Cohesion And Coherence In Essay Writing

Table of contents, introduction.

Before illustrating how to write coherent essays, let us start with the definitions of coherence and cohesion and list the ways we can achieve cohesion in a coherent text.

Definitions Cohesion and Coherence

What is coherence.

Coherence is related to the macro-level features of a text which enable it to have a sense as a whole.

What is cohesion?

How to achieve cohesion and coherence in essay writing, lexical cohesion.

Repeating words may contribute to cohesion. Repetition creates cohesive ties within the text.

Grammatical cohesion

Substitutions, conjunctions transition words, cohesive but not coherent texts.

The player threw the ball toward the goalkeeper. Balls are used in many sports. Most balls are spheres, but American football is an ellipsoid. Fortunately, the goalkeeper jumped to catch the ball. The crossbar in the soccer game is made of iron. The goalkeeper was standing there.

How to write a coherent essay?

1. start with an outline, 2. structure your essay.

Parts of the essayContent
IntroductionIntroduces the topic.
Provides background information
Presents the thesis statement of the essay
BodyThe body of the essay is made up of several paragraphs depending on the complexity of your argument and the points you want to discuss.
Each paragraph discusses one main point.
Each paragraph includes a topic sentence, supporting details, and a concluding sentence.
All paragraphs must relate to the thesis.
ConclusionThe conclusion summarizes the main points of the essay.
It must not include new ideas.
It draws a final decision or judgment about the issues you have been discussing.
May connect the essay to larger topics or areas of further study.

3. Structure your paragraphs

4. relevance to the main topic, 5. stick to the purpose of the type of essay you’re-writing, 6. use cohesive devices and signposting phrases.

Cohesive deviceExamples
LexicalRepetition.
Synonymy.
Antonymy.
Hyponymy.
Meronymy.
GrammaticalAnaphora.
Cataphora.
Ellipsis.
Substitutions.
Conjunctions and transition words.

What is signposting in writing?

Essay signposting phrases.

SignpostingFunctionsExamples
Transition wordsExpressing additionin addition – as well as – moreover – what is more…
Expressing contrasthowever – yet – nevertheless – nonetheless – on the contrary – whereas…
Expressing cause and effectconsequently – as a consequence – as a result – therefore…
Expressing purposein order to – in order not to – so as to…
Summarizingin conclusion – to conclude – to sum up
Other signposting expressionsTo introduce the essay– This essay aims at…
– This essay will be concerned with…
– It shall be argued in this essay…
– This essay will focus on…
To introduce a new idea– Having established…, it is possible now to consider…
– … is one key issue; another of equal importance is…
– Also of significant importance is the issue of…
– With regard to…
– With respect to…
– Firstly, …
– Secondly, …
– Finally, …
To illustrate something– One aspect that illustrates … is …
– An example of…
– …can be identified as…
– The current debate about… illustrates
– This highlights…
To be more specific and emphasize a point– Importantly,
– Indeed,
– In fact,
– More importantly,
– It is also important to highlight
– In particular, In relation to, More specifically, With respect to, In terms of
Changing direction– To get back to the topic of this paper, …
– Speaking of…, …
– That reminds me of…
– That brings to mind…
– On a happier/sad note, …
– Another point to consider is …
Comparing– In comparison, …
– Compared to…
– Similarly, …
– Likewise,…
– Conversely
– In contrast, …
– On the one hand, …
– On the other hand, …
Going into more detail on a point– In particular…
– Specifically…
– Concentrating on …
– By focusing on …. in more detail, it is possible… to…
– To be more precise …
Rephrasing– In other words, …
– To put it simply, …
– That is to say…
– To put it differently, …
– To rephrase it, …
– In plain English, …
Reintroducing a topic– As discussed/explained earlier, …
– The earlier discussion on… can be developed further here, …
– As stated previously, …
– As noted above,…
Introducing an opposing/alternative view– An alternative perspective is given by… who suggests/argues that…
– This conflicts with the view held by…
– Alternatively, …
Concluding– It could be concluded that…
– From this, it can be concluded that…
– The evidence shows that…
– In conclusion,…
-In summary, …

7. Draft, revise, and edit

Pasco-Hernando State College

  • Unity and Coherence in Essays
  • The Writing Process
  • Paragraphs and Essays
  • Proving the Thesis/Critical Thinking
  • Appropriate Language

Test Yourself

  • Essay Organization Quiz
  • Sample Essay - Fairies
  • Sample Essay - Modern Technology

Related Pages

  • Proving the Thesis

Unity is the idea that all parts of the writing work to achieve the same goal: proving the thesis. Just as the content of a paragraph should focus on a topic sentence, the content of an essay must focus on the thesis.  The introduction paragraph introduces the thesis, the body paragraphs each have a proof point (topic sentence) with content that proves the thesis, and the concluding paragraph sums up the proof and restates the thesis. Extraneous information in any part of the essay that is not related to the thesis is distracting and takes away from the strength of proving the thesis.

An essay must have coherence. The sentences must flow smoothly and logically from one to the next as they support the purpose of each paragraph in proving the thesis.

Just as the last sentence in a paragraph must connect back to the topic sentence of the paragraph, the last paragraph of the essay should connect back to the thesis by reviewing the proof and restating the thesis.

Example of Essay with Problems of Unity and Coherence

Here is an example of a brief essay that includes a paragraph that does not support the thesis “Many people are changing their diets to be healthier.”

     People are concerned about pesticides, steroids, and antibiotics in the food they eat.  Many now shop for organic foods since they don’t have the pesticides used in conventionally grown food.  Meat from chicken and cows that are not given steroids or antibiotics are gaining popularity even though they are much more expensive. More and more, people are eliminating pesticides, steroids, and antibiotics from their diets.     Eating healthier also is beneficial to the environment since there are less pesticides poisoning the earth. Pesticides getting into the waterways is creating a problem with drinking water.  Historically, safe drinking water has been a problem. It is believed the Ancient Egyptians drank beer since the water was not safe to drink.  Brewing beer killed the harmful organisms and bacteria in the water from the Nile. There is a growing concern about eating genetically modified foods, and people are opting for non-GMO diets.  Some people say there are more allergic reactions and other health problems resulting from these foods.  Others are concerned because there are no long-term studies that clearly show no adverse health effects such as cancers or other illnesses. Avoiding GMO food is another way people are eating healthier food.

See how just one paragraph can take away from the effectiveness of the essay in showing how people are changing to healthier food since unity and coherence are affected. There is no longer unity among all the paragraphs. The thought pattern is disjointed and the essay loses its coherence.

Transitions and Logical Flow of Ideas

Transitions are words, groups of words, or sentences that connect one sentence to another or one paragraph to another.

They promote a logical flow from one idea to the next and overall unity and coherence.

While transitions are not needed in every sentence or at the end of every paragraph, they are missed when they are omitted since the flow of thoughts becomes disjointed or even confusing.

There are different types of transitions:

  • Time – before, after, during, in the meantime, nowadays
  • Space – over, around, under
  • Examples – for instance, one example is
  • Comparison – on the other hand, the opposing view
  • Consequence – as a result, subsequently

These are just a few examples.  The idea is to paint a clear, logical connection between sentences and between paragraphs.

  • Printer-friendly version

Printer Friendly, PDF & Email

Logo for Minnesota Libraries Publishing Project

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

5 Coherent Paragraphs

When you think about it, there’s no contradiction in the advice of these two American writers. You should respond with genuine feeling and without inhibition to what stimulates you – in our case, a set of texts. But feeling isn’t enough. When Gustave Flaubert asked “Has a drinking song ever been written by a drunken man?” he meant a coherent song. Between “getting it down” and “handing it in” good writers show respect for their readers by organizing their material into recognizable patterns. An important benefit of this is that by distancing yourself from your ideas and putting them in order for your reader, you are forced to shape your own nebulous feelings into clear thoughts.

This brings us to the well-known (but apparently not well enough known) paragraph: the basic unit of composition. The traditional and still useful rule that a paragraph must have unity, coherence, and emphasis only means that it must make sense, that the sentences should fit together smoothly, and that not all the sentences function in the same way.

When you see that its purpose is to support your thesis by developing and connecting your ideas meaningfully, then paragraph structure should appeal to your common sense. As a point of emphasis a topic sentence – whether you choose to put it at the beginning, middle, or end – allows you to control your writing and guide your reader by expressing the main idea of the paragraph. Remember, you’re not writing a mystery novel. There will be relatively few instances in this type of essay when you’ll want to surprise your reader.

Must every paragraph have a topic sentence? Not necessarily: if the main idea is obvious, then a topic sentence may be omitted. But even if it is only implied by your paragraph, you and your reader should be able to state easily the main idea . Whether explicit or implicit, the topic sentence of each of your paragraphs should come out of your thesis statement and lead to your conclusion. Like the paragraph, the whole essay should have unity, coherence, and emphasis. Try this: next time you read an essay, underline only the topic sentences of each paragraph; then reread only what you’ve underlined. In many cases you’ll see that the underlined sentences make up a coherent paragraph all by themselves (this is an easy way to write an abstract, incidentally). That’s because most topic sentences are more specific than the thesis statement that generates them, but still more general than the supporting sentences in the paragraphs that illustrate them. Thus they are transitions between the writer’s promise to the reader and the keeping of that promise.

Examples: Opening Paragraphs

From a student essay discussing Kafka’s The Metamorphosis :

When Nietzsche declared that “God is dead,” he did so with an air of optimism. No longer could man be led about on the tight leash of religion; a man liberated could strive for the status of Overman. But what happens if a man refuses to let go of his “dead” God and remains too fearful to evolve into an Overman? Rejecting the concept of the Christian God means renouncing the scapegoat for the sins of man and accepting responsibility for one’s own actions. In The Metamorphosis Gregor Samsa plays the god-like role of financial provider for his family. However, when his transformation renders him useless in this role, the rest of Samsa’s family undergoes a change of its own: Kafka uses the metamorphoses of both Gregor and his family to illustrate a modern crisis.

Some comments on the structure:   Two provocative introductory sentences, then a transition question and a response that presents the central idea of the essay. Next, introduction of the text and characters under discussion. Finally, the topic sentence of the paragraph, which, as the thesis statement, promises an interpretation. A paragraph such as this engages the reader’s interest right away and makes the reader look forward to the rest of the essay.

