Presenting ideas Your ideas will form the basis of your argument and they need to be expressed clearly

and appropriately.

• You may need to give your personal opinion (PO). In my view, school uniforms …

• You may want to give other people’s opinions (OO), Some people argue that school
e.g. when you are asked to consider an argument from both sides. uniforms …

• Sometimes a more general statement (GS) is needed. It is generally believed that school
uniforms …

• To support your argument, you will often need to state facts(F). In my country most people have to
wear school uniform …

Here are some expressions to help you present ideas.

I would argue that …. Some most people argue/think that … Test tip

In my view … It is understood that … Words like tend, seem

and feel are often
It seems (to me) that … It is generally accepted that … used for softening the
I tend to think that … There is a tendency to believe that … tone of the writer’s
arguments.
As far as I am concerned … One of the main arguments in favour of/against
(eg.zoo) is that S + V

I tend to feel that …

Making concessions

Test tip
Good writers often consider other arguments that are different, before presenting their own
views.
Theses
expressions also For example:
act as linkers
Although some people would like to have a lot of children (concession), the cost of raising
because they
connect different them has to be considered first writer’s view). The following expressions are useful when
arguments. making concessions.

While/Although … It would be argued that S + V

Despite the fact that … Admittedly/Certainly, S + V. However, S + V

Even though S + V … It may be true that S + V …

1

Using linking words and expressions

There are many ways in which you can link your main and supporting arguments. It is important to try
to vary the words and structures you use.

For example/For instance,… In fact/Indeed …

Actually, if this is/were the case …

Firstly/For one thing … Naturally/Understandably …

A good example of this is … In my experience …

On the one hand, On the other hand,

Refuting an argument

That is a forceful way of expressing a view. It means that you present your view by first rejecting an argument
that you do not agree with.

The following expressions are useful in refuting an argument.

I am unconvinced that … There is little evidence to support the view that …

I don’t believe that … It is unjustifiable to say that …

Some people find it hard to accept that … I disagree with the view/argument that …

It is doubtful whether … I am uncertain whether

There is no justification for + Ving

Expressing feelings

Feelings and reactions can be expressed by combining adverbs and adjectives with other phrases/
structures, e.g. I am frequently surprised to learn …, People are rarely shocked by the fact that …

• Read this sentence which uses a negative adverb to communicate strong feelings.

It tells the reader that, in your opinion, it is perfectly understandable that young people might be
undecided about their careers.

I am never surprised to hear that young people say they have yet to decide on a career.

2

Double Negative

A ‘double negative’ format is also used to give emphasis to an unexpected situation.

It is not unusual For (+ object + infinitive) It is quite usual …

uncommon to + Vbase It is quite common …
impossible It is quite possible …

inconceivable that S + V There is a slight possibility

Emphatic language

Look at these two sentences from the sample answer.

What these people are suggesting is that women nowadays should not go out to work.
What teachers come up with are frequent stories of parents who are too busy
for their children.

These are emphatic ways of saying:

• These people are suggesting that women nowadays should not go out to work.
• Teachers come up with frequent stories of parents simply too busy for their children.

Using this structure makes your arguments sound more convincing to the reader.

Rhetorical Questions

Look at this rhetorical question.

Where would we be, for example, without basic items such as the washing machine, the television and more
recently, the computer?

Rhetorical questions are a common feature of academic writing. They are used because they add emphasis to a
point, and they do not require an answer.

Defining and explaining

If you are using general terms that could be understood in many different ways, it is a good idea to
define or explain what you understand by the term. This will form part of your supporting argument.

The following expressions are useful in helping you be more precise.

By this I (don’t) mean that … In other words, … To be more precise, …

In fact, … That is to say, … Here I’m (not) referring to + N

That is not to say that …

3

Summarising sentences

It is often helpful to summarize the main points you have made as a way of introducing the next stage of the
argument. Look at the Useful language box below for examples of this language.

Useful language

Having looked at a number of problem/benefits, we should now consider + (N)

discussed

Given the problems / factors which we can turn to the question / issue of + (N)/whether S + V

have been outlined, we need to ask (if/WH question words) S + V

Impersonal Expressions

It seems/ appears (that) …

It is generally agreed/accepted (that) …

EXPRESSING DISAGREEMENT

As part of your answer to a Task 2 question, you may wish to challenge a fact or claim.

e.g. Insurance fraud is a crime without a victim.

It’s not (completely) true to say that …

Many people would disagree with the assertion / idea that …
It’s hard to believe that …

You may also need to point out a false conclusion.

A lot of people exceed the speed limit so it must be acceptable.

The fact that … doesn’t mean …

(Just) Because … it doesn’t necessarily follow that …
It may be true that … but it doesn’t necessarily follow that …

4

Refutation Paragraphs

Suggested phrases for refutation paragraphs:

Many people believe that … -However, I strongly disagree … because …

-Nothing could be further from the In fact,…
truth (strong disagreement)
Others may argue that … -I find it hard to agree … …for the
-Nevertheless, I cannot agree … following reasons
(Mild disagreement)
Those who disagree point out that … -Perhaps this is true, but it cannot be denied that …
-This is partly true, then again, …
(Concessional disagreement)

Writing a conclusion

Your conclusion should summarize your position for the reader and, if appropriate to the task
instructions, present your final decision on a question. You can also be impartial, i.e. take no side, or state that
you have no conclusion to draw.

Phrases like those in the box below can be useful in a conclusion.

To sum up, In conclusion / To conclude…,

Overall/All in all…, Ultimately…,

In the final analysis …, In the end …,

Clearly …, Taking everything into consideration …,

On balance, When all is said and done,