Transitional phrases

A transitional phrase serves to  link ideas between sentences, clarify or emphasize a point,  or  both.  

Used properly, transitional phrases (or transitional  "signals") guide your reader by enhancing the coherence and flow of sentences within a paragraph,  but get in the way if overused. 

Too many transitional signals communicate uncertainty and doubt. 😧😧😨

Here is a list of some common transitional signals categorized by their functions:

Addition

 additionally; furthermore;  moreover; in addition; also; besides; what's more

NB: If you keep using  moreover, in addition, additionally and  furthermore, you give the impression that the ideas are only occurring to you as you write them. The reader will think that you are  incapable of organizing your thoughts ahead of time. It's almost as if you're saying, "Oh yeah, here's another thing I forgot to say." 

Contrast and contradiction

however; on the other hand; nevertheless; notwithstanding; nonetheless; in contrast; by contrast; on the contrary; conversely; unlike; 

NB: If you use these signals, make sure they point to a genuine contrast, contradiction or unexpected outcome in the text. 

however, on the other hand and   by contrast  often look best in "second position" between the subject and verb rather than as the first words (Opponents of the scheme, by contrast/however/on the other hand,  objected to the environmental cost).

Cause and effect

therefore;  thus;  consequently; as a result of; because of; accordingly; hence; for this reason

NB: Many of these signals are hard to use right. Rarely should thus or therefore be used as first words in a sentence (I also deal with these words in separate lessons contained in this book). Hence is a little old-fashioned and also surprisingly hard to use right.  For this reason forces the reader to re-read the previous sentence to identify the reason, which is not a good idea. This is  a hard set of words to use, so be careful. 

Comparison

similarly; likewise; in the same way; by comparison; in a similar vein; analogously, equally, correspondingly; (just) like; as;  just as  

NB:  Like is often prepositional and is followed by a direct object (like him, like them, just like a coward), whereas similarly, likewise, in the same way and  in a similar vein often introduce a whole clause. 

Example:

(Just) like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg is surrounded by yes-men.

Musk needs fans on Twitter to feed his ego.  Similarly, Zuckerberg relies on others for his self-esteem 

Emphasis

in fact; indeed; certainly; of course; indeed

NB:  Overuse of these terms of emphasis will result in prose that seems always to be contradicting  or second-guessing itself. It is usually better  to make your point clear the first time round than to stop  and specify with a second sentence with one of these transitional signals. 

The French Revolution was a pivotal event in modern history. In fact,😧 it had a far-reaching impact on political and social thought across the globe.

Just make the point directly: 

The French Revolution was a pivotal event in modern history that had a far-reaching impact on political and social thought across the globe.

Climate change is a pressing global issue.  Indeed, 😧 it poses a serious threat to the environment and human well-being --> Climate change is a pressing global issue that 😇 poses a serious threat to the environment and human well-being.

Example

for example; for instance; such as; namely

NB: The first two sit  happily at the top of a sentence; the second two do not.  

Conclusion/Summary

 in conclusion; in sum; in summary; all told

NB: The phrase in conclusion at the conclusion of your essay is usually redundant.  Your reader can see that the text ends, so why bother with the unnecessary  announcement?

Avoid clichés such as in the end, at the end of the day, when all is said and done.

The verb "to tell" also means "to count". The person who counts your money in the bank is the teller, and the machine that distributes cash is an automatic telling machine (ATM).  The expression "all told" therefore means  "including everything in the count/ taking everything into consideration".