1 and its different parts.

Diagram 1: Crime Rate of ABC Town

Now, go through the following three sentences:

1.     The rate of crime of ABC town was decreasing rapidly from 1998 to 2001.

2.       In the next year, this rate increased moderately.

3.       From 2001 to 2003, the rate of crime again started to decline slowly.

Now, again carefully study the following Diagram 2 and its different parts.

 Diagram 2: Annual Profit of DEF Company

Think carefully. Will you use sentences similar to the three sentences above (Diagram 1) to present the figures of Diagram 2?

You should not.

The sentences might be as follows:

1.       In 2003, the total profit of Company DEF was 2 million.

2.       The total profit of 2004 reduced to half of the profit of 2003.

3.       In the next year, the profit of DEF Company increased by 7 times and reached to 8 million.

Look at the differences of the sentences of Diagram 1 and Diagram 2. Diagram 1 is presenting “Period of time” whereas Diagram 2 is presenting “Point of Time”. This is the basic difference among the words that need to be selected in presenting these two types of diagrams.

These differences are also prevailing in other types of Task 1 diagrams regarding which I intend to write on my later writings.

Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 (Part 1)

In taking IELTS Academic Writing Task-1 classes, I usually come across a query from my students and that is “How many paragraphs should be written in Task-1?”.

Well, there is no definite binding on this. The number of paragraphs that need to be written truly depends on the particular topic. There are instances where only 2 paragraphs are adequate and in other cases 5-6 paragraphs are desirable. So, as long as you can rationalize the number of paragraphs, there is no upper limit on this.

In my opinion, Academic Writing Task-1 should always include at least 2 paragraphs:

1. Introduction
2. Body paragraph

A common layout for IELTS Academic Writing Task-1 is as follows:

Introduction: Introductory sentence + General statement

Body Paragraph: Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison.

The “General statement” is not absolutely essential. Use it if you feel certain that you have grasped the main trend of the given statistics / information.

Any additional conclusion is not required in Task-1 as you are not required to furnish any opinion or comment on the reason of changes in the statistics / information.

Figure: Crime Rate of ABC Town

Now, let’s concentrate on the individual parts.

1.       Introductory sentence: Write what the given illustration is all about. One effective way of doing this is to rephrase the particular question (never copy the question, never). A functional introduction should include information about the followings:

     a.       Type of chart (i.e. Line/bar/pie/table/flow-chart/map)

     b.      Subject matter (what is signified by the diagram e.g. change in crime rate or unemployment rate or what?)

     c.       Time period (such as from which year to which year or which month to which month)

     d.      Place of the subject (where the data change is happening such as in which country (ies) or towns?)

You might not have all these information but you should report what you do have.

Now, consider the following two sentences as the introductory sentence of the given line graph. Which one is better??

Option 1: The chart shows the crime rate of ABC town.

Option 2: The given line graph illustrates the rate of crime of town ABC from 1998 to 2007.

Obviously the 2^nd sentence is more informative than the 1^st sentence and for that reason can be considered a perfect one as the introductory sentence of your writing Task-1.

You can add further information like the following one:

Option 3: The given line graph illustrates the crime rate of town ABC over a 10 year period, from 1998 to 2007.

Take a moment and consider what are the differences among the 3 options above and what you have learned here.

2.       General Statement: This sentence (the 2^nd sentence of your writing) should give information about

a.       the “trend” or

b.      most visible feature or

c.       an overall view of the data

A trend is how values change normally over time. Ask yourself how the given data is shifting / which one data is unusual than other data / what is seen in the illustration.

For example, the line graph above has a declining trend over the 10 year. So, an acceptable General Statement might be one of the followings:

Option 1: The graph was decreasing over the 10 years period.

Option 2: The crime rate of ABC town was decreasing over the 10 years period.

Option 3: It is clearly seen from the graph that, the crime rate of the town in reference was decreasing over the given time period.

Which option should be chosen here??? Clearly option 3 as it is more informative than the other two options.

As I have said earlier, this sentence is not completely essential, though it is always advisable to write this one. If you are not sure about the trend or feature of the figure, avoid this.

