The Value of “Sentence Starters” in Paraphrasing and Academic Writing

A sentence starter is a word or phrase that starts a sentence, the aim of which is to create a transition between sentences and phrases. For example, the phrase “In recent years, ...” is a common sentence starter used to begin a sentence by contextualising the reader.

Sentence starters play a valuable role in rewriting services because, in a rewriting service, the aim is to change the words that a piece of writing contains without altering its meaning. Therefore, knowing what sentence starters are interchangeable, redundant, or amenable to edits, revisions, or expansions (e.g., increasing the length of a phrase), can help paraphrasers and rewriters quickly change the look, sound, and feel of a written document.

In academic writing, sentence starters also play a key role in increasing the cohesion of a document. In the absence of sentence starters, an author’s writing can become disconnected, disorganized, and consequently difficult to read and understand.

However, knowing which sentence starters to add to your document – and when – is not always a straightforward matter. Therefore, to assist your use of sentence starters in paraphrasing and academic writing, this article presents several categories of sentence starters and then offers specific examples.

 

Sentence starters for thesis statements

A thesis statement is a sentence that opens your paper or essay. It is shown in the very first paragraph, right at the beginning. For this reason, it’s important to get it right.

Using a sentence starter for your thesis statement is always a good option, but some great thesis statements don’t necessarily incorporate sentence starters. Some options are:

·         This paper examines ...

·         In this paper, we discuss ...

·         Below, we discuss ... 

 

Sentence starters for essay conclusions

The conclusion section in an essay differs from most other sections in that it does not present new information to the reader.

Instead, the purpose of the conclusion is to summarise the main arguments from the main body of the document, and potentially to offer insights regarding the implications or future directions for the paper.

Examples of sentence starters for essay conclusions include:

·         In summary, …

·         Altogether, …

·         To review, …

·         All in all, …

·         On the whole, …

·         Putting it all together, …

·         To summarise, …

 

Sentence starters for lists

Lists are frequently used in academic writing, such as when reporting on an experimental method (e.g., the steps undertaken in a laboratory), the results of an author’s study (e.g., an author who reported three main results), or the materials used in a research project (e.g., budget figures and expenditures).

For this reason, equipping yourself with the following sentence starters for lists will help you write or paraphrase lists easily, all the while making the list more interesting and easier to read:

·         First, … Second, …, Third, …, and so on

·         Next, …

·         Afterward, …

·         Moving on, …

·         Later, …

·         Following this, …

·         In turn, …

·         After that, …

 

How to Use “Sentence Starters” in Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing a document involves changing the way the text looks in terms of switching the words it contains (i.e., finding synonyms) and – possibly – its structure (e.g., sentence structure and paragraph structure), all the while keeping the meaning exactly the same.

Clearly, then, paraphrasing is a complex task, which is the main reason paraphrasing services are becoming increasingly popular today. Also, in the wake of the growing need to paraphrase texts to help produce academic essays, research, and business copy, the vital function that a paraphrasing service can perform for many individuals, professionals, and students is increasingly being recognized.

If you are an aspiring paraphraser, or if you are simply curious to know how you can improve your paraphrasing skills, knowing how and when to use so-called sentence starters is essential.

Sentence starters are words or phrases that begin the rest of the sentence. They are typically set apart by commas, and their primary function is to introduce the text in the remainder of the sentence or paragraph, helping the reader to orient themselves in the text and prepare for the next topic.

Knowledge of sentence starters is fundamental for paraphrasing, especially when seeking to provide professional-grade paraphrasing and proofreading services efficiently or achieve high marks at university. Also, to produce high-quality academic research, paraphrasing/rewriting the original ideas of other authors – such as for the literature review section of your research paper – is a basic requirement.

The rest of this article serves as a preliminary guide that introduces the use of sentence starters for paraphrasing. It is organized in different categories based on the purpose of the sentence starter, and in each case, the fact that all the specific examples are synonymous means that paraphrasers can switch between these terms interchangeably.

