Often research articles are rejected by the editorial board of the research journal due to a lack of logical relationship in the writing. Connecting the sentences and paragraphs is highly crucial to link the subject of discussion to a specific topic. To establish the logical relationship it is crucial to use proper transitional expression words or phrases. Before writing any research content it is important to understand the transitional expression since each word or phrase of the same logical function has a slight difference in meaning and use. To decrease plagiarism often synonyms words or phrases are used during the rephrasing of sentences without understanding the meaning of it. Further, it can be noted that if all the synonyms words and phrases have the same meaning then why it has been added to the dictionary?
Logical Relationship
1. Evidence or Additional Support
To show additional support to the discussion following transitional expression can be useful with the consideration of the meaning.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Additionally | In addition to something already mentioned | The resources of Calcium in drinking water may additionally be derived from various natural sources. |
| Again | Once more / another time | Samples were again mixed to homogenize. |
| Also | In addition / too | The diffusional limitation also affects the physiological activity of cells entrapped in the matrix. |
| And | Plus / also / in addition to | Dissolved Calcium and Magnesium salts are majorly responsible for the hardness of the water. |
| As well | With equal reason / equal result | The present study area is a metropolitan city as well as a center for industrial activities. |
| Besides | In addition to / apart from | The developed AI model is the best-fitted and acceptable method. Besides, it predicts the most accurate values. |
| Equally important | As important as each other | Forest resources are equally important as industrialization for the development of the nation. |
| Further | More / to a greater degree, distance, time & space | Further (time) studies are required to understand the environmental impact of the product before the field-scale application. |
| Furthermore | An additional point to make in an argument & explanation | Furthermore, the results of PCR amplification provided the confirmation of viruses in the samples. |
| In addition | As an extra thing | Secondary metabolites are degraded in addition to the targeted pollutants by the bacterial isolates. |
| Moreover | To add another fact / also / in addition | Moreover, the current investigation has opened a new research gap. |
| Then | At that time / next / after that | The sample was dried in an oven at 100°C. Then it was stored at room temperature. |
2. Effect or Cause
Describing the effect and cause of the phenomenon following transitional expression can be highly useful in research writing.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Accordingly | In a way that is suitable / for that reason | The growth of microorganisms was increased by 20% and the rate of biodegradation was accordingly increased. |
| Consequently | With the purpose that / so that | Phthalate esters are widely used in consumer products, and consequently, these pollutants are detected from all environmental compartments. |
| Hence | For this reason / that is the reason or explanation | A mixture of phthalate esters is reported from environmental compartments. Hence, in the current study mixture of phthalate esters was used. |
| So | With the purpose that / in order that | Generally, the ‘so‘ word is not recommended in the research write-up due to its multiple meanings and non-specific. It can be replaced with because, therefore, also, thus, then, etc depending upon the situation. |
| Therefore | As a result / because of that / for that reason | Phthalate esters are toxic and widely reported plasticizers. Therefore, it has been recognized as a criteria pollutant by US EPA |
| Thus | Like this / in this way / that manner or way | Phthalate esters are not chemically bonded with polymeric materials. Thus, there may be a constant releasing PAEs from polymers into the environment. |
3. Conclusion or Summary
The conclusion or summary of the results is highly crucial in the research articles since it is read maximum after the title. To increase the impact of research following transitional expression will be useful to write conclusions or discussion.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Finally | After a long time or delay / last in a list of things | Finally, a vaccine against coronaviruses was developed and found to be effective. |
| Briefly | Lasting a short time / concise or brief way | This section briefly describes how climate change is linked with urbanization and industrialization |
| In a word | A summary of already presented content / Shortest answer possible | In a word, the isolated microbe has a high potential to degrade the pollutant. |
| In brief | Concisely / in few words / to sum up | In brief, the selection of polymeric products is based on the environmental fate and transport along with their utility. |
| In conclusion | Finally / lastly / to sum things up | In conclusion, the selection of transitional words or phrases in research communication is highly crucial to express the research. |
| In sum | because of/as a result of this / like this / in this way | In sum, experiments with newly isolated microorganisms showed a contrast in metabolic diversity. |
| In summary | A brief statement of the most important information / in short | In summary, transitional words are critical in the expression of research. |
| In the end | After everything is considered or discussed | because of/as a result of this / like this / in this way |
| In the final analysis | Expresses the basic truth about a complex situation / after considering everything | In the final analysis, microbial biofilms were identified and observed to be highly diverse. |
