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The Daily Insight

How do you do transitions in a research paper?

Author

Andrew Mclaughlin

Published Mar 07, 2026

In a piece of academic writing, writers often need to use signposts, or transition sentences that also function as topic sentences, signaling the reader of connections to the thesis. To form a signpost, combine transition words, key terms from the thesis, and a mention of the previous topic and new topic.

How do you use transitional words effectively?

For example, if you are using transition words to clarify, you’d choose transitions like “to put it another way,” or “to rephrase.” If you are using them to move time along in a plot or research study, you’d use words like “then,” “once,” “next,” etc.

How do you write a transition sentence examples?

The most basic transition words are conjunctions that join words, phrases, or clauses together. For example, words like “and,” “but” and “or” can connect two sentences together: I ran home, and I got there just in time. I ran home, but I was still late.