Frequently Used Sentence Structures in IELTS Compositions

Introduction: 1. At present / currently /lately / recently / nowadays / these years / in the past several decades / over the last several years 2. at the turn of the century 3. Thanks to Chinas reform and opening-up policy, has witnessed great economic and social progress in the past two decades. 4. With the (rapid, marked, amazing, eye-catching, remarkable, fantastic) development / progress / growth / advance / improvement of economy / society / industry / living standard, great changes have taken place in 5. At the mercy of the ever-accelerated updating of science and technology, there are rapid changes in all aspects of our everyday lives. 6. With the arrival / advent of the invention of / the information age / the 21st century / the economy age, 7. We are now entering a brand new era. The 21st century is a time of advanced scientific and technological knowledge. 8. The human race has entered a completely new stage in its history. We have just crossed the threshold of the 21st century and the curtain of the new millennium is slowly rising. 9. We are blessed with new opportunities and faced with new challenges. 10. With the increasingly rapid economic globalization and urbanization, more problems are brought to our attention. 11. As develops, 12. Along with the development of , more and more 13. In the past few years, there has been a sharp growth / boom / decline in 14. With the steady growth in the countrys economy as well as the peoples living standard, 15. While the rhythm / pace / tempo of peoples living is speeding up, a lot of changes have taken place in 16. With the fantastic spur both in industry and in economy in China, the number of is on the rise. 17. As living tempo / pace quickens, 18. It is commonly believed that the rise in is the inevitable result of economic development. 19. In recent years, China has experienced an alarming increase in 20. The issue of whether we should has been widely debated in our community recently. It is an important issue because it concerns fundamental moral and economic questions about the way we a variety of different arguments have been put forward about this issue. This essay will consider arguments for and point to some of the problems with these views. It will then put forward reasons for the 21. Nowadays more and more people begin to realize / be aware of / notice the importance / significance / seriousness of the problem of education / pollution / unemployment. 22. We often find ourselves caught / involved in a dilemma whether we should reach for the bears paw or for the sharks fin 23. There is a growing worldwide awareness of the need for 24. Recently the issue / problem of has been in the limelight / brought into focu / brought to public attention / concern. 25. A recent report released by the government has caused nationwide repercussions. 26. Recently the phenomenon has aroused wide concern. 27. One of the (universal / pressing / burning / urgent) problems / issues we are faced with

(confronting us) is that 28. Recently the problem / issue / conflict has become the focus / concern of the public. 29. There is a (public / general / heated / impassioned) debate / discussion / controversy today / nowadays as to / over / on / concerning the issue / problem of Those who criticize / oppose / object to contend /argue that They believe that But people who advocate / favor / are for , on the other hand, maintain /assert that 30. A public debate has arisen as to the phenomenon of 31. Recently, there is a vehement discussion on the issue of those who criticize argue that They claim that But people who firmly advocate ; on the other had, argue that 32. There is a long-running debate as to whether 33. It is undeniable that . Has become the biggest concern of the present-day world. 34. Now it is commonly / generally / widely believed / held / accepted / recognized that They claim / argue / hold that But I wonder / doubt whether it 35. According to a(n) survey / investigation / analysis / statistics / report released /conducted / made by , there is a growing / increasing / declining number of who / which 36. Once in a newspaper / magazine, I hit upon (came across) a / the report that 37. Which is a better choice, A or B? Different people have different answers due to their respective point of view. However, I side with the opinion that A is far better than B, for several reasons addressed below. 38. This case has aroused echoes throughout the country, with more and more people following its lead, but ideas about it vary widely. 39. The discussion about whether or not is a very controversial one. There are people on both sides of the argument who have very strong feelings. 40. Those who criticize / oppose / object to / are against contend /argue / hold that But people who advocate / favor / are for ; on the other hand, maintain / assert / claim that 41. Some argue / hold that , but others set forth a totally different argument about the issue of 42. Of course, there are a larger amount of arguments which may be advanced in defense of 43. Some people say that ; other people suggest that But I can hardly share this point of view for several reasons. 44. Some people place more stress in the former while others attach heavier weight to the latter. If asked to make a choice between the two, I would not hesitate to choose the latter over the former for several sound reasons. 45. Some people advocate that They claim that My opinion is identical with theirs. 46. Personally, I side with the former / latter opinion. 47. I am of the opinion that priority should be given to 48. Personally, I stand on the side of 49. As far as I am concerned, I am in favor of the opinion that 50. For my part, I completely agree with the former / latter. 51. To be frank / to tell the truth, I should second the former / latter attitude / position in preference to the latter / former. 52. People from different backgrounds, however, put different interpretations on the same thing. 53. Views on the issue in question vary from person to person / vary widely. 54. People rarely reach an absolute consensus on a controversial issue. 55. Peoples views, however, are divergent on the matter in question.