| On the whole | Generally / but not true in every case | Phthalate esters are present on the whole surface of environmental compartments. |
| Thus | because of / as a result of this / like this / in this way | Thus, analysis and regular monitoring of phthalate esters are crucial for health risk assessment. |
| To conclude | To end / to bring something to an end | Therefore, it seems reasonable to conclude that the isolated microbe has significant potential to remediate pollution on site. |
| To sum up | To give a summary / bring to a total | Present study computed water quality indexes to sum up the properties of water resources. |
| To summarize | Express the most important facts | To summarize, the appropriate use of transitional expressions is a key tool in research writing. |
4. Emphasis
To emphasize the results and discussion for seeking attention and the special importance of findings is highly crucial while writing the research article. Following transitional expression could be highly useful to establish a logical correlation for the same.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Even | Emphasizing something that is surprising / to make the comparison stronger | The high pollution level was observed even when industrial activities were shut down. |
| Indeed | Truly / certainly | Indeed, most people are not aware of the current environmental problems. |
| In fact | Really / in truth / by the fact | In fact, many people don’t spare time to know about environmental issues even though it has a direct health impact. |
| Of course | Naturally / certainly | Of course, human has a high phthalate exposure risk since it has been widely present in the environmental compartment. |
| Truly | In truth / really / by fact | The author is truly grateful to the funding agency for their financial support. |
5. Example
To explain or support the statement or results it’s important to mention the related contents and link it with transitional expression to establish a logical relationship. To achieve the same following words or phrases would be highly useful.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| For example | To mention something as the explanation | Pollutants are increasing over time along with industrialization. For example, phthalate esters occur at measurable levels in environmental compartments due to more production and usage. |
| For instance | Illustration to support/clarify a point. | Several countries in the world have clear guidelines to regulate the use of phthalate esters, for instance, France, Germany, China, and Canada. |
| Namely | To be specific/precise information | Phthalate esters have been widely detected in environmental compartments, namely air, water, and soil. |
| Specifically | Specific manner / in a definite and exact way / with precision | PAEs adversely impact the reproductive health of humans, specifically DBP. |
| To illustrate | To make clear / explain | The study aims to illustrate the proper use of transitional expressions to communicate properly. |
6. Exception or Contrast
Similarity as well as contrast is important to discuss the status of findings. The following transitional expression can help to establish a logical correlation with exceptions as per the situation.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| But | Despite that / happening but could have been stopped/referring to an amount | PAEs are degraded over time. But some of the PAEs are persistent due to unfavorable conditions for microbial action. |
| However | To add a comment to just said | AI is added advantage for the scientific community. However, it may affect human resources adversely. |
| In spite of/despite | Something unpleasant/bad happening / notwithstanding | PAEs have been often found in soft plastic toys despite the restriction implemented by various nations. |
| On the one hand | To introduce multiple contrast statements (1st) | Two independent research were conducted to understand the impact of PAEs. On the one hand, the concentration of PAEs in the environmental compartment was estimated. On the other hand, the toxicity of PAEs was estimated. |
| On the other hand | To introduce multiple contrast statements (2nd) | Several independent research was conducted to understand the impact of PAEs. On the one hand, the concentration of PAEs in the environmental compartment was estimated. On the other hand, the toxicity of PAEs was estimated. |
| Nevertheless (Never + the + less) | Some people think that AI is making us less social, but on the contrary, it’s helping us in many ways. | Environmental pollution is increasing throughout the world. Nevertheless, people’s life expectancy is increasing with clinical development and awareness. |
| Nonetheless (None + the + less) | Despite this fact / referring to an action | Many research writing guidelines are getting published online. Nonetheless are useful and concise. |
| Notwithstanding | Despite something / used after its object | PAEs were found in the environmental samples, notwithstanding the restrictions imposed. |
| In contrast | Very different from it / second thing very different from first | In contrast to the previous year, this year’s rainfall has increased by 20%. |
| On the contrary | Opposite and true of one already stated | Remaining in place or at rest / motionless/stationary |
| Still | Up to now / despite that | While there has been some progress in reducing carbon emissions, the levels are still too high to meet the targets set by the Paris Agreement. |
| Yet | Up to now / in spite of that | Although several theories have been proposed to explain this phenomenon, none have yet been able to fully account for all the observed data. |
7. Place or Position
To cite the place and positions of something, it is important to use the proper transitional expression to establish a logical explanation for the research and make it self-explanatory for readers.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Above | In a higher place / in an earlier part | The above transitional words or phrases along with their meaning are highly helpful in research writing. |
