Essential English Linking Words, Phrasal Verbs, and Idioms

Essential English Linking Words

To Start: First, once, once upon a time, to begin with, starting with, initially, from this point, last of all, at the end, in the end, finally, to finish.

Cause and Effect: Because, so, therefore, thus, consequently, hence, as a result.

To Add a Point: And, also, as well as, moreover, too, furthermore, additionally, in addition to, at the same time, again, equally importantly, in addition, above all, most of all, least of all, either...or, neither...nor, nevertheless, to continue, second, secondly, in the second place, next, the next time, then, after that, following that, subsequently, on the next occasion, so far, later on, third, in the third place, consequently.

Repetition: So briefly, in short, in fact, in simpler terms, to put it differently, in other words, again, once more, as stated, that is to say, to retell, to review, to rephrase, to paraphrase, to reconsider, to clarify, to explain, to outline.

To Generalise: On the whole, in general, generally, as a rule, in most cases.

To Give an Example: For example, as an example, for instance, indeed.

To Conclude or Summarise: To conclude, in conclusion, to close, last of all, finally, to end, to complete, to bring to an end, thus, hence, therefore, as a consequence of, as a result, in short, to sum up, to summarise, to recapitulate, consequently.

To Compare: As, as well as, like, in much the same way, resembling, parallel to, same as, identically, of little difference, equally, matching, also, exactly, similarly, similar to, in comparison, in relation to.

To Express Attitude: Frankly, honestly, I think, I suppose, after all, no doubt, I’m afraid, actually, as a matter of fact, to tell the truth, unfortunately, I believe, in my opinion, to be honest.

To Contrast, Disagree and Qualify: Though, although, and yet, but, despite, despite this fact, in spite of, even so, however, in contrast, by contrast, on one hand, on the other hand, on the contrary, in one way, in another way, although this may be true, nevertheless, nonetheless.

Time Expressions

Time 1: Before, earlier, previously, formerly, recently, not long ago, at present, presently, currently, now, by now, until, today, immediately, simultaneously, at the same time, during, all the while, in the future, yesterday, tomorrow, henceforth, after, after a short time, after a while, soon, later, later on, following, the following week.

Time 2: Suddenly, all at once, instantly, immediately, quickly, directly, soon, as soon as, just then, when, sometimes, some of the time, in the meantime, occasionally, rarely, seldom, infrequently, temporarily, periodically, gradually, eventually, little by little, slowly, while, meanwhile, always, all of the time, without exception, at the same time, repeatedly, often, frequently, generally, usually.

Opinions and Phrasal Verbs

Asking for Someone's Opinion: Don't you agree that...?

Expressing Opinion: In my view/opinion, I'm convinced/positive that, to my mind, personally, I think, from my point of view, as far as I'm concerned, I don't think, I'm not sure (about/if), I don't have a strong/definite opinion about that, I firmly believe.

Common Phrasal Verbs

• Catch up on: Ponerse al día
• Cut down on: Reducir el consumo de
• Get along with: Llevarse bien con alguien
• Get on with something: Continuar, hacer progreso
• Get on well with somebody: Llevarse bien con
• Get rid of: Deshacerse de, librarse de
• Look back on: Recordar
• Look up to: Admirar a alguien
• Look down on: Menospreciar
• Look forward to: Ansiar, anhelar
• Run out of: Quedarse sin
• Sign up for: Apuntarse a
• Single somebody out: Darle un trato especial a alguien
• Stand up for: Defender algo o a alguien
• Stay away from: Alejarse de
• Ended up: Se acaba/acaba en
• Sort out: Resolver problema
• Set aside: Reservar/ahorrar

Idioms and Binomials

Idioms:

• All that glitters is not gold: No es oro todo lo que brilla/reluce.
• Apple of my eye: Es la niña de mis ojos.

Binomials:

• Ups and downs: Subidas y bajones.
• By and large: En general, en resumidas cuentas.