Writing Tip

Use Transitional Elements to Ensure Reader Understanding and Prevent Misreading

Difficulty Level: Advanced

Recommendation: Use transitional elements to ensure reader understanding and prevent misreading.

Transitional elements in writing are simply mechanisms to logically join two linguistic parts in a document, such as two pieces of a sentence, two sentences, two paragraphs, or two sections. Without them, the reader is abandoned to infer relationships between those parts. The reader may be right. The reader may be wrong. The reader may be confused. This tip discusses transitional mechanisms used at every level of a technical document. The bottom line is that the reader should never be compelled to ask: What does what I’m reading have to do with what I’ve read?

Click on the subjects that interest you most:

Why Transitions Are So Important in Writing

A concept can be expressed through many types of media. But to make a point about transitions, I want to compare just two channels: speech/hearing and writing/reading. When engaging someone in conversation, feedback from your listener provides you the opportunity to modify your speech to reduce or eliminate confusion. Conversational statements are always provisional, subject to modification or even retraction. Restatement, providing examples, and launching an illustrative narrative are examples of clarifying a statement about which the listener has indicated confusion. Feedback mechanisms are just so wonderful but are also just so conspicuously absent from the writing/reading channel.

Because readers don’t provide feedback to writers as they compose documents, writers must nurse points of complexity and anticipate points of potential confusion. This means providing mechanisms that guide the reader from one point to another, from one concept to another, from one level to another, from one location in your composition to another. This care for the reader should be employed throughout a composition, from the small pieces that make up a sentence to the big building blocks like chapters.

So, what can go wrong if you don’t properly transition from one element to another? Lots. Problems caused by faulty or nonexistent transitions include:

  • Abrupt new topics may make the reader wonder, “Did I miss something.” That’s not good.
  • Abrupt new topics may startle the reader. I’m not talking about inducing an out-of-body experience. However, the reader may feel a jolt. Have you ever been reading rather passively and suddenly realized that you did not process the previous two pages? You have to go back and read them. It’s okay. It’s your fault for reading War and Peace while looking at all of the newly purchased shoes that your friend posted on Facebook. But what if you got that same sensation—do I need to re-read the previous passage?—and discovered that the writer failed to hold your hand across a one-log bridge? Tsk tsk on the writer.
  • Failing to provide adequate transitions prevents the reader from tracking your message. The reader may infer the wrong meanings.
  • Failing to provide adequate transitions may cause the reader to misread your message. If he tries to gloss over those chasms (where transitions should be explicit), he just may fall into them.
  • Failing to provide adequate transitions may cause the reader to interpret your words in a wrong context. The reader may fail to realize that you have switched subjects and continue to read under the faulty assumption that you are still talking about subject A when you are really talking about subject B.
  • Omitting transitional expressions—especially when transitioning from nothing to something—entails an assumption of reader knowledge that may be faulty. If the reader is already intimately familiar with the subject of the document, then certainly the author can get by with omitting transitional expressions from nothing to something. But the author really never knows who is going to read an abstract out of context, for example, which is why abstracts, summaries, and introductions require solid transitions instead of throwing the reader into the deep end of the word pool. Abstracts, summaries, and introductions are likely to be read before the report is read or to be read to make a decision about reading the report. Solid transitions are indispensable.

Transitions within Sentences (Intra-Transitional)

Within sentences, there are many ways to transition from one element to another. Consider two clauses: I drove to Amello’s Restaurant. I was hungry for pasta. These two are obviously related, and upon inspection, you can see that they are logically related (cause and effect). We can subordinate one to the other to create a single sentence with a conjunction that serves to meaningfully transition from one clause to another: I drove to Amello’s Restaurant because I was hungry for pasta. “Because” serves as a logical transition from one clause to another. Subordination—using subordinating conjunctions (transitions) such as after, if, since, when, and while—is a highly effective way to transition between two clauses within a sentence.

You can also place subordinate clauses at the beginning of a sentence and not only join the two clauses but provide a context for interpreting the main clause. This may not seem like a transition—because it is presented in the order [transitional term][subordinate clause][main clause]—but it is indeed a way to transition from a subordinate idea to a main one. (Language does not always behave linearly. In fact, consider Latin. Because the functions of words are determined by their endings—called markers—the subject of a sentence can be suspended to the very end, so you don’t know who carjacked the chariot until the last word.)

