Rewrite the sentences below with the connectors given in brackets.
1 Examples: (making contrasts)
Although (neutral)/
Even though (more emphatic)/
Though (less formal)
he had a sprained ankle (or
he had sprained his ankle/his ankle was sprained),
he went out for a walk.
In spite of/Despite having a sprained ankle/having sprained his ankle, he went out for a walk.
In spite of/Despite his sprained ankle, he went out for a walk.
In spite of/Despite his ankle being sprained, he went out for a walk.
He had a sprained ankle, but he went out for a walk.
He had a sprained ankle/He had sprained his ankle/His ankle was sprained. However (neutral)/
Nevertheless (formal)/
Nonetheless (formal)/
All the same (less formal)/
Yet (less formal)/
Still (less formal)/
Even so (less formal),
he went out for a walk.
He had a sprained ankle/He had sprained his ankle/His ankle was sprained. He went out for a walk, though (informal)/
however/
nevertheless/
all the same/
nonetheless.
a It was snowing heavily, but they went on climbing. (despite)
b He is very poor, but he is happy. (although)
c Despite being caught driving dangerously, he was not fined. (all the same)
d The sea was very rough. Still, they went sailing. (in spite of)
e I know you don't love me; but, even so, I'll marry you. (even though)
2 Examples: (making contrasts)
However hard/No matter how hard (more formal) you try, you will never be able to do it.
Even though/Even if you try hard, you will never be able to do it.
It does not matter how hard you try, you will never be able to do it.
Although you try hard, you will never be able to do it.
Much (adverb) as/though I loved him, I had to leave him.
Although I loved him a lot, I had to leave him.
Angry (adjective) as/though I was, I did not tell them anything.
Although I was angry, I did not tell them anything.
Some people who are not happy with what they possess firmly believe in the American dream, as it evokes the things they would like to have. Despite this, it is just a dream.
Some people who are not happy with what they possess firmly believe in the American dream, as it evokes the things they would like to have. For all that, it is just a dream.
a Although she was terrible ill, she did not stay in bed. (ill though)
b It does not matter how much money you give him, he will not accept. (even though)
c Although it is fast, I won't buy it. (fast as)
d Despite my admiration for him, I recognise that he is a bit selfish. (much as)
e Everyone is worried about the scandal; but, in spite of all its implications, I think it'll do us some good. (for all)
3 Examples: (adding)
I don't feel like dancing, and I'm also very exhausted.
I don't feel like dancing. Also, I'm very exhausted.
I don't feel like dancing. Besides, I'm very exhausted.
I don't feel like dancing. In addition, I'm very exhausted.
I don't feel like dancing, and what's more I'm very exhausted. (informal)
She works at the bank around the corner. Besides, she does the household chores.
In addition to working at the bank around the corner, she does the household chores.
They not only fined him, but also withdrew his driving licence.
They fined him and, on top of that, they withdrew his driving licence.
In addition to being fined, his driving licence was withdrawn.
We must bear in mind both the costs and the benefits (that) we can obtain from them.
On the one hand, we must bear in mind the costs. On the other (hand), the benefits we can obtain from them.
We must bear in mind the costs. On the other hand, the benefits we can obtain from them.
a The layman will not understand these instructions, and some experts might also find some difficulties interpreting them. (moreover)
b These fairy cakes are not only homemade, but they also have the best-quality ingredients. (besides)
c First, we must consider the fact that this year's income is lower than last year's; then, that we are working harder than last year. (on the one hand, on the other)
d As well as being well-trained for the post, she is beautiful. (in addition to)
e I submit it to you for your approval. I should like to add that I do not mind
your carrying out any changes that you consider necessary. (furthermore)
4 Examples: (expressing the result or consequence of something)
As we know them through and through, they can't deceive us.
We know them through and through, so they can't deceive us.
Since the management of the company have been raising funds illegally during the last few years, they will be taken to court.
The management of the company have been raising funds illegally during the last few years. Therefore/Consequently/For this reason/As a result/As a consequence/In consequence, they will be taken to court.
The management of the company have been raising funds illegally during the last few years. They will therefore be taken to court.
The management of the company have been raising funds illegally during the last few years. Thus (very formal)/So (less formal)/Hence (very formal) they will be taken to court.