From a student essay on the question, “What Do Historians of Childhood Do?”

In his 1982 book The Disappearance of Childhood , Neil Postman argues that the concept of childhood is a recent invention of literate society, enabled by the invention of moveable-type printing. Postman says as a result of television, literate adulthood and preliterate childhood are both vanishing. While Postman’s indictment of TV-culture is provocative, he ignores race, class, ideology, and economic circumstance as factors in the experience of both children and adults. Worse, he ignores history, making sweeping generalizations such as the claim that the pre-modern Greeks had no concept of children. These claims are contradicted by the appearance of children in classical Greek literature and in the Christian Gospels, written in Greek, which admonish their readers to “be as children.” A more useful and much more interesting observation might be that the idea of childhood and the experience of young people has changed significantly since ancient times, and continues to change.

Some comments on the structure:   Like the previous example, this essay begins with a statement from a text (this time with a paraphrase rather than a quotation) and builds towards a thesis statement. In this case the build-up, where the writer disagrees with one of the class texts, is stronger than the thesis. The writer has not stated exactly what he will argue, aside from saying he finds at least some of the ideas of childhood advanced in the course materials unsatisfactory. Keeping the reader in suspense may add to the interest of the essay, but in a short paper it might also waste valuable time and leave the reader unsure whether the writer has really thought things through.

From an essay on Crime and Punishment :

“Freedom depends upon the real…It is as impossible to exercise freedom in an unreal world as it is to jump while you are falling” (Colin Wilson, The Outsider, p. 39). Even without God, modern man is still tempted to create unreal worlds. In Feodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment Raskolnikov conceives the fantastic theory of the “overman.” After committing murder in an attempt to satisfy his theory, Raskolnikov falls into a delirious, death-like state; then, Lazarus-like, he is raised from the “dead.” His “resurrection” is not, as some critics suggest, a consequence of his love for Sonya and Sonya’s God. Rather, his salvation results from the freedom he gains when he chooses to live without illusions.

Comments: Once more, a stimulating opening. Between the first and last sentences, which frame the paragraph (the last one, as well as being the thesis sentence, is the specific application of the general first sentence), the writer makes her transition to the central idea and introduces the text and character she wishes to discuss. The reader is given enough information to know what to expect. It promises to be an interesting essay.

Each of the writers above chooses to open with a quotation or reference that helps to focus the reader’s attention and reveal the point of view from which a specific interpretation will be made. Movement from the general to the specific is very common in introductory thesis paragraphs, but it is not obligatory. You can begin with your thesis statement as the first sentence; start with a question; or use the entire opening paragraph to set the scene and provide background, then present your thesis in the second paragraph. Make choices and even create new options, so long as your sentences move to create a dominant impression on the reader.

Examples: Middle Paragraphs

From a student essay comparing P’u Sung-ling’s (17th century) The Cricket Boy and Franz Kafka’s (20th century) The Metamorphosis , two stories that deal with a son’s relationship to his family. (The writer’s thesis: according to these authors, one must connect in meaningful ways with other human beings in order to achieve what Virginia Woolf calls “health,” “truth,” and “happiness.”)

The most obvious similarity between Kiti and Gregor is that they both take the forms of insects; however, their and their families’ reactions to the changes account for the essential difference between the characters. Whereas Kiti thinks a cricket represents “all that [is] good and strong and beautiful in the world ( Cricket Boy , p. 2), Gregor is repulsed by his insect body and “closes his eyes so as not to have to see his squirming legs” ( Metamorphosis , p, 3). Their situations also affect their families differently.  Kiti’s experience serves as a catalyst that brings his family closer together: “For the first time, his father had become human, and he loved his father then” ( CB , p. 2). Gregor’s transformation, on the other hand, succeeds in further alienating him from his family: his parents “could not bring themselves to come in to him” ( M , p. 31). While Kiti and his parents develop a bond based on understanding and mutual respect, Gregor becomes not only emotionally estranged from his family, but also physically separated from them.

Some comments on the structure:   The writer is clearly on her way, with specific examples from the texts, to supporting her argument concerning the need for self-respect and communication. Notice that she uses transitions such as “however,” “whereas,” “also,” “on the other hand,” while,” and “not only…, but also…” to connect her thoughts and make her sentences cohere. Transitional words and phrases are the “glue” both within and between paragraphs: they help writers stick to the point, and also allow readers to stay on the path the writer intends.

Transitions

Writers use transitional words and expressions as markers to guide readers on their exploratory journey. They can express relationships very explicitly , which is often exactly what is needed. However, experienced writers can also build more subtle bridges between ideas, hinting at relationships with implicit transitions. These relationships may change from vague impressions to a very concrete statement, as the argument develops, allowing the reader to “discover” the writer’s conclusion as the essay builds to its final paragraph.

Examples of explicit transitional expressions

  • Comparison: such as, like, similarly, likewise, in the same way, in comparison, correspondingly, analogous to
  • Contrast: but, however, in contrast, although, different from, opposing, another distinction, paradoxically
  •   Cause-effect: because, as a result, consequently, for this reason, produced, generated, yielded
  •   Sequence: initially, subsequently, at the onset, next, in turn, then, ultimately
  •  Emphasis: above all, of major interest, unequivocally, significantly, of great concern, notably
  •   Examples: for example, in this instance, specifically, such as, to illustrate, in particular
  •   Adding points: as well as, furthermore, also, moreover, in addition, again, besides

If you find that you are overusing explicit connectors and your transitions are beginning to feel mechanical (How many times have you used “furthermore” or “however”?  How many “other hands” do you have?), you can improve the flow of your writing either by changing up the transitional expressions, or by shifting toward more implicit transitions. One technique is, in the first sentence of the new paragraph, refer (either explicitly or implicitly) to material in the preceding paragraph. For example:

When Alcibiades does give his speech, we see that his example is Socrates himself.

While this interpretation still seems reasonable, I was surprised at the difficulty of uncovering useable data in the records of past societies.

This sometimes sickening detail that Dante uses to draw the reader emotionally into the Inferno also stimulates the reader to think about what he or she feels.

The Greek system is much more relaxed; obeisance and respect for the gods is not required, although in most cases it seems to make life easier.

Each of these implicit transition sentences builds on the previous paragraph and calls for support in the new paragraph. Even more subtle (that is, more difficult) would be to make the last sentence of the paragraph indicate the direction the next paragraph will take. If you try this, be careful you do not at the same time change the subject. You do not want to introduce a new idea at the end of a paragraph, and destroy its unity. Since it suggests a change in direction, we see this device used most commonly with thesis sentences at the end of introductory paragraphs, or in transitional paragraphs like the example above.

Other examples of hinges writers use to make connections include pronouns referring back to nouns in the previous paragraphs and synonyms to avoid repetition and overuse of pronouns. A good rule is not to overuse any device.

Concluding Paragraphs

From a student essay on Crime and Punishment :

Raskolnikov finally finds a new life:

Indeed he [is] not consciously reasoning at all; he [can] only feel .  Life [has] taken the place of logic and something quite different must be worked out in his mind. (Epi. II, p. 464)

Thus he ends his suffering by abandoning intelligence and reasoning.  Jean-Jacques Rousseau said that “above all the logic of the head is the feeling of the heart.” Ultimately, Raskolnikov transcends the “logic of the head” by discovering love and freedom.

Some comments on the structure: The paragraph works well as a conclusion because you can tell immediately that the writer has said all that she wants to say about the subject. She uses a quotation from another source, to “rub up against” Dostoevsky, expanding the dialogue between the text, the writer, and the reader by adding another voice. The answer to the “so what?” question is implied in the last sentence: love and freedom are values we all can share. Note that although this is a different conclusion from that of the earlier essay discussing Crime and Punishment , both interpretations are interesting and valid because both writers supported their arguments with careful readings of the text.

From a History essay analyzing the influence of Philippe Ariès’s book Centuries of Childhood on later historians:

In the end, Centuries of Childhood did not establish a conceptual framework for children’s history. Nor did the rival philosophies of history create a new paradigm for children’s history. Ariès identified a subject of study. He was a prospector who uncovered a rich vein of material. Subsequent miners should use whatever tools and techniques are best suited to getting the ore out of the ground. Historians should stop fighting over theories and get to work uncovering the lives of children and families. This will involve, as Jordanova suggested, self-awareness and sensitivity. But it should not be sidetracked by ideological debates. As Cunningham observed, the stakes for modern children and families are high. To make children’s history useful for the present, historians of children and families need to put aside their differences and get back to work.

Some comments on the structure:   As in the previous example, the writer includes the perspectives of other commentators. This is especially common in essays on secondary sources in history, because “historiography” is often imagined as an ongoing conversation about primary and important secondary texts. The “so what” statement is more explicit this time, relating the study of children in the past to improving the lives of children and families today. The importance of connecting with the needs of today is problematic (many historians would criticize this as “presentism”); so the writer includes a supporting perspective from a sympathetic commentator.

From an essay in which the writer compares and contrasts the character she is examining with a character from another work:

Like Ophelia, Gretchen has moments of confusion and despair, but she decides to give in to her feelings and take responsibility for them. By having Gretchen freely stay behind to face her execution, Goethe casts aside any similarities that his character shares with Shakespeare’s Ophelia. Along with the empowering freedom of Gretchen’s striving comes the struggle to act rightly. But if no objective absolutes exist, according to Goethe’s God, on what basis can Gretchen make her decisions in order to be saved? She comes to the realization that the only absolutes exist within herself. Goethe’s God saves her, not for being a penitent Christian, but for staying true to these self-imposed absolutes.

Some comments on the structure:  Another strong conclusion. The writer’s interpretation could be contested, but she has argued it well and convincingly throughout the essay and concluded strongly. Incidentally, note also that by specifying “Goethe’s God” in her interpretation she avoids any distracting discussion of religion and keeps her writing focused on literary analysis. We don’t argue the nature of “God” in an essay about literature; only the nature of the “God” in the text.

