AWESOME ESL WRITING GUIDE

To start the introduction with a rhetorical question (for

articles only)
1. Have you ever thought of driving your own car? The
thought sounds interesting, but…
2. How many of you are counting the days until you can
drive? A lot of us do, but have you stopped for a moment
to think about the down side of cars?
3. How would you feel if you were kept in a cramped
cage for the rest of your life? Needless to say, your
feelings will be shared by the animals which are kept in
zoos. I believe we should destroy zoos as it upsets the
animals in many ways.
4. Are you in favour of the Principal’s decision to
destroy our play area to build a science lab? There is
no doubt that this plan will negatively affect the students.
5. Which is better: a library full of books or a digital
library with internet connection? Like many of you, I
believe that…
6. Would you prefer helping your local farmers by
purchasing locally grown products or buying imported
goods? As a citizen of this country, I would definitely…
To link two ideas together
1. not only……. but also
E.g. Buying locally grown products will not only benefit our
local farmers, but also reduce foreign imports, which will
boost the country’s economy.
2. both…….and
E.g. Buying locally grown products will both benefit our
local farmers and reduce foreign imports, which will boost
the country’s economy.
3. coupled with
E.g. Coupled with reduction in unemployment, the project
will improve our standard of living as more products will be
available locally.
 4. as well as (use instead of ‘and’)
E.g. if we host the nest World Cup, our country will become
famous, as well as improve the tourism industry.
5. too / as well (informal, use only when writing emails
instead of ‘also’)
E.g. Uncle Salim loves playing cricket and he likes diving,
too.
E.g. Uncle Salim loves playing cricket and he likes driving as
well.
6. not to mention (used to add extra information and adds
emphasis)
E.g. The airport will create noise and air pollution, not to
mention its impact on the environment.
To link similar and contrasting ideas (notice the register
shift)
Joining similar points Joining different points
Formal Informal Formal Informal
Furthermore, What’s more However, ,but
Besides, That’s not all, In contrast, Though (at the
end)
Moreover, Not only that, On the contrary, Although…
In addition, Other than that, Nevertheless, ,but

To generalize (these expressions are followed by a plural

noun, e.g ‘tourists’)
1. The vast majority of
2. A significant number of
3. Not hardly any (very few)
4. Almost all,
To give opinions
1. As far as I am concerned,
2. To my mind,
3. As I see it,
4. It seems to me that
 5. Personally, I feel that
6. It is my contention that
7. I strongly oppose to the fact that / to the idea that
8. I am of the opinion that
9. I think ( is a less formal expression)
To add support or develop the point further (useful in
paragraph development)
1. This means that…
2. As a result, …
3. This may lead to…
4. This may result in…
5. Consequently, …
6. Therefore, …
7. , which means that…

Use of conditional sentences (in article writing)

1. It would be a good idea if + past tense
e.g. Surely, it would be a good idea if the government
increased the price of petrol.
2. It will be beneficial if + present tense
3. If we build the factory, it will create new jobs for the local
people, which means that…
To express degree
1. Recently, there has been a marked increase in the
number of road accidents in our town.
2. Our country is suffering from a notable reduction in job
opportunities.
3. This will lead to a significant growth in local industries,
which will boost our economy.
To give suggestions
1. I would suggest + ing
I would suggest implementing stricter laws to curb the
increase in traffic violations.
 2. It would (clearly/surely) be a good idea if + subject + past
tense
It would surely be a good idea if we had a better cinema in
town.
3. It is high time / it is about time + subject + past tense
It is high time we had a new cinema in town.
It is about time we took some positive action.
To put forward arguments
1. One of the main arguments against making PE
compulsory is that…
2. The main argument in favour of the proposal is that…
3. I am strongly opposed to the fact that…
4. It is beyond a shadow of a doubt that…
5. There is not even an iota of doubt that if we build the
museum, more job opportunities will be opened.
6. The most compelling argument in support of the
airport is that it will…
To relate to the audience
a. School magazine article
1. Many of my classmates feel that…
2. Our school is in great need of…
3. The majority of teachers are not in favour of the
plan as it would…
4. I think many other like-minded students will
disagree with the Principal’s plan to throw the old
books away.
5. We recently held a student meeting in the school
canteen to discuss the issue and most of the
students stated that…
6. Views expressed by other students indicated that
they are…
b. Newspaper article
1. Many people argue that…
2. Our town is in great need of…
3. The majority of our islanders believe that…
 4. The residents of Male’ (city name) feel that
5. Our community is very supportive of the proposal to
build an airport as they believe that…
6. It would put our neighbourhood/town on the map, in
other words we will become famous.
7. A large number of locals have already protested
against the plan, arguing that…
8. The public undoubtedly will have to bear the brunt of
a decrease in local products, which is not good news at
all.
To conclude
1. In conclusion, having considered the issue in different
angles, I feel that…
2. In a nutshell (informal), I strongly believe that…
3. To sum up (informal), I think the project will prove
successful provided that (if) we all work together.
4. Finally, after weighing the pros and cons of the issue,
it is my contention that building an airport is a
worthwhile plan as it will create new jobs and facilitate
better transporation.
5. All things considered, I believe that pollution is a
serious issue and I urge the public to support the
council’s plan to impose fines on those who carelessly
throw rubbish everywhere.