The management of the company have been raising funds illegally during the last few years, with the result/consequence that they will be taken to court.
a As we have spent all our money, we can't buy the train tickets. (so)
b Since they have violated our civil rights, we should like to lodge a complaint. (therefore)
c As he has broken his promise twice, they will no longer trust him. (with the result that)
d They were fined because they were driving too fast. (in consequence)
e He did not pass me for failing to write the essay on Shakespeare. (for this reason)
5 Examples: (expressing the cause or reason of something)
She loves pasta, so she cooks it very often.
She cooks pasta very often, as/since/because/for (very formal) she loves it.
As/Since/Because she loves pasta, she cooks it very often.
She had an injured leg, so she could not walk properly.
She couldn't walk properly because of/on account of (formal)/owing to (formal) her injured leg. (But She couldn't walk properly because she had an injured leg.)
The cause of his illness was that he did not eat enough food.
His illness was due to malnutrition/lack of food.
The chairwoman has not come today, so we will have to put the meeting off.
Seeing (that/as) the chairwoman has not come today, we will have to put the meeting off.
If they hadn't helped us, we wouldn't have finished painting the house in time for the wedding day.
We finished painting the house in time for the wedding day thanks to their help.
We couldn't contact you, so we left a message for you.
The reason (why/that) we left a message for you was that we couldn't contact you.
We couldn't contact you. This is (the reason) why we left a message for you.
We couldn't contact you,
which is why we left a message for you.
We left a message for you
because we couldn't contact you.
They were very negligent, so they had to shut down.
They had to shut down
as a result of/
through their negligence.
They had to shut down
because they were very negligent.
a It made my mouth water, so I ate it. (as)
b They tried to ridicule me, so I left. (because)
c He is too ill to move/to be moved. (because of)
d The document was badly written, so I didn't sign it. (the reason)
e If I hadn't used your protective cream, I would have got sunburnt. (thanks to)
6 Revision exercise.
a He is too short to be a basketball player. (because)
b Although I approve of parties, I can't let you give one tonight. (much as)
c As you have not performed your duties, you will be expelled from the club. (consequently)
d "However fast I ran, I was always in the same place," she dreamt. (although)
e His father has died, so he is crying his heart out. (owing to)
f These are the rules, but there are exceptions. (nevertheless)
g I neither love you nor I want to see you again. (what's more)
h Majorca is a paradise for tourists; this is the consequence of its popularity. (hence)
i The cause of his death was a heart attack. (due to)
j As our business is going from bad to worse, we will have to close down. (as a result)
k Many people are dying from lack of food in the Third World every day. (on account of→Many people are dying in the Third World every day...)
l We will have to work hard at it because time is pressing on. (so)
m No matter how much you hate them, you will have to live with them. (even if)
n We will have to take sterner measures, since the unemployment rate has increased. (thus)
o You have failed all your exams, so we will not buy you the bike we promised. (since)
p The lack of discipline was the reason they lost the battle. (through)
q Even though he was happy, he felt lonely at times. (happy though)
r In spite of being clever with his hands, he couldn't fix it. (clever as)
s We saw many paratroopers. They were armed to the teeth, too. (besides)
t The padlock I bought was not big enough for the gate. (but)
u He could not live without her, so he consented to all her wishes. (for)
v We have considered your proposal thouroughly, but we are afraid to tell you that we cannot assent to it. (however)
w We were in a hurry, so we didn't wait for them. (the reason)
x Nobody dared to dissent from the decision of the prime minister, but she did. (all the same)
y If it hadn't been for her, I would have drowned. (thanks to)
z Although she had told him that she would always be true to him, she wasn't. (in spite of)
7 Examples: (ways of expressing an opinion)
I think (that) the government should do something about inflation.
In my opinion/To my mind/In my view/To me (informal)/To my way of thinking/As far as I am concerned/If you ask me (informal)/From my point of view/From my viewpoint/As I see it/The way I see it, the government should do something about inflation.
Personally/For my part, I think (that) the government should do something about inflation.
I think (that) the unemployment rate has fallen.
As far as I know/As far as I am aware/To (the best of) my knowledge/For all I know, the unemployment rate has fallen.
a I reckon we could do without them. (to me)
b I imagine she just wanted to impress you. (if you ask me)
c I think they have divorced. (to the best of my knowledge)
d I am of the opinion that men and women should be treated equally. (in my opinion)
e I suppose you have dazzled them with your beauty and good manners. (as I see it)
8 Examples: (reaching conclusions)
If we consider everything, this business is profitable.