You can also be creative and split subordinate and main ideas into separate sentences (see Transitions between Sentences below). For example, our example sentence can be composed like this:

I drove to Amello’s Restaurant. Why? I was hungry for pasta.

For more information on using the correct subordinating conjunction, see tip 24: Use Subordinating Conjunctions Correctly—Especially “Because” at:

Tip Number 24

Transitions between Sentences (Inter-Transitional)

Transitional mechanisms used to bridge two sentences are called transitional expressions, which are also called signal words and phrases. They can take many forms, but whether you use an adverb, participle, or phrase, always conclude an introductory element in a sentence with a comma so that the reader is certain that the transitional expression has ended and the main sentence is about to begin. Also, use the right transition for the context. In the time domain, meanwhile, at the same time, and whenever are appropriate. In the logic domain, because and therefore are appropriate. In the ordinal domain, first, next, and prior to are appropriate. In the domain of comparison, although, rather than, and otherwise are appropriate. Modal transitions include how and why.

Here is something important to remember: Please don’t place a transitional expression in the middle or (especially) at the end of a sentence. Put it at the beginning to a) set a context for the reader to understand the nature of what is to follow and b) set the domain for the transition (is it temporal, logical, comparative, ordinal?). So, say, “However, the equipment shut down during voltage sags deeper than 60%.” Don’t say, “The equipment shut down, however, during voltage sags deeper than 60%.” Don’t say, “The equipment shut down during voltage sags deeper than 60%, however.” Set the context. For more information [see how I put this transitional phrase at the beginning of the sentence and put a comma after it?], see my article “Setting the Context for Understanding” at:

Setting the Context for Understanding

Or just look up the terms “loose and periodic sentences” on Google.

As a way of transitioning from the general discussion of inter-sentence transitions above to specific ways to achieve those transitions, I now introduce four (note that I didn’t say “several” and let you flounder in a sea of unknowing) methods to transition between sentences: conjunctive adverbs, adverbs, participles, and phrases.

Conjunctive Adverbs

However, meanwhile, moreover, otherwise, therefore, furthermore.

Adverbs

Clearly, additionally, more importantly, hopefully, regrettably, luckily.

A note about dangling modifiers: Some grammar mavens would argue that adverbs like “clearly” and “hopefully” are dangling modifiers because they do not modify anything in the sentence. However, the author is certainly in the sentence, and such “dangling” modifiers modify the psychology of the author. When a “hopefully” dangles, the author is hopeful. When “luckily” dangles, the author considers that what is about to follow is a lucky thing. However, some participles do indeed dangle untenably. For example, “I decided to exercise. Jogging through the park, the scenery was enthralling.” Well, the scenery wasn’t jogging. This is easily fixed. You want the transitional expression, right? How about, “I decided to exercise. Jogging through the park, I was enthralled by the scenery.” Now the participle modifies the correct noun.

Participles

A present participle is a verb form that ends in “ing.” A past participle depends on the type of verb (regular or irregular), but generally, it ends in “ed.” So, “The church bells rang. Astonished, I dropped my coffee—and my donut.” “I read Kierkegaard last night. Thinking about his opinions on existentialism, I dropped my coffee—and my Danish!”

Phrases

In any event, to that end, as a result, in order to, for that reason, in conclusion, in fact, for example, in particular, first, second, third.

A note about coordinating conjunctions used at the beginning of a sentence: Again, those grammar mavens make it tough to follow your linguistic instincts. Should you begin a sentence with “and”? They say no. Your intuition throbs with “Yes. Yes. Yes.” Oh, what the heck. Do it. And feel good about it.

Transitions between Paragraphs

Transitions between paragraphs depend a lot on the form of the paragraph. A paragraph can be formed in many ways. Some common examples are:

  • Direct (linear): The main topic comes first, and the rest of the paragraph develops it.
  • Pivoting: The main topic appears in the middle of the paragraph, with preceding sentences introducing it and succeeding paragraphs developing it.
  • Suspended: Sentences build to the topic sentence, which is the final sentence in the paragraph.