A Short Handbook for writing essays in the Humanities and Social Sciences Copyright © 2019 by Salvatore F. Allosso and Dan Allosso is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

images/structure/msublackhorizsm.png

  • Writing Center
  • Writing Resources

Cohesion & Coherence

What this resource is about:.

This resource defines both cohesive and coherent writing and explains how to write cohesively and coherently.   

Creating Cohesive and Coherent Paragraphs  

Cohesive writing is “based on how each sentence ends and the next begins” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 65). Each sentence should, in terms of their content , connect to the sentences surrounding it.  

Here are a few tips for composing cohesive paragraphs:  

     "1. Begin sentences with information familiar to your readers.

      2. End sentences with information that readers cannot anticipate.

      3. Begin sentences with information that readers will find simple; end with information they will find complex”              (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 67).  

Coherent writing is “based on how all the sentences in it cumulatively begin” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 65). The ideas of the sentences in the passage ought to be related in topic and structured so the reader increases their understanding within each sentence and between sentences.  

Here are a few tips for composing coherent paragraphs:  

  • Analyze: Find the subjects (or noun phrases) of your sentences.
  • Assess: Do these subjects reference related ideas? Will your reader see this relatedness of ideas? Are they referencing your “actors” (subject) doing the main “actions” (action verb)?
  • Rewrite: Rewrite your paragraphs so that you answer ‘yes’ to the questions above (Williams & Bizup, 2017)

Example paragraphs

To illustrate the difference between noncoherent and coherent writing, consider these paragraphs. Subjects are bolded both paragraphs.  

  • "Consistent ideas toward the beginnings of sentences, especially in their subjects, help readers understand what a passage is generally about. A sense of coherence arises when a sequence of topics comprises a narrow set of related ideas. But the context of each sentence is lost by seemingly random shifts of topics. Unfocused, even disorganized paragraphs result when that happens" (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 71).
  •   “ Readers  understand what a passage is generally about when  they  see consistent ideas toward the beginnings of sentences, especially in their subjects.  They  feel a passage is coherent when  they  read a sequence of topics that focuses on a narrow set of related ideas. But when  topics  seem to shift randomly,  readers  lose their context of each sentence. When  that  happens,  they feel they are reading paragraphs that are unfocused and even disorganized” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 71-72).  

The subjects in the second paragraph are only ‘readers’ and ‘topics,' whereas the subjects in the first paragraph are more scattered. By unifying the subjects of your paragraphs to one or two kinds of subjects, you can write coherently. By following these tips, writers may establish a flow of information that helpfully and logically organizes information for the reader.  

The purpose of these aspects of writing is to think about, understand, and write for your readers. You can improve the clarity and organization of your writing by knowing the differences between concrete versus abstract language and making your paragraphs cohesive and coherent.  

Source: Williams, J.M., & Bizup, J. (2017). Style: Lessons in clarity and grace (12th ed.). Pearson Education Inc.  

The Writing Center

Montana State University P.O. Box 172310 Bozeman, MT 59717-2310

Wilson Hall 1-114, (406) 994-5315 Romney Hall 207, (406) 994-5320 MSU Library (1st floor), (406) 994-4346

[email protected]

Facebook   Twitter   Instagram  

Job Opportunities FAQ & How To

CLIMB

  • Program Design
  • Peer Mentors
  • Excelling in Graduate School
  • Oral Communication
  • Written communication
  • About Climb

Creating Coherent Paragraphs: Topic Sentences, Echo Words, Transitions

Below is a video on how to write coherent, easy-to-read paragraphs.

The video covers the three most important concepts that make for coherence:

  • Writing a strong topic sentence that establishes the subject of the paragraph
  • Using "echo words" -- i.e., consistent terms for the concepts throughout
  • Applying transitions to link sentences logically

Make sure you select 720p HD on the video (bottom right corner) for best resolution and so scientific illustrations and figures are clear.

Quick Links

Northwestern bioscience programs.

  • Biomedical Engineering (BME)
  • Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE)
  • Driskill Graduate Program in the Life Sciences (DGP)
  • Interdepartmental Biological Sciences (IBiS)
  • Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience (NUIN)

Northwestern University

  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Report an Accessibility Issue
  • University Policies
  • Northwestern Home
  • Northwestern Calendar: PlanIt Purple
  • Northwestern Search

Chicago: 420 East Superior Street, Rubloff 6-644, Chicago, IL 60611 312-503-8286

Logo for MHCC Library Press

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

6 Step #3: Coherent, Unified Paragraphs

coherent essay form

Strong essays are built with solid, coherent, and unified paragraphs. They should be digestible units of thought that have similar structure to the essay itself: a topic sentence, a body of support, and a concluding or transitional statement to help the reader move through the essay with clarity. Body paragraphs should also be arranged according to your primary pattern of development and focused on supporting your big idea(s).

A body paragraph is an expansion of a single thought that is laid out according to a specific, logical structure:

  • A strong, clear topic sentence that states the main idea of the paragraph (which will likely be a sub-point helping to explore your thesis).
  • Several (two-four) sentences of development and support for your topic sentence: including quotes, summaries, and paraphrases of relevant sources and your substantive responses to the source material.
  • A closing sentence of summary and/or a transition into the next paragraph.

BEST: When the writer uses paragraphs to present unified, coherent, organized, and well-developed thoughts in support of their overall thesis.

  • Consult this link on how to construct coherent, engaging, and unified paragraphs.
  • Here is another valuable source for shaping coherent paragraphs: OWL Website.
  • And yet another link that addresses paragraph length and consistency.
  • Here is a video on writing strong body paragraphs.
  • Watch this video on Writing Effective Paragraphs.
  • Here is another video on writing strong transitions.
  • And finally, a companion link for writing smooth transitions.

The Writing Process Copyright © 2020 by Andrew Gurevich is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

Encyclopedia

Writing with artificial intelligence, coherence – how to achieve coherence in writing.

  • © 2023 by Joseph M. Moxley - Professor of English - USF

Coherence refers to a style of writing where ideas, themes, and language connect logically, consistently, and clearly to guide the reader's understanding. By mastering coherence , alongside flow , inclusiveness , simplicity,  and unity , you'll be well-equipped to craft professional or academic pieces that engage and inform effectively. Acquire the skills to instill coherence in your work and discern it in the writings of others.

coherent essay form

Table of Contents

What is Coherence?

Coherence in writing refers to the logical connections and consistency that hold a text together, making it understandable and meaningful to the reader. Writers create coherence in three ways:

  • logical consistency
  • conceptual consistency
  • linguistic consistency.

What is Logical Consistency?

  • For instance, if they argue, “If it rains, the ground gets wet,” and later state, “It’s raining but the ground isn’t wet,” without additional explanation, this represents a logical inconsistency.

What is Conceptual Consistency?

  • For example, if you are writing an essay arguing that regular exercise has multiple benefits for mental health, each paragraph should introduce and discuss a different benefit of exercise, all contributing to your main argument. Including a paragraph discussing the nutritional value of various foods, while interesting, would break the conceptual consistency, as it doesn’t directly relate to the benefits of exercise for mental health.

What is Linguistic Consistency?

  • For example, if a writer jumps erratically between different tenses or switches point of view without clear demarcation, the reader might find it hard to follow the narrative, leading to a lack of linguistic coherence.

Related Concepts: Flow ; Given to New Contract ; Grammar ; Organization ; Organizational Structures ; Organizational Patterns ; Sentence Errors

Why Does Coherence Matter?

Coherence is crucial in writing as it ensures that the text is understandable and that the ideas flow logically from one to the next. When writing is coherent, readers can easily follow the progression of ideas, making the content more engaging and easier to comprehend. Coherence connects the dots for the reader, linking concepts, arguments, and details in a clear, logical manner.

Without coherence, even the most interesting or groundbreaking ideas can become muddled and lose their impact. A coherent piece of writing keeps the reader’s attention, demonstrates the writer’s control over their subject matter, and can effectively persuade, inform, or entertain. Thus, coherence contributes significantly to the effectiveness of writing in achieving its intended purpose.

How Do Writers Create Coherence in Writing?

  • Your thesis statement serves as the guiding star of your paper. It sets the direction and focus, ensuring all subsequent points relate back to this central idea.
  • Acknowledge and address potential counterarguments to strengthen your position and add depth to your writing.
  • Use the genres and organizational patterns appropriate for your rhetorical situation . A deductive structure (general to specific) is often effective, guiding the reader logically through your argument. Yet different disciplines may privilege more inductive approaches , such as law and philosophy.
  • When following a given-to-new order, writers move from what the reader already knows to new information. In formal or persuasive contexts, writers are careful to vet new information for the reader following information literacy laws and conventions .
  • Strategic repetition of crucial terms and your thesis helps your readers follow your main ideas and evidence for claims 
  • While repetition is useful, varying language with synonyms can prevent redundancy and keep the reader engaged.
  • Parallelism in sentences can provide rhythm and clarity, making complex ideas easier to follow.
  • Consistent use of pronouns avoids confusion and helps in maintaining a clear line of thought.
  • Arrange your ideas in a sequence that naturally builds from one point to the next, ensuring each paragraph flows smoothly into the next .
  • Signposting , or using phrases that indicate what’s coming next or what just happened, can help orient the reader within your argument.
  • Don’t bother repeating your argument in your conclusion. Prioritize conciseness. Yet end with a call to action or appeal to kairos and ethos .

Recommended Resources

  • Organization
  • Organizational Patterns

Brevity - Say More with Less

Brevity - Say More with Less

Clarity (in Speech and Writing)

Clarity (in Speech and Writing)

Coherence - How to Achieve Coherence in Writing

Coherence - How to Achieve Coherence in Writing

Diction

Flow - How to Create Flow in Writing

Inclusivity - Inclusive Language

Inclusivity - Inclusive Language

Simplicity

The Elements of Style - The DNA of Powerful Writing

Unity

Recommended

Student engrossed in reading on her laptop, surrounded by a stack of books

Academic Writing – How to Write for the Academic Community

You cannot climb a mountain without a plan / John Read

Structured Revision – How to Revise Your Work

coherent essay form

Professional Writing – How to Write for the Professional World

coherent essay form

Credibility & Authority – How to Be Credible & Authoritative in Research, Speech & Writing

How to Cite Sources in Academic and Professional Writing

Citation Guide – Learn How to Cite Sources in Academic and Professional Writing

Image of a colorful page with a big question in the center, "What is Page Design?"