 

Sentence starters for elaboration

It is common in writing to elaborate on an idea by adding new points. The following sentence starters can be used to signal this to the reader:

·         Just as important, …

·         Furthermore, …

·         Moreover, …

·         Also, …

·         Even more important, …

·         Significantly, …

 

Sentence starters to introduce examples

Examples are often expected in academic writing. When you are seeking to paraphrase a piece of writing that contains sentence starters introducing examples, you can easily find cases of interchangeable terms below:

·         Specifically, …

·         For example, …

·         For instance, …

·         To illustrate, …

·         This is shown by, …

·         This is evidenced by, …

 

Sentence starters for contrasts

One of the most impactful uses of sentence starters is to indicate to the reader that you will change topics abruptly, leading to a contrast. In the absence of these types of sentence starters, the text can become disorganized and scattered.

Examples of useful sentence starters for contrasts include:

·         Although …

·         However, …

·         Nevertheless, …

·         Conversely, …

·         By contrast, …

·         Yet, …

·         Rather, …

·         Still, …

·         Then again, …

 

Sentence starters for cause, and effect relationships

Another common use case for sentence starters is to show the reader that there is a cause, and effect relationship between the subject of one sentence and the subject of another sentence. Paraphrasers can choose from all of the following similar sentence starters that have this function:

·         Therefore, …

·         As a result, …

·         That is why …

·         Hence, …

·         For this reason, …

·         Consequently, …

·         Accordingly, …

How to Spot an Inexperienced Proofreader

People use proofreading services because they understand the importance of polishing their writing and ensuring they present their ideas in the clearest possible way. For this reason, when an inexperienced or poorly trained proofreader provides a proofreading service, the damage this causes is often catastrophic. 

If you find the types of common errors shown in this article within your own documents after receiving a proofreading service, then it is likely that your proofreader is inexperienced. As a result of this, they may have provided a low-quality service that is not fit for purpose, and you should act to correct the errors remaining in your document.

Most service providers who specialise in proofreading services will be willing to correct the errors in your document that remain after the completion of the service. However, it is always best to vet your chosen proofreader or service provider before you assign them to work on your documents; ultimately, this will save significant time and money.

 

1. Passive voice

The use of passive voice in a sentence is not necessarily wrong, but writing sentences in the active voice often leads to stronger and more impactful writing.

For this reason, it is usually expected that a proofreader – whether they are working in a freelance capacity or under the direction of a dedicated proofreading service provider – will correct any instances of passive voice usage in your writing to the active voice.

For example, as shown below, an experienced proofreader will immediately spot the value of correcting the first sentence (written in the passive voice) to either the second sentence or third sentence (both of which are written in the active voice):

1.    The findings X, Y, and Z are suggested by this research.

2.    This research found X, Y, and Z.

3.    The findings of this research indicate X, Y, and Z.

If your proofreader fails to spot opportunities to improve your writing like this, it may be an indication that they are inexperienced. As a result, you will likely benefit from working with another professional.

 

2. Confusion of common words

Good proofreaders know the difference between all of the following commonly confused words:

·         Its and it’s

·         Their, there, and they’re

·         Your and you’re

·         Too, two, and to

·         Bear and bare

For this reason, to see whether your proofreader is experienced, consider creating a sample test containing some of these commonly confused words and submit the work as a free sample. This will help you to determine whether the proofreader is goodto work with.

 

3. Confusing who and whom

One of the clearest signs of an inexperienced proofreading service professional is a person who is unsure about the different usages of the words who and whom. In short, who is interchangeable with he or she, whereas whom is interchangeable with him or her.

As before, consider watching out for this mistake – as well as other similar basic errors – to determine whether your proofreader is a good match for your project.

How to Master Sentence Structures

Understanding how sentences work – otherwise known as syntax – is in important issue, and it is usually one of the first things new language learners look at when approaching an unfamiliar language.

In writing, especially when writing a foreign language, mastery of sentence structures is even more important than in speech because weak, unclear, and disorganised sentences will undermine the reader’s ability to understand the meaning of the text.

The tasks of proofreading and editing, both of which are essential stages in writing that authors may or may not perform with the assistance of proofreading and editing services, depend on an in-depth knowledge of sentence structures.

Given that proofreaders and editors are adept in terms of their knowledge of syntax and sentence construction, an easy way to improve the quality of your writing is simply to make use of their services.