Taking everything into account/consideration, this business is profitable.
Taking account of everything, this business is profitable.
All in all, the business is profitable.
Briefly/In brief/In conclusion/In short/(To put it) in a nutshell/Summarising/Summing up/To sum up, this business is profitable.
You shouldn't talk ill about your wife. You must bear in mind that she is your wife.
You shouldn't talk ill about your wife. After all, she's your wife/She's your wife(,) after all.
a They haven't come tonight, but we mustn't forget they are very busy. (after all)
b All things considered, a remedy to prevent tooth decay will be available soon. (all in all)
c Despite that, she's paid the bill. (after all)
d If we take everything into account, we cannot disregard all they have done for us. (in short)
e Therefore, we can come to the conclusion that the government should do away with this law. (to sum up)
9 Examples: (organising the sequence of events, facts and so forth)
First (of all)/In the first place/Firstly,...
In the second place/Second(ly),...
In the third place/Third(ly),...
Then/Next/After that,...
Finally/Lastly/In the end/Last of all,...
To begin with/To start with/For a start,...
To end with/To finish with/To conclude with,...
a We had an increase in sales last year. (in the first place)
b The raw material was cheaper. (in the second place)
c The labour force was very efficient. (in the third place)
d The new machinery was very productive. (in the next place)
e And we had to pay fewer taxes. (to end with)
10 Examples: (giving examples)
In this region, you can find cobras, vipers, etc. (full form:
et cetera)
In this region, you can find cobras, vipers, and so on/forth.
In this region, you can find cobras, vipers, and so on and so forth.
Some snakes in this region are poisonous. For example/For instance, cobras and vipers.
Some snakes in this region are poisonous, such as/like (less formal)
cobras and vipers.
Some snakes in this region are poisonous. As a case in point, we can mention cobras and vipers/We can mention cobras and vipers, as a case in point.
Some snakes in this region are poisonous. The cobra is a case in point/A case in point is the cobra.
I like cakes, biscuits, sweets(,) and similar things.
I like cakes, biscuits, sweets(,) and the like. (informal)
We will need, for example, a million pounds to carry out the project.
We will need, (let us) say, a million pounds to carry out the project.
a We need some new furniture in the house: a table for the dining room, two bedside tables, etc. (for instance)
b There are animals which are in danger of extinction. Amongst them, we can mention the whale. (such as)
c You will have to employ, for instance, twenty men to do the job. (say)
d A relevant matter to what we are talking about is the increase in violence on our streets. (a case in point)
e The bets you can make are as follows: £5, £10, £15, £20, etc, etc. (and so and so forth)
____________________
Although, even though and
though are followed by a subject plus a verb;
in spite of and
despite (more formal), by a noun, pronoun or gerund.
In spite of the fact (or
despite the fact) is used in the same way as
although:
In spite of/Despite the fact (that) he had a sprained ankle/he had sprained his ankle/his ankle was sprained, he went out for a walk. They may also come after the main clause:
He went out for a walk, although he had a sprained ankle.
Notwithstanding is a very formal alternative to
despite (preposition) or
however (adverb):
Notwithstanding the drop in sales, we should continue with the same policy/The drop in sales notwithstanding, we should continue with the same policy.
He knew of the many dangers which were awaiting him, but he proceeded with the plan notwithstanding.
Nonetheless may also be written
none the less.
However and
no matter how are followed by and adjective or an adverb.
Moreover and
furthermore are formal alternatives to
besides.
Omit
I should like to add that I do not mind.
These words are followed by a noun, pronoun or gerund.
Grammars sometimes say that
due to should be used after the verb
be; but, in practice, some people do not follow this rule:
She hasn't come today due to her bad cold.
As is colloquial.
See unit 20, section 13.
Note the following:
Taking into account/consideration that the business is profitable, we must invest in it.
We have to take your travelling expenses into account/consideration.
We have to take into account/consideration your travelling expenses.
In spoken English, we sometimes use
and/or whatever (
else),
and whatnot and
and what have you instead of and
so on/forth:
In this region, you can find cobras, vipers and whatever (else)/and whatnot/and what have you.
Eg (from Latin
exempli gratia) is another alternative to give examples, but it normally occurs in written English:
Some snakes in this region are poisonous; eg/e.g., cobras and vipers.
A less usual alternative:
I like cakes, biscuits, sweets, and such like.