Transitions

cf. Clear sections

We discussed clear writing in the context of choosing words (see sec-clear). For sentences clear writing comes into play when we discuss arranging information within a sentence.

Use Transitions Within Sentences

Present lists in a way that is easy for the reader to understand. You can announce the number of items in the list and use the following key transition words:

Transition phrases for presenting lists within sentences:

  • i)…., ii)…., iii)….
  • … and … , respectively.

Among sentences and even paragraphs, you can use:

  • First…, second…, third…

Highlight Important Lists

In the first sentence, the reader has to keep track of the three conditions. Announcing how many conditions will be considered and numbering them makes the list’s contents explicit to the reader.

Animals were randomly assigned to the ventilation conditions NAVA, noisy PSV or PCV and ventilated over 24 hours.

A further step is to have the list end the sentence, so it is clear that the parameter (24 hours) is applied to all conditions and not just the third.

Animals were randomly assigned to one of three ventilation conditions for 24 hours: (i) NAVA, (ii) noisy PSV, or (iii) PCV.

When highlighting a one-to-one relationship between the elements of two lists use respectively at the end of the sentence.

In the first sentence, there is a one-to-one relationship between the quantitative list and the country list.

Between 1980 and 2010, the per capita consumption of refined sucrose in Canada, Ireland and Germany, decreased by 23%, 20% and 10%, respectively.

Make Relationships Between Lists Clear

Here, CD47 expression was measured at the mRNA level (but not at the protein level), whereas TSP1 expression was measured at the protein level (but not at the mRNA level).

In the last sentence, the expression of both CD47 and TSP1 is determined at both the mRNA and protein levels.

We determined retinal expression of CD47 and TSP1 at the mRNA and protein level, respectively.

We determined retinal expression of CD47 and TSP1 at the mRNA and protein level.