3.       Body Paragraph: Now, the rest of the Task 1 (i.e. body paragraph)should follow a standard writing pattern as given earlier and that is Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison + Linking words, comparison……….

The general format of the Body Paragraph will be discussed in my next writing “Academic IELTS writing Task 1 (Part 2).

Types of IELTS Academic Writing Task 1

In IELTS Academic Writing Task 1, you will usually encounter one or more of the following 6 different types of diagrams. These are:

1. Line Graph
2. Bar Diagram
3. Pie Chart
4. Table
5. Flow Chart
6. Map

Remember, Task 1 can be combinations of the first four types (i.e. Line graph, Bar diagram, Pie chart and Table) or only Flow chart or Map. But, also remember that, you may get variants of the above types. For instance, instead of getting a Flow Chart, you may find different pictures of the “Development phases of TV”.

“Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant” --- I can assume that, you are pretty familiar with this sentence.

If you are not, then please go through the questions of real IELTS exam which you can get in any of the Cambridge IELTS publications. You will find that this sentence is, in most cases, given at the end of the Task 1 question.

If you read the sentence carefully, you will find that “Comparison” is one important part of Writing Task 1. You are asked to “Compare” the provided data, not to just describing them.

Keeping this in mind, we can further categorize the mentioned six types of Task 1 in three broad following categories:

1^st category: Line Graph

2^nd category: Bar Diagram, Pie Chart, Table

3^rd category: Flow Chart, Map

These broad categories are devised on the basis of similarity of the wording or basis of comparison that must be used for the purpose of writing an effective Task 1.

For instance, Line graph has a unique way of describing it (such as using "increased dramatically" or "reached peak point" and such other types of phrases). But, bar diagram, pie chart and table have similarity in wording that can be used in comparing the data and which is totally different than the wording of Line graph.

To understand how you should deal with the given data, the best approach is to READ, READ and READ. Read the sample answers of Task 1 as much as you can and try to find out the similarities of wording and basis of comparison in each types of diagrams.

My articles on wording and basis of comparison on the above 3 categories will follow. But, for the time being you can practice the use of some linking words here

IELTS Linking Word Exercise

1. Mr. Kyut is poor; ___, his cousin Katey is rich.

a. therefore b. otherwise c. however

2. You’d better take a taxi cab  ___, you wll be late.
a. Consequently b. In addition c. Otherwise

3. I very much enjoy going through this new daily magazine. ___, it has some good writings.
a. Moreover b. Nevertheless c. Consequently

4. Jimmy was not tired. ___, he only took a nap.
a. Therefore b. Hence c. Nevertheless

5. Paul was not thirsty at all; ___, he drank three glasses of water.
a. however b. moreover c. secondly

6. The kids of the class 5 did not study. ___, they failed the course of Mr. Kaile.
a. Therefore b. Nonetheless c. On the other hand

7. The weather of Bangladesh was terrible. ___, we decided to delay our trip to Dhaka.
a. Subsequently b. Besides c. Therefore

8. You must buy the tickets of IPL semi finals; ___, we won’t be able to see the play.
a. otherwise b. although c. besides

9. The occupants of this area is not very interesting. I like the house atmosphere, ___.
a. moreover b. thus c. though

10.We live in the same building under the same roof for almost 3 years; ___, we hardly see each other daily.
a. however b. therefore c. furthermore

11. He couldn't earn sufficient amount of money to run his family. ___, his wife decided to get a job.
a. Moreover b. Therefore c. Although

12. This house is not big enough for us to live comfortably, and ___, it’s too much expensive.
a. furthermore b. hence c. although

13. _____ the literacy rate of City A increased dramatically in the first quarter, it decreased sharply in the second quarter.

a. Though  b. Instead c. However

14. The commodity price soared ______ the share price plummeted.

a. After  b. But  c. Furthermore

15. You should work hard _______ you will fail to earn the PhD degree.

a. Hence  b. Otherwise  c. Though

16. ________ walking long distance, Mr. Leon was panting.

a. As a result of  b. Becasue  c. However

17. _____ terrible weather, the students could not reach school on time.

a. As  c. Although  d. Due to

18. The town was having difficulties in attaining growth, _____ the mass people was not satisfied at all.

a. Hence  b. After  c. Then