Page Design – How to Design Messages for Maximum Impact

Suggested edits.

  • Please select the purpose of your message. * - Corrections, Typos, or Edits Technical Support/Problems using the site Advertising with Writing Commons Copyright Issues I am contacting you about something else
  • Your full name
  • Your email address *
  • Page URL needing edits *
  • Name This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Other Topics:

Citation - Definition - Introduction to Citation in Academic & Professional Writing

Citation - Definition - Introduction to Citation in Academic & Professional Writing

  • Joseph M. Moxley

Explore the different ways to cite sources in academic and professional writing, including in-text (Parenthetical), numerical, and note citations.

Collaboration - What is the Role of Collaboration in Academic & Professional Writing?

Collaboration - What is the Role of Collaboration in Academic & Professional Writing?

Collaboration refers to the act of working with others or AI to solve problems, coauthor texts, and develop products and services. Collaboration is a highly prized workplace competency in academic...

Genre

Genre may reference a type of writing, art, or musical composition; socially-agreed upon expectations about how writers and speakers should respond to particular rhetorical situations; the cultural values; the epistemological assumptions...

Grammar

Grammar refers to the rules that inform how people and discourse communities use language (e.g., written or spoken English, body language, or visual language) to communicate. Learn about the rhetorical...

Information Literacy - Discerning Quality Information from Noise

Information Literacy - Discerning Quality Information from Noise

Information Literacy refers to the competencies associated with locating, evaluating, using, and archiving information. In order to thrive, much less survive in a global information economy — an economy where information functions as a...

Mindset

Mindset refers to a person or community’s way of feeling, thinking, and acting about a topic. The mindsets you hold, consciously or subconsciously, shape how you feel, think, and act–and...

Rhetoric: Exploring Its Definition and Impact on Modern Communication

Rhetoric: Exploring Its Definition and Impact on Modern Communication

Learn about rhetoric and rhetorical practices (e.g., rhetorical analysis, rhetorical reasoning,  rhetorical situation, and rhetorical stance) so that you can strategically manage how you compose and subsequently produce a text...

Style

Style, most simply, refers to how you say something as opposed to what you say. The style of your writing matters because audiences are unlikely to read your work or...

The Writing Process - Research on Composing

The Writing Process - Research on Composing

The writing process refers to everything you do in order to complete a writing project. Over the last six decades, researchers have studied and theorized about how writers go about...

Writing Studies

Writing Studies

Writing studies refers to an interdisciplinary community of scholars and researchers who study writing. Writing studies also refers to an academic, interdisciplinary discipline – a subject of study. Students in...

Featured Articles

Student engrossed in reading on her laptop, surrounded by a stack of books

Essay writing Essay writing

Achieving coherence

“A piece of writing is coherent when it elicits the response: ‘I follow you. I see what you mean.’ It is incoherent when it elicits the response: ‘I see what you're saying here, but what has it got to do with the topic at hand or with what you just told me above?’ ” - Johns, A.M

Transitions

Parallelism, challenge task, what is coherence.

Coherence in a piece of writing means that the reader can easily understand it. Coherence is about making everything flow smoothly. The reader can see that everything is logically arranged and connected, and relevance to the central focus of the essay is maintained throughout.

coherent essay form  

Pronouns are useful cohesive devices because they make it unnecessary to repeat words too often. Consider the following:

Repetitious referencing: 

When Gillette first invented disposable razor blades, he found it very hard to sell  the disposable razor blades .  He found it very hard to sell the disposable razor blades  because nobody had marketed a throw-away product before.

When Gillette first invented disposable razor blades, he found it very hard to sell  them .  This  was because nobody had marketed a throw-away product before.

Pronouns as cohesive devices 

This following presentation shows how pronouns can be used effectively to achieve coherence within a text and some common problems of use.  

coherent essay form

Repetition in a piece of writing does not always demonstrate cohesion.   Study these sentences:

So, how does repetition as a cohesive device work?

When a pronoun is used, sometimes what the pronoun refers to (ie, the referent) is not always clear. Clarity is achieved by  repeating a key noun or synonym . Repetition is a cohesive device used deliberately to improve coherence in a text.

In the following text, decide ifthe referent for the pronoun  it   is clear. Otherwise, replace it  with the key noun English  where clarity is needed.

English has almost become an international language. Except for Chinese, more people speak it ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select3" ).html( document.getElementById( "select3" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));  than any other language. Spanish is the official language of more countries in the world, but more countries have English ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select4" ).html( document.getElementById( "select4" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));  as their official or unofficial second language. More than 70% of the world's mail is written in English ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select5" ).html( document.getElementById( "select5" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));  It ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select6" ).html( document.getElementById( "select6" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));  is the primary language on the Internet. (p.23).

Text source: Oshima, A. and Hogue. A. (2006).  (4th ed.). NY: Pearson Education

Click here to view the revised text.

Suggested improvement

English has almost become an international language. Except for Chinese, more people speak it (clear reference; retain)  than any other language. Spanish is the official language of more countries in the world, but more countries have English ( it is replaced with a key noun) as their official or unofficial second language. More than 70% of the world's mail is written in English ( it is replaced with a key noun).  It (clear reference; retain) is the primary language on the Internet.

Sometimes, repetition of a key noun is preferred even when the reference is clear. In the following text, it is clear that it  refers to the key noun gold , but when used throughout the text, the style becomes monotonous.

Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all,  has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore,   is suitable for jewellery, coins and ornamental purposes.   never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as untarnished today as the day it was minted 23 centuries ago. Another characteristic of   is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years,   has been used in hundreds of industrial applications, such as photography and dentistry. Its most recent use is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear heat shields made from  for protection when they go outside spaceships in space. In conclusion,  is treasured not only for its beauty but also its utility. (p.22).

Text source: Oshima, A. and Hogue, A. (2006).  (4th ed.). NY: Pearson Education

Improved text: Note where the key noun gold is repeated. The deliberate repetition creates interest and adds maturity to the writing style.

Gold , a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for jewellery, coins and ornamental purposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as untarnished today as the day it was made 23 centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold -plated shields when they go outside spaceships in space. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also its utility.

Pronoun + Repetition of key noun

Sometimes, greater cohesion can be achieved by using a pronoun followed by an appropriate key noun or synonym (a word with a similar meaning).

In the two main studies, no dramatic change was found in the rate of corrosion.  could be due to several reasons.  

Generally speaking, crime rates in Europe have fallen over the past two years.   has been the result of new approaches to punishment.

When a group of school children was interviewed, the majority said they preferred their teachers to be humorous yet kind. However,  were not as highly rated by teachers.

Transitions are like traffic signals. They guide the reader from one idea to the next. They signal a range of relationships between sentences, such as comparison, contrast, example and result. Click here for a more comprehensive list of Transitions (Logical Organisers) .

Test yourself: How well do you understand transitions?

Which of the three alternatives should follow the transition or logical organiser in capital letters to complete the second sentence?

Using transitions/logical organisers

Improve the coherence of the following paragraph by adding transitions in the blank spaces. Use the italicised hint in brackets to help you choose an apporpriate transition for each blank. If you need to, review the list of Transitions (Logical Organisers)   before you start.

First, CDs brought digital sound into people's homes. Then DVD technology brought digital sound and video and completely revolutionised the movie industry. Soon there will be 1. ( ) revolution: Blu-ray *BDs. A Blu-ray disc will have several advantages. 2. ( ), it has an enormous data storage capacity. A single-sided DVD can hold 4.7 gigabytes of information, about the size of an average 2-hour movie. A single-sided BD, 3. ( ) can hold up to 27 gigabytes, enough for 13 hours of standard video. A 4. ( ) advantage is that a BD can record, store, and play back high-definition video because of its larger capacity. A double-layer BD can store about 50 gigabytes, enough for 4.5 hours of high-definition video. The cost will be the same. 5. ( ), a BD has a higher data transfer rate - 36 megabits per second - than today's DVDs, which transfer at 10 megabits per second. 6. ( ), a BD can record 25 gigabytes of data in just over an hour and a half. 7. ( , because of their storage capacity and comparable cost, BDs will probably take over the market when they become widely available. (p.31).

Text source: Oshima, A. and Hogue, A. (2008).  4th ed.). NY: Pearson Longman Ltd.

Using transitions

Choose the most appropriate transition from the options given to complete the article:

There are three separate sources of hazards related to the use of nuclear reactions to supply us with energy. Firstly ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select14" ).html( document.getElementById( "select14" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the radioactive material must travel from its place of manufacture to the power station. Although ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select15" ).html( document.getElementById( "select15" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); the power stations themselves are solidly built, the containers used for the transport of the material are not. Unfortunately, there are normally only two methods of transport available, namely ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select16" ).html( document.getElementById( "select16" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); road or rail, and both of these involve close contact with the general public, since ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select17" ).html( document.getElementById( "select17" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); the routes are bound to pass near or through heavily-populated areas. 

Secondly ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select18" ).html( document.getElementById( "select18" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , there is the problem of waste. All nuclear power stations produce wastes which in most cases will remain radioactive for thousands of years. It is impossible to de-activiate these wastes; consequently ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select19" ).html( document.getElementById( "select19" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , they must be disposed of carefully. For example ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select20" ).html( document.getElementById( "select20" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , they may be buried under the ground, dropped into disused mineshafts, or sunk in the sea. However ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select21" ).html( document.getElementById( "select21" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , these methods do not solve the problem; they merely store it, since ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select22" ).html( document.getElementById( "select22" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); an earthquake could crack open the containers.

Thirdly ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select23" ).html( document.getElementById( "select23" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , there is the problem of accidental exposure due to a leak or an explosion at the power station. As with the other two hazards, this is extremely unlikely. Nevertheless ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select24" ).html( document.getElementById( "select24" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); it can happen. Separately, and during short periods, these three types of risk are no great cause for concern. Taken together, though ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select25" ).html( document.getElementById( "select25" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , and especially over much longer periods, the probability of a disaster is extremely high. (p. 62).

