The Most Overused Transitions (and Good Replacements)

Transition words do some heavy lifting in our writing, but we often repeat the same ones. Try one of these fresher alternatives to organize your thoughts.

Transition words and phrases — such as “also,” “however,” and “in addition” — form a lexical bridge between ideas. They help readers follow contrast, agreement, cause and effect, examples, sequence, conclusions, and more. But some transitions are used so often that they can sound automatic or boring.

Even famous authors fall victim to using familiar transitions. Take, for instance, the repeated transition “then” in this excerpt from Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: 

"Then she went to work nibbling at the mushroom (she had kept a piece of it in her pocket) till she was about a foot high: then she walked down the little passage: and then — she found herself at last in the beautiful garden, among the bright flower-beds and the cool fountains.:

Common transitions still serve an important purpose in English, but there are often better choices. Here are some of the most commonly used transitions, along with stronger replacements to fine-tune your writing.

Transitions for Opposition and Contradiction 

Transitions are frequently used to express an alternative in order to switch gears to a new line of reasoning. Writers often lean on tried-and-true transitions such as “however,” “but,” and “though” to introduce this contrast. Consider the example, “The team played a great game. However, they lost in the final seconds.” These reliable words are effective when used sparingly — they’re often seen in academic writing, business jargon, and novels — but when overused, they lose their impact. 

Transitions for Agreement and Similarity 

Other transitions, such as “also,” “likewise,” and “moreover,” reinforce an idea, whether by adding additional information or indicating agreement. These are used in all types of writing, from casual text messages to formal legal documents. Take this example: “The new café has excellent matcha. Also, they have freshly baked pastries.” Here, the use of “also” feels choppy. Other times, common transitions are repeated so frequently that they feel lazy.

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