However, if you cannot afford proofreading and editing services, or if you would prefer to complete the activity yourself (e.g., for learning purposes), reading this article will teach you the key points about sentence structures that are needed for clear writing in English.

 

What is a sentence?

Sentences are strings of clauses.

For example, in English grammar, a complex sentence is said to consist of 1 independent clause + 1 or more subordinate clauses.

 

What is a clause?

A clause is a series of words containing both a subject and a verb. One clause may form a sentence, but sentences usually consist of several clauses that are added together.

For example, an independent clause, which is defined as a clause that could be a grammatical and complete sentence, is shown below:

            We’ll eat lunch at seven.

            James and David helped the Duke.

As another example, a dependent clause, which is defined as a clause that is not a grammatical and complete sentence, is shown as follows:

            …because it was sunny.

Dependent clauses are often referred to as subordinate clauses.

The ellipsis (…) in the above example indicates that some text, not shown, must precede the dependent clause, which gives the clause its name. That is to say, the clause is dependent on (or subordinate to) to another clause for its full meaning.

If we add another dependent clause (or an independent clause, as below) to this, we will have a complete sentence:

            The roads were in good condition yesterday because it was sunny.

 

What are the types of sentence structure?

To master sentence structure, and thereby to improve your writing (and make life easier for your proofreader or editor), it’s worth knowing about the four types of sentence structure.

As explained already, a sentence is a string of clauses. The four possible types of sentence are:

·         Simple: 1 independent clause

·         Compound: 2 or more independent clauses

·         Complex: 1 independent clause + 1 or more dependent clauses

·         Compound-complex: 2 or more independent clauses + 1 or more dependent clauses

By varying your use of sentences and applying different sentence structures in your writing, you can create much more interesting, descriptive, and powerful text.

How to Find a Proofreader-Fast

Do you need a proofreadingservice as soon as possible?

For example, do you have to submit your writing – in a finished and polished state to your college, journal, or boss – within 12 hours, 24 hours, or even sooner?

Thanks to the Internet, you can find high-quality editing and proofreading services very rapidly today. Therefore, the short answer to the question of How can I find a proofreader, fast? is simply to follow these steps:

·         Step 1: Google your question

·         Step 2: Consider the first few search results (probably ads)

·         Step 3: Double-check the service provider can meet your deadline

·         Step 4: Order a service

·         Step 5: Ideally, review the work before submitting it

·         Step 6: Check-out their service reviews

Following the above steps will ensure you find a quick proofreading service. However, importantly, it may leave a lot to be desired in terms of quality.

The reason for this is that in today’s market for proofreading services and other writing services, there are two broad problems: first, the problem of overpriced services; and second, the problem of guaranteeing the quality of the work you receive. It’s typically easy to solve one or the other of these problems; however, solving them both together (i.e., finding a high-quality and cost-effective proofreading service) is not as simple.

Therefore, to give the long answer to the question of How can I find a proofreader, fast? let’s consider how to ensure that you receive a service that is both high-quality and cost-effective. To do so, let’s add the following steps to the process shown above:

·         Step 1: Check offline word of mouth

o   For example, recommendations from family and friends or your university/journal

·         Step 2: Check online word of mouth

o   For example, online reviews, press releases, and media reports

·         Step 3: Decide on several possible service providers

o   Try to gain a sense of the available prices and find a competitive price

o   Also, choose between a freelancer and a dedicated online proofreading company

·         Step 4: Double-check your deadline with service providers and receive free samples

o   Ensure the service provider can meet your deadline

o   Receive and evaluate free proofreading samples from your chosen providers

·         Step 5: Order a service 

o   Remember to ensure that the proofreader is a good fit for your project (in terms of experience, expertise, etc.)

·         Step 6: Review the work before submitting it

o   Similar to the shorter version of this process (shown above), you should vet the proofreader’s work after they have provided it

o   If you aren’t satisfied with the work, you should request revisions until you are

The six-step process of finding a high-quality, cost-effective proofreading service is – of course – longer and requires more effort than the earlier five-step process.

Therefore, the shorter approach may be preferable if you’re extremely short on time, but you may have to compromise on both quality and price.