Typically, sentences perform four functions in a paragraph: Introduce the topic, support the topic, limit the topic, or serve as a transition. Now, that last one—serve as a transition—is the subject of this tip. But recall that these different types of sentences call fall in several locations within a paragraph. A transitional sentence can fall at the beginning, which serves to guide the reader from the previous paragraph to the current paragraph, or the end, which serves to guide the reader from current paragraph to the next.

Transitions between paragraphs can be as simple as a single word, such as “however,” which lets the reader know that you are about to reverse or contrast something that you said in the previous paragraph. “For example” lets the reader know that you are about to clarify what you said in the previous paragraph with some examples. But often, a full sentence is required to lead into the next related subject. For example, the transitional sentence in the paragraph that you are now reading is used to move the reader from “where transitions fall within a paragraph” to “the size of a transition.”

Within and between paragraphs, you can keep the reader anchored by using the theme/rheme technique. The theme is the topic of the section or group of paragraphs. By repeating it, you let the reader know that you are still discussing the same topic. The rheme is commentary about the theme. Rheme sentences develop, support, or limit the theme (and serve as transitions). So don’t get bogged down by the idea that “I’m really using this term a lot.” That can be a good thing. Also, you can use a pronoun to stand for the theme. Consider:

The UPS is an indispensable prop for critical equipment during power outages. It uses batteries or other types of energy storage to supply the equipment when normal power is interrupted. It varies by topology, which generally takes three forms. . . .”

This example paragraph uses “UPS” in all three sentences (once explicitly and twice using pronouns, which are nouns that stand “for” (“pro”) another noun).

Transitions between Sections

Transitions between sections—whether these are chapters or other chunks of prose—can be as simple as a head. For example, if you are talking about energy-storage technologies, and the previous section discusses UPSs, then the head of the next section called “Flywheel Energy Storage” is probably a sufficient transition between the topic of UPSs and that of flywheels. Heads should be clear and parallel to other heads. For example, if the previous head is “UPS Energy-Storage Technologies,” then the chapter on flywheels should be “Flywheel Energy-Storage Technologies,” not just “Flywheels” or “Storage Based on Flywheels.”

Another straightforward transition is summarizing the previous section before beginning the next. For example, if the previous section discusses UPSs and the current section discusses flywheels, you may begin by contrasting the two: “Although the UPS uses no moving parts (other than a fan to cool its electrical components), flywheel-based energy storage incorporates a rotor that spins at a very high speed.” This transitional sentence serves to link the two sections and serves as a springboard into a discussion about the mechanics of flywheel energy storage and related issues like maintenance and safety.

Transitions from Nothing to Something

You may already be familiar with advice about transitioning from sentence to sentence, paragraph to paragraph, section to section. But, perhaps the most important transition in a document is the transition from nothing to something. These transitions occur at the beginnings of abstracts, summaries, introductions, and, to a lesser extent, at the beginnings of chapters after the first. Well, perhaps “nothing” is a bit extreme. After all, the reader does know the title of your report, right? But what if the reader comes by the abstract ex situ. For example, he runs a search on “UPS” at acme.com, gets a bunch of results, and then clicks on one to read the abstract. The only thing he knows is that the uber topic is “UPS.” So, the starting point is pretty close to nothing.

Transitioning from nothing to something usually requires a framework that moves the reader (eases the reader into the subject) from the general to the specific. You can think of such a transition as a narrative, a story about your subject. This can be accomplished through a chronological narrative:

In 1979, the U.S. Department of Fun initiated project Blue Box.

You can also do it by moving from a general category to a specific category:

Voltage interruptions can cause entire industrial processes to grind to a halt. Energy storage (general category) enables equipment to operate during voltage interruptions. The major types of energy storage are chemical (batteries), electrolytic (capacitors), and kinetic (flywheels) (specific categories).

You want transitions from nothing to something to be as accessible as possible because things like abstracts and introductions are the things that readers read to get a clear sense of the larger document. So, for example, don’t include jargon without defining it (this will alienate your reader). Don’t start with complex concepts—build up to them. Analogies are good: Start with something that is similar to your concept but simpler and more immediately accessible to the reader.