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Writing: “An essay” (Cambridge Advanced)
1. INTRODUCTION
General information about the
topic: “Some people think that…”;
“Nowadays,
…”; “Hardly a week goes by without X
appearing on Y”.
Statistics; data; examples of X;
instances of Y appearing
somewhere. “According to…; In
agreement with…” “Regarding…”
Your opinion (briefly). “I agree, I
disagree…”; “I am in agreement with”, “In my view…”; “As I
see it…;”; “From my perspective”; “The way I see it…”,
“From my point of view…”
Other introductory phrases (C1-C2):
o It is often said that …
o ….is a hotly-debated topic that often divides opinion.
o ….is a topic that is often discussed but rarely solved.
o Many people feel that …
o We live in an age when many of us are…
o More and more families/people are choosing to …
o The trend nowadays is towards +ing
o Over the past/last ten years or so, …….
o Recent research indicates that the number of …is
increasing.
o Statistics indicate that ……….
o Hardly a week goes by without another report of ..
appearing in the media. This raises the issue of
whether ……………..
o Although most people would generally agree that
…………… few
2. BODY 1
Firstly… To start… First of all,… In
the first place… Regarding…
concerning… As for…
o Supporting claim 1 with
examples if possible.
o Supporting claim 2 with
examples if possible.
Useful language (C1-C2):
o …. clearly/undoubtedly has an impact on…
o It is common knowledge that… plays a crucial role in…
o It is undoubtedly the case that…
o There is little doubt that…
o … is widely believed to contribute to…
o It is generally considered that…
o Recent research suggests that…
o Studies have shown that… has an impact/influence on…
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o Few people would contest/dispute the fact that…
3. BODY 2
Secondly… To continue… On the
other hand,… In the second
place… In addition… Besides…
o Supporting claim 1.
Examples if possible.
o Supporting claim 2.
Examples if possible.
Useful language (C1-C2):
o Another factor to consider is…
o On the other hand,/In contrast…
o It is often claimed that…
o All the evidence suggests that…
4. CONCLUSION
Summarise what you’ve said, your
opinion. “To summarise”, “in
conclusion”, “ to sum up”, “in
summary”, “Finally”, “in order to
conclude”, “all in all”, “At the end of
the
day”, “All things said…”; “I consider,
reckon”, “I am inclined to think
that…”.
Useful language (C1-C2):
o In light of the above,
o Taking all this into consideration/account,…
o Taking the aforementioned aspects into account,
o As far as I am concerned, / in my opinion, / as I see it, etc.
o … is the most effective way to… due to the fact that…
o Despite the fact that… undoubtedly plays a role
in… I firmly believe that… is more effective due to
the fact that… its advantages outnumber/ outweigh
those
o All in all, it seems to me that ………..
o The obvious conclusion to be drawn is that …………………..
o All things considered! ………….
o On balance! , tend to believe that …………
o The world would surely be a better place to live in if
…………..
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Writing Bank
A. Giving your opinion
o As I see it,
o It seems to me that.............I would also say that ….
o I am convinced that ……………
o I am inclined to believe that ………………
o There is no doubt in my mind that ………………
o One of the drawbacks of ……. is ……….
o However, one of the benefits is that …………
B. Changing the topic of conversation
o As regards the causes for this, …………..
o Concerning the causes for this, ………
o As for the causes, ………..
C. Supporting and presenting arguments
o One justification often given for ……….. is that……………..
o Advocates/Proponents would claim that ………………
o Those who object to …………….. often argue that
……………….
o Another objection is that ……
o However, it should not be forgotten that …………..
o ……….. are opposed to...................on the grounds that
……………..
o From the point of view of ……………..
o According to ………………..
D. Describing the causes or consequences of
o One factor which has led to ………… is …………..
o One of the factors which has brought this about is ………
o The problem often stems from ………………..
o The situation has been exacerbated by …………….
o.........has only made the situation worse.
o One consequence of ……………. is …………….
E. Proposing measures, steps and solutions
o As regards the most appropriate response to this
situation, one suggestion would be to ………
o The first step to be taken would be to ……..
o To alleviate the situation people should ………..
o In addition, they ought to ……………
o This can only be dealt with if …………
o To overcome this problem, …………..
o Were the government to.............., the situation would
doubtless
improve.
o Individuals can do a great deal to …………
o The burden of responsibility lies in the hands of ……..
o It is vitally important that ………
o Legislation should be introduced to control ……………..
o It would be a grave error if we ……………..