Text source: Coe, N., Rycroft, R., & Ernest, P. (1983).  Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Overusing transitions

While the use of appropriate transitions can improve coherence (as the previous practice activity shows), it can also be counterproductive if transitions are overused. Use transitions carefully to enhance and clarify the logical connection between ideas in extended texts. Write a range of sentences and vary sentence openings. 

Study the following examples:

:

If people stopped drinking, they might be able to prevent the onset of liver disease. , governments permit the production and sale of alcohol.  , they should help in preventing this disease.  , government resources are limited. 

:

If people stopped drinking, they might be able to prevent the onset of liver disease. Governments permit the production and sale of alcohol.  They should help in preventing this disease. Government resources are limited. 

If people stopped drinking, they might be able to prevent the onset of liver disease. The government should help in preventing this disease  they permit the production and sale of alcohol. Government resources,  , are limited.

Identifying cohesive devices

coherent essay form

1.  Repetition of key noun                   

2.  Repetition of key noun                    

3.  Pronoun + Repetition                      

4.  Repetition with synonym                 

5.  Pronoun                                       

6.  Pronoun

7.    Transition

8.    Transition

9.    Repetition of key noun  

10.   Pronoun

11.   Pronoun + Repetition

 

Write the name of the cohesive device - pronoun , repetition  or  transition  - in the space after each underlined word or phrase before the blank.

The Sinking of the Titanic

In 1912, the Titanic, the largest and best equipped transatlantic liner of   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select26" ).html( document.getElementById( "select26" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); time, hit an iceberg on   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select27" ).html( document.getElementById( "select27" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); first crossing from England to America and sank. Of the 2,235 parrengers and crew, only 718 survivived.

Research has shown that a number of factors played an important part in the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select28" ).html( document.getElementById( "select28" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); .  transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select29" ).html( document.getElementById( "select29" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the  repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select30" ).html( document.getElementById( "select30" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); carried only sixteen lifeboats, with room for about 1,100 people.   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select31" ).html( document.getElementById( "select31" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was clearly not enough for a ship of the  repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select32" ).html( document.getElementById( "select32" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); size.   transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select33" ).html( document.getElementById( "select33" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the designer of the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select34" ).html( document.getElementById( "select34" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); originally planned to equip the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select35" ).html( document.getElementById( "select35" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); with forty-eight   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select36" ).html( document.getElementById( "select36" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); ;   transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select37" ).html( document.getElementById( "select37" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , in order to reduce   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select38" ).html( document.getElementById( "select38" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); costs for building the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select39" ).html( document.getElementById( "select39" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the owners of the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select40" ).html( document.getElementById( "select40" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); decided to give   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select41" ).html( document.getElementById( "select41" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); only sixteen  repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select42" ).html( document.getElementById( "select42" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); .

A   transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select43" ).html( document.getElementById( "select43" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));    repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select44" ).html( document.getElementById( "select44" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was that the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select45" ).html( document.getElementById( "select45" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); crew were not given enough time to become familiar with the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select46" ).html( document.getElementById( "select46" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , especially with   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select47" ).html( document.getElementById( "select47" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); emergency equipment.   transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select48" ).html( document.getElementById( "select48" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , many   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select49" ).html( document.getElementById( "select49" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); left the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select50" ).html( document.getElementById( "select50" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); only half-full and many more people died than needed to. The   transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select51" ).html( document.getElementById( "select51" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' ));    repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select52" ).html( document.getElementById( "select52" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); in the  repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select53" ).html( document.getElementById( "select53" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was the behaviour of the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select54" ).html( document.getElementById( "select54" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); officers on the night of the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select55" ).html( document.getElementById( "select55" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); . In the twenty-four hours before the   repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select56" ).html( document.getElementById( "select56" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); ,  pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select57" ).html( document.getElementById( "select57" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); received a number of warnings about  repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select58" ).html( document.getElementById( "select58" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); in the area, but  pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select59" ).html( document.getElementById( "select59" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); took no precautions.   pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select60" ).html( document.getElementById( "select60" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); did not change direction or even reduce speed. (p. 22).

Source: Pakenham, K.J. (1998).   Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

Using cohesive devices - pronouns and repetition

Read through the text below and consider how you might use pronouns and repetition (either with a key noun or synonym) to replace the bolded  expressions. Write your revised text in the submission box. 

Facebook did not invent social networking, but the company has fine-tuned into a science. When a newcomer logs in, the experience is designed to generate something Facebook calls the aha! moment.   is an observable emotional connection, gleaned by videotaping the expressions of test users navigating   for the first time. Facebook has developed a formula for the precise number of aha! moments users must have before   are hooked. Company officials will not say exactly what that magic number is, but everything about Facebook is geared to reach   as quickly as possible.

So far, at least, Facebook has avoided the digital exoduses that beset   predecessors, MySpace and Friendster.  is partly because Facebook is so good at making  indispensable. Losing Facebook hurts.

Source: Fletcher, D. (2010, May 31). Friends without borders.  , 21, 16-22.

Write the revised text here:

Click here to view a suggested answer.

Suggested answer :

The Aha! Moment

Facebook did not invent social networking, but the company has fine-tuned it ( pronoun-first person ) into a science. When a newcomer logs in, the experience is designed to generate something Facebook calls the aha! moment. This ( pronoun-determiner ) is an observable emotional connection, gleaned by videotaping the expressions of test users navigating the site ( repetition with synonym ) for the first time. Facebook has developed a formula for the precise number of aha! moments users must have before they ( pronoun-third person )  are hooked. Company officials will not say exactly what that magic number is, but everything about the site ( repetition with synonym ) is geared to reach it as quickly as possible.

So far, at least, Facebook has avoided the digital exoduses that beset its ( pronoun-possessive )  predecessors, MySpace and Friendster. This is partly because Facebook is so good at making itself ( pronoun-reflexive ) indispensable. Losing Facebook hurts.

Cohesion between paragraphs

So far, we have looked at cohesion within paragraphs. In longer texts of several paragraphs, a combination of pronouns, transition and reptition can be used to maintain logical flow and connection between paragraphs.

The extract presented here consists of four paragraphs of an expository essay entitled Sustainable Development from a Historical Perspective: The Mayan Civilisation . Note how the bolded expressions at the start of the second, third and fourth paragraphs provide cohesive links to the paragraph preceding them.

Click to view  Cohesion between paragraphs.

Sometimes known as parallel structures or balanced constructions, parallelism is the use of similar grammatical forms or sentence structures when listing or when comparing two or more items.

When used correctly, parallelism can improve the clarity of your writing.

):

:  The elderly residents enjoy many recreational activities: swimming, *read and *to garden.

The elderly residents enjoy many recreational activities:  , and  .

 

:    The academic conversation group consists of students from China, Japan, Korea and *some Germans.

:  The academic conversation group consists of students from  , , , and

 

:    This paper discusses the main features of the AST system, the functionalities, and *the system also has a number of limitations.

:  This paper discusses the  , , and  

Parallelism in extended texts

The following excerpt from Bertrand Russell's famous prologue to his autobiography has some classic examples of parallelism:

coherent essay form

:   The computer is both fast and *it has reliability

: The computer is both   and .

:   The problem with electronic banking is neither the lack of security nor *the fact that you pay high interest rates.

: The problem with electronic banking is neither   nor  .

:   The aim of the new law is not only to reduce the incidence of boy racing but also *setting up new standards for noise tolerance in the whole neighbourhood.

: The aim of the new law is not only  ... but also   new standards for noise tolerance in the whole neighbourhood.

Correcting faulty parallel constructions

Correct the faulty parallel constructions ( bold ) in the following sentences. 

1.   The researcher wanted to find out where the new immigrants came from and to talk about their future plans.

2.  The earthquake victims were both concerned about water contamination and the slow response from the government also made them angry.

3.  An ideal environment for studying includes good lighting, a spacious room, and the furniture must be comfortable.

4.  Computers have changed the way people live, for their work, and how they use their leisure time.

5. Houses play an important role not only to provide a place to live, but also for giving a sense of security.

Write your corrections here:

Click here to view the suggested answers.

Suggested answers :

1   The researcher wanted to find out where the new immigrants came from and what their future plans were.

2.  The earthquake victims were both concerned about water contamination and angry at the the slow response from the government.

3.  An ideal environment for studying includes good lighting, a spacious room, and comfortable furniture.

4.  Computers have changed the way people live, work, and use their leisure time.

5. Houses play an important role not only to provide a place to live, but also to give a sense of security.

Recognising parallel structures

Read through the text and underline the examples of parallel structures (there are five of them). If you can, write the type of grammatical form used in each case. The first one has been done for you as an example.

Write out the entire paragraph in the submission box if it is easier.

Now you try :

Not only have geneticists found beneficial uses of genetically engineered organisms in agriculture, but they have also found ( 1. paired conjunctions ) useful ways to use these organisms advantageously in the larger environment. According to the Monsanto company, a leader in genetic engineering research, recombinant DNA techniques may provide scientists with new ways to clean up the environment and with more efficient methods of producing chemicals. By using genetically engineered organisms, scientists have been able to produce natural gas. This process will decrease society's dependence on the environment and will reduce the rate at which natural resources are depleted. In other processes, genetically engineered bacteria are being used both to extract metals from their geological setting and to speed the breakup of complex petroleum mixtures which will help to clean up oil spills. (p. 523).

Source: Rosen, L.J. (1995). Discovery and commitment: A guide for college writers. Mass.: Allyn and Bacon.

Write your answer here.

Click here to view the answer to the question above

coherent essay form  
« »
  • Select text to style.
  • Paste youtube/vimeo url to add embeded video.
  • Click + sign or type / at the beginning of line to show plugins selection.
  • Use image plugin to upload or copy/paste image searched from internet or paste in snip/sketched image from snap tool

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

  • Knowledge Base
  • Research paper
  • Academic Paragraph Structure | Step-by-Step Guide & Examples

Academic Paragraph Structure | Step-by-Step Guide & Examples

Published on October 25, 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on March 27, 2023.

Academic Paragraph Structure

Every piece of academic writing is structured by paragraphs and headings . The number, length and order of your paragraphs will depend on what you’re writing—but each paragraph must be:

  • Unified : all the sentences relate to one central point or idea.
  • Coherent : the sentences are logically organized and clearly connected.
  • Relevant : the paragraph supports the overall theme and purpose of the paper.