56. The other side of the coin has voiced strong opposition saying that 57. Some people are of the opinion that 58. Some people hold the belief / view that 59. Many people have the idea that However, many others disagree that Both sides of the question of whether are well supported by sound reasons. 60. To some peoples mind / From some peoples point of view, there are several advantages in / of The first advantage is that 61. I fully agree with the statement that The reasons are chiefly as follows: 62. As to me, I am in favor of the first / second view. There are many reasons for my inclination, but the following ones are most important. 63. Before giving my opinion, I think it is essential to look at the argument on both sides. Body: 1. My argument for this view goes as follows: 2. There is considerable evidence in favor of 3. One very strong argument for is that 4. Firstly / first / in the first place / first of all / to begin with / above everything else / in the first instance 5. Secondly / in the second place 6. Besides / in addition (to) / furthermore / moreover 7. Finally / last of all / last but not least / lastly / in the last place 8. Admittedly / I admit / conceding that / I concede 9. To be frank / frankly speaking / honestly speaking 10. The birth / invention of has made an enormous / essential difference to But it does not mean that 11. Many people hold an erroneous view towards 12. In my opinion, both views are lop-sided. 13. , as the product of modern civilization, have been playing a vital part in the daily activities of human society. 14. has changed the way our society develops. But its bright side should not keep us from following closely its dark side. 15. But we must not lose sight of the fact there are disadvantages / benefits to doing something. 16. As to whether it is a blessing or a curse, however, people take different attitudes / positions. 17. , if made the best / the worst of, will bring some distinct advantages / disadvantages to 18. There is a good side and a bad side to everything, and that includes 19. is a two-edged sword. 20. Obviously, like anything else, have more than one face. While they are indispensable to mankind, they also bring us serious problems. 21. There is merit in both these points of view. / There are merits to both of these two arguments. 22. There is probably some truth on both sides. 23. There is probably a little bit of truth in both arguments. 24. is both a blessing and a curse for mankind. 25. As the proverb goes: Every coin has its two sides. is no exception. 26. No garden without its weeds. 27. As the old saying has it,

