Have you ever heard someone say that writing should "flow"? What does that mean? When we write, we want to be sure our ideas make sense in the order we write them. Within a paragraph, we use topic sentences, transitions, and concluding ideas to keep our ideas focused. This also makes sure the reader doesn't get confused and can follow what we're writing. As you revise, you want to pay attention to how you arrange your ideas within your paragraphs. What do you write first? How are you connecting your ideas? Read the following article on paragraph structure and pay attention to the structure choices you make when writing and revising.
There are several parts to an expository paragraph. Whether the writer is only writing one paragraph or several to create an essay, the structure is the same.
Transitional words and phrases tie ideas together by showing how pieces of information are linked in terms of location, time, or logic. Using these words and phrases help with the flow when the paper is being read, improving communication.
Certain words and phrases often introduce major details. They are called "addition words" because they show that an idea is one of a series – the author is adding one or more ideas to another.
First, first of all, in addition, final, one, also, next, finally, second, another, moreover, furthermore, then, last of all, third
Minor details do not introduce new points but are intended to make major details more clear. They usually follow a major detail and make it clearer, often by illustrating or explaining it. In such cases, the minor details may be introduced by example words. Here are some common example words:
For instance
Like
Including
Such as
For example
Please note that the boldfaced transitions cannot begin sentences.
Source: Cheryl McCormick, Sue Hank, and Ninna Roth, https://pb.openlcc.net/writingforcollege/chapter/writing-the-paragraph/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.