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

upload-your-document-ai-proofreader

Table of contents

Step 1: identify the paragraph’s purpose, step 2: show why the paragraph is relevant, step 3: give evidence, step 4: explain or interpret the evidence, step 5: conclude the paragraph, step 6: read through the whole paragraph, when to start a new paragraph.

First, you need to know the central idea that will organize this paragraph. If you have already made a plan or outline of your paper’s overall structure , you should already have a good idea of what each paragraph will aim to do.

You can start by drafting a sentence that sums up your main point and introduces the paragraph’s focus. This is often called a topic sentence . It should be specific enough to cover in a single paragraph, but general enough that you can develop it over several more sentences.

Although the Braille system gained immediate popularity with the blind students at the Institute in Paris, it had to gain acceptance among the sighted before its adoption throughout France.

This topic sentence:

  • Transitions from the previous paragraph (which discussed the invention of Braille).
  • Clearly identifies this paragraph’s focus (the acceptance of Braille by sighted people).
  • Relates to the paper’s overall thesis.
  • Leaves space for evidence and analysis.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

The topic sentence tells the reader what the paragraph is about—but why does this point matter for your overall argument? If this isn’t already clear from your first sentence, you can explain and expand on its meaning.

This support was necessary because sighted teachers and leaders had ultimate control over the propagation of Braille resources.

  • This sentence expands on the topic and shows how it fits into the broader argument about the social acceptance of Braille.

Now you can support your point with evidence and examples. “Evidence” here doesn’t just mean empirical facts—the form it takes will depend on your discipline, topic and approach. Common types of evidence used in academic writing include:

  • Quotations from literary texts , interviews , and other primary sources .
  • Summaries , paraphrases , or quotations of secondary sources that provide information or interpretation in support of your point.
  • Qualitative or quantitative data that you have gathered or found in existing research.
  • Descriptive examples of artistic or musical works, events, or first-hand experiences.

Make sure to properly cite your sources .

Many of the teachers at the Royal Institute for Blind Youth resisted Braille’s system because they found the tactile method of reading difficult to learn (Bullock & Galst, 2009).

  • This sentence cites specific evidence from a secondary source , demonstrating sighted people’s reluctance to accept Braille.

Now you have to show the reader how this evidence adds to your point. How you do so will depend on what type of evidence you have used.

  • If you quoted a passage, give your interpretation of the quotation.
  • If you cited a statistic, tell the reader what it implies for your argument.
  • If you referred to information from a secondary source, show how it develops the idea of the paragraph.

This resistance was symptomatic of the prevalent attitude that the blind population had to adapt to the sighted world rather than develop their own tools and methods.

  • This sentence adds detail and interpretation to the evidence, arguing that this specific fact reveals something more general about social attitudes at the time.

Steps 3 and 4 can be repeated several times until your point is fully developed. Use transition words and phrases to show the connections between different sentences in the paragraph.

Over time, however, with the increasing impetus to make social contribution possible for all, teachers began to appreciate the usefulness of Braille’s system (Bullock & Galst, 2009). Access to reading could help improve the productivity and integration of people with vision loss.

  • The evidence tells us about the changing attitude to Braille among the sighted.
  • The interpretation argues for why this change occurred as part of broader social shifts.

Scribbr Citation Checker New

The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

  • Missing commas and periods
  • Incorrect usage of “et al.”
  • Ampersands (&) in narrative citations
  • Missing reference entries

coherent essay form

Finally, wrap up the paragraph by returning to your main point and showing the overall consequences of the evidence you have explored.

This particular paragraph takes the form of a historical story—giving evidence and analysis of each step towards Braille’s widespread acceptance.

It took approximately 30 years, but the French government eventually approved the Braille system, and it was established throughout the country (Bullock & Galst, 2009).

  •  The final sentence ends the story with the consequences of these events.

When you think you’ve fully developed your point, read through the final result to make sure each sentence follows smoothly and logically from the last and adds up to a coherent whole.

Although the Braille system gained immediate popularity with the blind students at the Institute in Paris, it had to gain acceptance among the sighted before its adoption throughout France. This support was necessary because sighted teachers and leaders had ultimate control over the propagation of Braille resources. Many of the teachers at the Royal Institute for Blind Youth resisted learning Braille’s system because they found the tactile method of reading difficult to learn (Bullock & Galst, 2009). This resistance was symptomatic of the prevalent attitude that the blind population had to adapt to the sighted world rather than develop their own tools and methods. Over time, however, with the increasing impetus to make social contribution possible for all, teachers began to appreciate the usefulness of Braille’s system (Bullock & Galst, 2009). Access to reading could help improve the productivity and integration of people with vision loss. It took approximately 30 years, but the French government eventually approved the Braille system, and it was established throughout the country (Bullock & Galst, 2009).

Not all paragraphs will look exactly like this. Depending on what your paper aims to do, you might:

  • Bring together examples that seem very different from each other, but have one key point in common.
  • Include just one key piece of evidence (such as a quotation or statistic) and analyze it in depth over several sentences.
  • Break down a concept or category into various parts to help the reader understand it.

The introduction and conclusion paragraphs will also look different. The only universal rule is that your paragraphs must be unified , coherent and relevant . If you struggle with structuring your paragraphs, you could consider using a paper editing service for personal, in-depth feedback.

As soon as you address a new idea, argument or issue, you should start a new paragraph. To determine if your paragraph is complete, ask yourself:

  • Do all your sentences relate to the topic sentence?
  • Does each sentence make logical sense in relation to the one before it?
  • Have you included enough evidence or examples to demonstrate your point?
  • Is it clear what each piece of evidence means and why you have included it?
  • Does all the evidence fit together and tell a coherent story?

Don’t think of paragraphs as isolated units—they are part of a larger argument that should flow organically from one point to the next. Before you start a new paragraph, consider how you will transition between ideas.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. (2023, March 27). Academic Paragraph Structure | Step-by-Step Guide & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/research-paper/paragraph-structure/

Is this article helpful?

Shona McCombes

Shona McCombes

Other students also liked, example of a great essay | explanations, tips & tricks, how to write topic sentences | 4 steps, examples & purpose, transition words & phrases | list & examples, "i thought ai proofreading was useless but..".

I've been using Scribbr for years now and I know it's a service that won't disappoint. It does a good job spotting mistakes”

Module 8: Revising a Research Paper

Writing coherently, learning objectives.

  • Define coherence in terms of writing
  • Identify strategies to revise your argument for coherence

The term “coherence” comes from the verb “to cohere,” which means “to be united,” “to form a whole,” or “to be logically consistent”.

Coherence in writing refers to the big picture of a text. How can you construct an essay or research paper to create a united, logically consistent whole?

The USDA’s controversial and now deprecated food pyramid.

Consider this example:

Micronutrients play a vital role in the maintenance of healthy skin and immune function.  Of course, nothing is better for healthy skin than sleep and proper hydration. Many Americans drink too little water every day. There has been a good deal of debate about the 8-glasses-of-water advice that many of us remember from growing up. Will this advice go the way of the food pyramid? As it turns out, the food pyramid does not represent a medically ideal diet. A number of health organizations have criticized the food pyramid’s advice, and some have even suggested that the food industry had far too great a role in its creation. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time the food industry has intervened in public health policy.

This passage is cohesive, meaning that one sentence flows from the next. But it’s not coherent. Why?

  • The topics of the individual sentences vary widely. We go from hearing about micronutrients to sleep and hydration to recommended water intake to the food pyramid. If sentences (and paragraphs) in a piece of writing don’t share common topics and ideas, how is the reader supposed to understand what the piece is about?
  • The paragraph lacks a topic sentence signaling its main idea or purpose. The first sentence sounds like it could be a topic sentence, but the paragraph doesn’t stay with micronutrients for long.

Overall, this paragraph illustrates the pitfalls of associative organization (healthy skin → water → nutrition advice→ food pyramid) and topic sentences that fail to live up to the promise they make to readers. Your reader will become disoriented, fail to see your point (if you have one), and walk away frustrated.

Revising for Coherence

A coherent text needs a strong, logical structure. To revise for coherence, you must first check the logic and flow of your draft to ensure readers can see the big picture you are trying to create.

Reverse Outlining

Let’s face it: the process of writing a draft can be hectic, messy, and confusing. Sometimes we don’t really know what we’ve written until the dust settles. Reverse outlining can help us see the overall structure of the draft, which often differs significantly from what we set out to write!

To write a reverse outline,

  • Number each paragraph in your draft (write in the margin or use the comment feature in Docs or Word).
  • In a separate document, write down these numbers, one per line.
  • If you have trouble figuring out what the paragraph is about, make a note for yourself that the paragraph needs to be reworked.
  • If the paragraph is has more than one main idea, make a note for yourself that it needs to be split in two.
  • If you find a redundant paragraph that repeats a point made in another paragraph using different words, make a note to combine or differentiate the two paragraphs.
  • If a paragraph doesn’t relate to the overall argument, make a note to revise or remove this paragraph.
  • How does this sequence of topics help you achieve your purpose (or not)?
  • Are any topics unnecessary or redundant?
  • Are there any extended side-notes or rabbit-holes that risk confusing the reader?
  • How could you revise and reorder paragraph topics to better accomplish your goals?

Compare the sequence of points in your reverse outline with your original outline (if you have one) to see where you diverged from your plan. Finally, you can create a new outline that represents the best possible sequence of points and revise your draft accordingly.

The following video describes reverse outlining, its benefits, and a technique you can use to reverse outline your draft.