28. There are two sides to every questions. 29. Everything has double folds. 30. Every medal has its reverse. 31. I cannot totally accept the idea that , because, in my point of view, I believe 32. There are numerous reasons why , and I would explore only a few of the most important ones here. 33. There is another reason why I cast my preference for 34. There are many good reasons against doing something. 35. The social and economic advances, the quickening of living tempo and the ever increasing competition are deemed as the main contributors to 36. There are some major causes for One cause is Another cause is And the most frequently stressed cause is 37. It cannot be denied that 38. Nowadays it is generally / widely / commonly / prevalently held /accepted / assumed that 39. It goes without saying that 40. There is no denying that 41. It is a common saying that 42. It is probably no exaggeration to say that 43. It is a traditional practice to in our society. 44. No one can cast any doubt on the fact that 45. It will have / exercise / exert / produce / bring about a 9decisive / profound /far-reaching / beneficial /disastrous / unfavorable) effect / influence / impct on 46. It may create / cause / result in / lead to / give rise to a host of / a set of / a series of problems. 47. There are several advantages in / of 48. The advantages of A far outweigh / are much greater than / carry more weight than the disadvantages of B. 49. The pros outweigh the cons. 50. For all the disadvantages has, it has its beneficial effects. 51. However, though it has brought mankind merits, some undesirable side-effects have gradually come to the surface. 52. Despite the adverse effects it has its advantages. 53. But every coin has its two sides. The negative aspects are also apparent. To begin with, To make matters worse, Worst of all, 54. Obviously, it has its drawbacks / disadvantages / negative effects as well as merits / advantages / positive effects. 55. The side-effects has produced on us can be boiled down to three major ones: 56. Undeniable, is good in many aspects; however, it has its disadvantages, too. For one thing, it ; for another, it .. 57. It is no easy job to render the reasons for this complicated phenomenon which involves several factors. 58. A number of factors could account for / contribute to / lead to / result in the change / success / increase. 59. There are a variety of reasons for this phenomenon. 60. A thorough examination proves the groundlessness of arguments supporting .. 61. It is essential to examine every angle in order to fully understand the nature of a perplexing problem. 62. At first thought, it may seem to be an attractive idea, but it doesnt bear closer analysis, we find

63. Superficially, it se4ems to be a sound solution, but when carefully weighing in the mind, we find that 64. A close scrutiny of these arguments would reveal how fallacious they are. 65. There is some element of truth in these arguments, but they overlook a deeper and more basic factor that 66. On the surface of it, this may seem to be a good solution, but if thinking again, we would 67. However logical and valid the arguments may be, they only skim the surface of the issue. 68. , but I do not think that this view can hold water. 69. We should take a more critical view of 70. They may be right about , but they seem to fail to take into account the fact that Conclusion: 1. In general / on the whole / generally 2. All in all 3. From the foregoing, 4. In brief / in summary / in conclusion / in short / in a word / to sum up / to conclude / to summarize 5. If it is up to me to make a choice between A and B, I would rather choose over 6. If I were forced to agree with one of the two, my choice would be 7. From the above comparison and contrast, anyone can safely conclude that . 8. When the advantages and disadvantages are carefully compared, the most striking conclusion is self-evident. 9. Judging from all evidence offered, we may reasonably come to /draw the conclusion that 10. All these opinions make sense, and consequently it is hard to choose the best of them. In my opinion, such matters must be left to individuals conscience. 11. From what has been discussed above, we may safely arrive at the conclusion that 12. Personally, I side with the former / latter opinion. 13. I am of the opinion that priority should be given to 14. Personally, I stand on the side of 15. As far as I am concerned, I am in favor of the opinion that ,,, ,,, 16. For my part, I completely agree with the former / latter. 17. To be frank / To tell the truth, I should second the former / latter attitude / position in preference to the latter / former. 18. People from different backgrounds, however, put different interpretations on the same thing. 19. Views on the issue in question vary from person to person / vary widely. 20. People rarely reach an absolute consensus on a controversial issue. 21. Taking into account all these factors, we may reasonably come to the moral that 22. For the reasons presented above, I strongly commit to the notion that 23. All the evidence justifies an unshakable view that 24. All the evidence supports an unmistakable conclusion that 25. To conclude my essay, I would like to quote an old saying 26. Both views have strong foundations; but, overall, I tend to agree with the latter. 27. What we must do is make sure that the positive ones are encouraged and the negative ones are eliminated as far as possible. 28. It is true that to do brings about both positive and negative results. But we can try

our best to reduce the negative influence to the least extent. Besides, compared with the positive effects, the disadvantages would not count much. 29. It is high time that we / the government did 30. To achieve this goal, however, we still have a great distance to cover. 31. It is urgent / important / necessary that appropriate /effective / proper actions / measures / steps / method be taken to end / correct / improve 32. There are believed / expected / supposed to be two effective measures / practical schemes / sound solutions, one of which is 33. Both governments and ordinary citizens should join hands to make this world a better place to live in, not only for ourselves, but also for future generations.