| Adjacent | Next to / close to | The fires had spread to the adjacent forested areas, resulting in significant damage to the ecological services. |
| Below | To a lower position | The result indicated that the levels of contaminants in the water are below acceptable limits. |
| Beyond | To another side / further than / later than | The effectiveness of water treatment decreases beyond a certain limit of coagulant doses. |
| Here | Behind/in an area at the back of something | The microbial community here is diverse and complex which plays a key role in nutrient cycling. |
| In Front | Further forward / ahead | The trees in front of the building provide shade and reduce the heat island effect in the urban environment. |
| In Back | Not far away in the distance | The forest in the back of the building provides cool brize and reduces the heat island effect in the urban environment. |
| Nearby | In/at/to that place | The trees nearby of the building provide shade and reduce the heat island effect in the urban environment. |
| There | In / at / to that place | There are variable guidelines available to write research articles. |
8. Order or Sequence
Putting the thought or events in a proper sequence is important to explain the idea. The following words or phrases will be helpful to order in a sequence and connect it.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| First | Before all others / not happened before | First, the data required for the study were retrieved from the database. |
| Second | Things after first | Second, the data were organized as per the requirement. |
| Third | Things after second | Third, the tabulated data were imported into QGIS to extract the information of the required area. |
| Next | Immediately after | Next, the values were interpolated using IWD methods for the required area. |
| Then | At that time / after that | Then, obtained results were compared with ground data. |
| Finally | Last in a list / at the end | Finally, the thematic maps were generated to visualize the impact. |
9. Similarity
Contrast as well as similarity is important to discuss the status of findings. The following transitional expression can help to establish logical relations for similarity as per the situation.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Also | In the same way / similar way | Greenhouse gases were observed to be higher as compared to last year. The results also confirm the presence of higher air pollutants than last year. |
| In the same way | Comparison with strong similarity | PAEs were extracted from soil samples using the solid-liquid extraction method in the same way as toy samples. |
| Just as | Equal degree | Just as research novelty is an important criterion, a transitional expression in writing is crucial to publish a research article. |
| Likewise | The extraction cartridge was washed with nitric acid to remove adsorbed PAEs before analysis. Likewise, all glassware was washed. | The connection between the two situations |
| Similarly | Nearly same way | Just as the Moon revolves around the Earth, similarly, the Earth revolves around the Sun. |
| So too | Connection between two situations | Water pollution has a significant negative impact on human health and so too does air pollution. |
10. Time
Putting the events in a proper sequence as per the time is important to explain the process. The following words or phrases will be helpful to express the time of events concerning others.
| Word / Phrase | Meaning / Use for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| After | Later than / next in time | After the flood, several health issues were noted. |
| Afterward | At the present time / immediately | Generally, pesticides accumulate and then begin to degrade slowly afterward. |
| At last | At the end / after a long time | Plastics are used extensively and restricted at last. |
| Before | Earlier than | Generally, environmental samples are dynamic and analyzed before it gets changed. |
| Currently | At present / at the moment | Currently, India is organizing many events under the G20 presidency. |
| During | Within the period | During the investigation, a total of five human health-affecting parameters have been identified. |
| Earlier | Before the beginning of a particular period | In the earlier study, a total of four human health-affecting parameters have been identified |
| Immediately | Without delay / very closely | The samples were analyzed immediately as received. |
| Later | After a reference time / a comparative of late | Generally, pollutants were decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic lead restriction. Later, pollutants are increased as earlier. |
| Meanwhile | During the time between two things happening | Pollutants are introduced into the river. Meanwhile, some of the pollutants get degraded over time |
| Now | Later / after sometime | Now, it’s high time to consider sustainable technology and lifestyle. |
| Recently | Not long ago / recent period | Recently, many PAEs have been detected in food and drinking beverages in China. |
| Simultaneously | Occurring at the same time / at the same time | An isolated microbe has the potential to degrade both pollutants simultaneously. |
| Subsequently | Later in time / after sometime | These results were subsequently used to calculate the total impact. |
| Then | Next / after that | Secondary metabolites of the pollutants are detected and then degraded over time. |
Conclusion
The guidelines to use the proper transitional expression to establish logical relationships will be useful to develop scientific writing skills since each word or phrase of the same logical function has a slight difference in meaning. Therefore, before using the transitional expression, it is important to know its meaning and purpose.