Question Outlining

If you’re still not sure about the overall order of your argument, you can try writing an outline of questions:

  • Create a new list of numbers corresponding to the paragraphs of your paper.
  • For each paragraph, think about what question this paragraph is answering.
  • Write this question down from the point of view of the audience.
  • Does this sequence of questions reflect how a reasonable person might seek answers about your topic?
  • How do the questions connect to one another?
  • Does it make sense to answer some before others?
  • Would it be beneficial to have these questions follow a more logical pattern of development (general to specific, or specific to general)?
  • Food Pyramid. Provided by : USDA. Located at : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_pyramid_(nutrition)#/media/File:USDA_Food_Pyramid.gif . License : Public Domain: No Known Copyright
  • Writing Coherently. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution

Footer Logo Lumen Waymaker

  • Literary Terms

When and How to Write Coherently

  • Definition & Examples
  • When & How to Write Coherently

The Importance of Coherence

Say you’re reading a piece of academic writing – maybe a textbook. As you read, you find yourself drifting off, having to read the same sentence over and over before you understand it. Maybe, after a while, you get frustrated and give up on the chapter. What happened?

Nine times out of ten, this is a symptom of incoherence. Your brain is unable to find a unified argument or narrative in the book. This may become frustrating and often happens when a book is above your current level of understanding. To someone else, the writing might seem perfectly coherent, because they understand the concepts involved. But from your perspective, the chapter seems incoherent. And as a result, you don’t get as much out of it as you otherwise would.

How can you avoid this in your own writing? How can you make sure that readers don’t misunderstand you (or just give up altogether)? The answer is to work on coherent writing. Coherence is perhaps the most important feature of argumentative writing. Without it, everything falls apart. If an argument is not coherent, it doesn’t matter how good the evidence is, or how beautiful the writing is: an incoherent argument will never persuade anyone or even hold their attention.

How to Create Coherence

  • Keep your reader in mind . Coherence is a matter of perception, so you have to write in a way that your reader will understand. Make sure you use terms that the reader will understand. Also, use lines of reasoning that the reader can follow. In school assignments, the reader is your teacher or professor, so this is the person you need to keep in mind as you write.
  • Repeat key terms . Many writers are afraid to repeat words because they don’t want their writing to become “monotonous.” That’s a good instinct, but actually it’s helpful to repeat words – as long as they’re the right words! Look again at the example in §2: it uses the term “credit card” in nearly every sentence. But it’s OK, because “credit card” is a key term. You should use key terms frequently, but use variety in non-key terms.
  • Define your terms . In complex arguments, it may be necessary to define a term for your reader. This is especially important when you’re using a word that has multiple meanings for different people (such as “democracy,” “morality,” “utilitarianism,” or “God”).
  • Craft smooth transitions . Make sure that each paragraph flows naturally into the next one. If you shift topics abruptly, your readers will probably find your writing incoherent.
  • Check for self-contradictions . Once you’ve made a statement, you have to stick to it! Take care that your later sentences don’t contradict or undermine what you’ve said before.

List of Terms

  • Alliteration
  • Amplification
  • Anachronism
  • Anthropomorphism
  • Antonomasia
  • APA Citation
  • Aposiopesis
  • Autobiography
  • Bildungsroman
  • Characterization
  • Circumlocution
  • Cliffhanger
  • Comic Relief
  • Connotation
  • Deus ex machina
  • Deuteragonist
  • Doppelganger
  • Double Entendre
  • Dramatic irony
  • Equivocation
  • Extended Metaphor
  • Figures of Speech
  • Flash-forward
  • Foreshadowing
  • Intertextuality
  • Juxtaposition
  • Literary Device
  • Malapropism
  • Onomatopoeia
  • Parallelism
  • Pathetic Fallacy
  • Personification
  • Point of View
  • Polysyndeton
  • Protagonist
  • Red Herring
  • Rhetorical Device
  • Rhetorical Question
  • Science Fiction
  • Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
  • Synesthesia
  • Turning Point
  • Understatement
  • Urban Legend
  • Verisimilitude
  • Essay Guide
  • Cite This Website

SkillsYouNeed

  • WRITING SKILLS

Coherence in Writing

Search SkillsYouNeed:

Writing Skills:

  • A - Z List of Writing Skills

The Essentials of Writing

  • Common Mistakes in Writing
  • Introduction to Grammar
  • Improving Your Grammar
  • Active and Passive Voice
  • Punctuation
  • Clarity in Writing
  • Writing Concisely
  • Gender Neutral Language
  • Figurative Language
  • When to Use Capital Letters
  • Using Plain English
  • Writing in UK and US English
  • Understanding (and Avoiding) Clichés
  • The Importance of Structure
  • Know Your Audience
  • Know Your Medium
  • Formal and Informal Writing Styles
  • Note-Taking from Reading
  • Note-Taking for Verbal Exchanges
  • Creative Writing
  • Top Tips for Writing Fiction
  • Writer's Voice
  • Writing for Children
  • Writing for Pleasure
  • Writing for the Internet
  • Journalistic Writing
  • Technical Writing
  • Academic Writing
  • Editing and Proofreading

Writing Specific Documents

  • Writing a CV or Résumé
  • Writing a Covering Letter
  • Writing a Personal Statement
  • Writing Reviews
  • Using LinkedIn Effectively
  • Business Writing
  • Study Skills
  • Writing Your Dissertation or Thesis

Subscribe to our FREE newsletter and start improving your life in just 5 minutes a day.

You'll get our 5 free 'One Minute Life Skills' and our weekly newsletter.

We'll never share your email address and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Have you ever read a piece of writing and wondered what point the writer was trying to make? If so, that piece of writing probably lacked coherence. Coherence is an important aspect of good writing—as important as good grammar or spelling. However, it is also rather harder to learn how to do it, because it is not a matter of simple rules.

Coherent writing moves smoothly between ideas. It guides the reader through an argument or series of points using signposts and connectors. It generally has a clear structure and consistent tone, with little or no repetition. Coherent writing feels planned —usually because it is. This page provides some tips to help you to develop your ability to write coherently.

Defining Coherence

Dictionary definition of coherence

cohere , v. to stick together, to be consistent, to fit together in a consistent, orderly whole.

coherence , a sticking together, consistency.

Source: Chambers English Dictionary, 1989 edition.

The dictionary definition of coherence is clear enough—but what does that mean in practical terms for writers?

Once you have achieved coherence in your writing, you will find that:

Your sentences and ideas are connected and flow together;

Readers can move easily through the text from one sentence, paragraph or idea to the next; and

Readers will be able to follow the ideas and main points of the text.

On the other hand, a text that is NOT coherent jumps between ideas without making clear connections between them. It is often hard to follow the argument. Readers may find themselves unclear about the point of particular paragraphs or even whole sections. There may be odd sentences that do not fit well with the previous or following sentence, or paragraphs that repeat earlier ideas.

All these issues provide pointers for how to develop coherence.

Elements of Coherence

There are several different elements that contribute to coherence, or are closely linked to the concept.

They include:

Cohesion , or whether ideas are linked within and between sentences.

Unity , or the extent to which a sentence, paragraph or section focuses on a single idea or group or ideas. In any given paragraph, every sentence should be relevant to a single focus.

A joint effort

Together, cohesion and unity mean that sentences and paragraphs are connected around a central theme.

  • Flow , or how the reader is led through the text. Some of this is about the ordering of ideas, but it also takes into account issues like phrasing, rhythm and style. Some people define flow as the quality that makes writing engaging and easy to read.

Levels of Coherence

We can consider coherence at several different levels. These include:

Within sentences. A sentence is coherent when it flows naturally, and uses correct grammar , spelling and punctuation . Coherence also includes the use of the most appropriate words, and avoidance of redundancy.

Between sentences . Coherence between sentences means that each sentence flows logically and naturally from the previous one. Connections are made between them so that readers can see the flow of ideas, and how each sentence is linked to the previous one.

Within paragraphs . This is a logical extension of coherence between sentences. Coherence within a paragraph means that the sentences within the paragraph work together as a whole to present a complete thesis or idea.

Why single-sentence paragraphs don’t work

This definition of ‘within paragraph’ coherence explains why you should (almost) never use single-sentence paragraphs. A single sentence is (almost) never going to be able to provide a complete summary of your thesis or idea.

Between paragraphs . For most pieces of writing, you will also need to consider how the paragraphs fit together. Each paragraph covers an idea or thesis—and must then be connected logically to the next paragraph, so that your overall thesis is built step-by-step.

Between subsections or sections . This final level of coherence is only really important for longer documents. You must create a logical flow between different sections, to guide your reader from one to the next so that they can follow the development of your ideas.

Techniques to Improve Coherence

The first step to improving coherence is to plan your writing in advance.

Decide on the main point that you want to make, and the ideas that will lead your reader towards your point. It is also helpful to consider your planned audience, and what they want from your text.

There is  more about this in our page on Know Your Audience . You may also find it helpful to read our page on Know Your Medium , to check whether there is anything about your publishing medium that you need to consider ahead of starting to write.

There are some techniques that you can use to help improve coherence within your writing. These include:

Using transitional expressions and phrases to signal connections

Words and phrases like ‘however’, ‘because’, ‘therefore’, ‘additionally’, and ‘on the one hand... on the other’ can be used to signal connections between sentences and paragraphs.

WARNING! Real connections needed!

Transitional phrases and words should only be used where the ideas really are connected.

Just inserting transitional expressions will not connect your ideas. Instead, you need to create a reasonable progression of ideas through a paragraph or section.

You also need to use transitional expressions sparingly. Not all ideas need an obvious link—and sometimes putting one in can seem awkward and contrived.

Using repeating forms or parallel structures to emphasise links between ideas

Generally speaking, repetition of words and phrases is unadvisable.

However, used sparingly, you may be able to harness repetition as a way to signal connections between sentences or ideas.

For example, many research papers have a section setting out the limitations of the study. These limitations can often be quite diverse, which makes for a rather disjointed section. To overcome this issue, writers often use the form ‘First... Second... Finally...’ to demonstrate the links between the disparate ideas.

Using pronouns and synonyms to eliminate unnecessary repetition

Repetition is often the enemy of coherence because it interrupts your movement through the writing. You tend to get distracted by the repeated words, and lose the thread of the argument or idea.

Pronouns and synonyms are a good way to avoid repeating words and phrases. However, care is needed when using them, to avoid ambiguity. It is advisable NOT to use pronouns following a sentence with two elements that might take the same pronoun.

For example:

John was sure that Tom was wrong. He had made the same argument last week.

Who made the same argument last week? John or Tom?

It is better to use at least one name again than create ambiguity.

TOP TIP! Come back later

It is often hard to detect ambiguity in your own writing because you know what you wanted to say.

It is therefore a good idea to leave any piece of writing overnight, and read it again in the morning. This will often identify problems such as ambiguous pronouns, and give you a chance to revise them.

Revisit, Revise and Review

Alongside planning, the single most important thing that you can do to improve the coherence of a piece of writing is to review and revise it with the reader’s needs in mind.

When you have finished a piece of writing, put it aside for a while. Overnight is ideal, but longer is fine. Once you have had a chance to forget precisely what you meant, read it over again as if you were coming to it for the first time.

As you start to read, consider the focus of your text: the main point that you want to make.

With that in mind, consciously examine whether the ideas flow clearly through your sentences, paragraphs and sections. Can the reader grasp your argument and follow it through the text? Is there an obvious conclusion?

While you are reading, you should also consider whether there are any very long sentences. If so, shorten them, using transitional words or phrases to link them together effectively. This will make your writing easier to read, and it will naturally flow better.

A Final Thought

It is not always easy to know how to create more coherent writing.

The best way to do so is to plan your writing, and then review it carefully. You should particularly consider your focus, and your readers’ needs. In doing so, you may find it helpful to use some of the techniques described on this page—but they will not, in themselves, be sufficient without the planning and review.

Continue to: Writing Concisely Using Plain English

See also: The Importance of Structure in Writing Editing and Proofreading Copywriting

edit-it.org

Words and Phrases to Build Up Coherent Text

coherent essay form

If you are a long-time writer, you are likely to know the most popular problem in writing is scarcity of coherence since most texts students hand their professors over feature a broken cause and effect relationship. Coherence is the direct clue to correct understanding of information. If absent, there is a tiny likelihood readers will grasp the very point you tried to express. Our edit essay service is the leader in providing writing services of all kinds. We can manage college essay editing on any subject . Our admission essay editing ensures you will entry a desired institution. Our fast thesis editing can save your time and let you enjoy solely your research work. At last, our best-quality essay rewriting is a guarantee your essay work will be the most original and unique. We can teach you amazing techniques to create fascinating texts on multifarious subjects. You do not need to waste all days and nights long in search of effective and quick methods to improve your writing abilities. Our writers have already discovered these secrets and are waiting to share them with people, who truly deserve it. If you aim high, you will find our collaboration fruitful. If you are doubtful, here are all the merits you will benefit from once you have let us come into your life:

  • Our support agents are in touch at any time to assist you in any issues.
  • Our writer staff is well-qualified and capable of finding an especial approach to each task.
  • Our services are available to all people regardless of their age and social position owing to low prices.  
  • Our realm of interests is vast enough to involve all people seeking for personal development.
  • Our reputation speaks for itself. You will never find a more reliable and devoted partner to entrust.

Have curiosity grasped your mind? If it is so, you are welcome to get to know us closer. Visit our paper editing website to look into all the services we render . Do not forget that we encourage team work and are open to overcome numerous hurdles jointly.

Also in this section:

  • Easy Revision – Perfect Paper Is As Easy As ABC Now
  • English Proofreading On-line. Magic Wand for Foreign Student
  • Dissertation Proofreading: Where to Find a Good Editor
  • What Essay Proofreading Company to Choose?
  • Papers Editing Services Teach How to Outdo Oneself

But let’s get down to business. Today, the issue on the agenda is how essential coherence is in writing. Well, at first, it would be better to define what it is? ‘ Coherence ’ derives from the Latin language and denotes “ to stick together ”. Coherence, which is also often called cohesion , is a way to make phrases or sentences logically connected and flow smoothly one after another. Lack of coherence is usually a proof of poor language and an inability to organize thoughts in a clear manner. Coherence allows combining several ideas or assertions so as to form a unique text that makes sense. In fact, coherence has to do with both oral and written language. It does not matter in what form information is presented, it matters in what manner. In addition, coherence is examined on two textual levels:

  • Local Level Coherent Text : coherence occurs on the level of some parts of a text.
  • Global Level Coherent Text : coherence occurs on the level of the entire text (for example, a novel or monograph).

In general, coherence is an art of turning single sentences into one integral text. The simple way to make a text coherent is to arrange your thoughts in logical order , which is a paramount feature of any good essay. No text can be easy to understand without this condition. There exist different types of logical order, but the common ones are contrast, importance, and chronology. Chronology refers to time and means that events are described according to the time of their occurrence. In this case, tense agreement plays not less an important role since it is obligatory to use time markers and proper tenses to show readers time relations between events discussed. For this reason, you cannot do without learning Future Perfect Tense or advancing Future Perfect Continuous . Importance anticipates that ideas are stated according to their level of significance. The crucial ones are elucidated above all. At last, contrast is a way to arrange idea by comparing or posing them.

There are different cohesive devices of achieving coherence. They can be applied individually or jointly to get a better results. There is nothing uncanny about them. You are sure to have been using at least one of them even being unaware of it.

1. Repetition

Any text features key words, which constitute the ground for a main idea. Regular repetition of key phrases or words is a sure method to connect parts of information. But there is such a blurred line between redundancy and coherence. As a rule, it is nouns to be repeated since they reflect the main notions of any discussion. Repetition is sometimes regarded as a music motive since it keeps in an audience’s mind the right melody. The following fragment (Oshima & Hogue, 2006) serves a good example of how repetition may contribute to coherence:

Ankara , the capital of the Republic of Turkey, has a unique and stunning history. In the past, Ankara was an ordinary commercial city situated on the crossroads of trade routes. For this reason, it was famous for honey, Muscat grapes and pearls. Later, after the decadence of the Ottoman Empire Ankara replaced the former Turkish capital Istanbul and took the role of the leading city in 1923. Today, Ankara is the second most populous city in the country.

As you see, repetition of the word ‘gold’ here is not lack of a writer’s vocabulary but a tool to stick to the main subject of discussion. There is no fixed rule of how many key words should be used in one paragraph. You should rely on your own feeling of sufficiency.

To be sure your essay is not spoiled by redundancy but coherent owing to key words, turn to our essay proofreading service where the most proficient editors are waiting to help you.  

2. Pronouns 

Pronouns are a natural way to substitute nouns in texts. Their first function is to note objects or people without naming them. It is an easy way to avoid excessive wordiness or improper repetition. No text can do without pronoun; otherwise, repetition is inevitable. Moreover, it is usually intelligible from a context what is hidden behind a pronoun. If it is impossible for readers to catch what an author’s implies by some pronoun, it is a proof of insufficient clarity of the text. Let’s turn to our familiar fragment:

In the past, Ankara was an ordinary commercial city situated on the crossroads of trade routes. For this reason, it was famous for honey, Muscat grapes and pearls.

It is not a big deal to unveil what IT denotes, isn’t it? Hence, pronoun usage is a powerful method of coherence if applied in the right place and at the right time. By the way, you may find these facts about noun in English useful for your further writing.

3. Linking words

Linking words, or so-called transition tags, is a widely applied cohesive device to connect various ideas and maintain logical order in a text. These are used to organize paragraphs and fix cause and effect relationship, which allows readers to follow what is going on in the text smoothly. Transition words are an intensifying tool of coherence and consistent. They include conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs, and transitional expressions. On our site you can read the definition of an adverb , and what role it plays in a sentence. It is much easier to catch on information if it is arranged by means of logical markers, for example:

Many students believe they cannot write a good essay because they are not writers. However , as they keep on writing and working on developing their writing skills, most students gain the needed confidence to start believing they are writers.

You can find plenty of transition words, and they vary from one to another, but their general purpose remains the same – to ensure textual coherence. In general, most linkers are essential for compound sentences. For this reason, you cannot do without knowing of what English relative clauses are , their types and divergences.

Transition tags are divided into classes based on functions. This will facilitate you choosing a right one. Here is the list of the most widespread transitional markers you are likely to need in writing:

Again, also, and, and then, besides, finally, further, furthermore, in addition, moreover, next, still, too

after a while, afterward, again, and then, as long as, at last, at length, at that time, before, earlier, eventually, finally, formerly, further, furthermore, in the past, last, lately, meanwhile, moreover, next, now, presently, second, simultaneously, since, so far, soon, still, subsequently, then, thereafter, too, until, until now, when

Certainly, indeed, in fact, of course

All in all, altogether, as has been said, finally, in brief, in conclusion, in other words, in particular, in short, in simpler terms, in summary, on the whole, that is, therefore, to put it differently, to summarize

One more problem about dealing with transitional words is ignorance of their right meaning. Putting a linker in a wrong context will only aggravate the situation. None wants to be misunderstood, so it is better to abstain from taking some transitional tag at all or look up its meaning each time you are unsure of its relevance. If you are in dread of making a mistake all the time, we can help you by revealing what errors students mostly do and how to forget about grammar mistakes once and forever.

You do not need to memorize all these words since you can always find them here. Moreover, a usual 250-word essay might require 5 examples at the most. It is reasonable to learn only a dozen of linkers, which you could use for your exam essay, for example. It is important not to get obsessed with using transitional signals since their redundancy can make reading perplexing. The same is about their absence. If your text has none of them, it will be challenging for others to grip what you meant. Our essay editing online service is providing support at any hour, so if this task is not up to you, we are free to collaborate.

If you are truly interested in this topic, there are plenty of amazing ways to get skillful in it. First, you need to get used to everyday reading. There is no better way to learn new words and see the context of their relevant usage. Half an hour every day suffices to make your vocabulary advanced. Have a pen at hand to write all important phrases. If you are an assiduous person, there is one more efficient technique for you. Try to practice writing regularly. This will involve your brain activity and foster development of your writing skills. You can read our service blog publishing useful writing information weekly: https://edit-it.org/blog/choose-the-help-of-a-paper-proofreader-for-excellent-effect ; or you may ask our team of experienced and academic editors to help you at any time if some difficulties arise.

4. Parallelism

Parallel constructions are another cohesive device to keep a text coherent. It consists in a deliberate repetition of phrases or sentences, which have similar grammatical forms. This technique works like ordinary repetition. The only difference is that it is not only one word that is regularly repeated but the whole sentence, not literally but at the grammatical level. By the way, you can find out more about parallelisms from our writers: https://edit-it.org/blog/uk-proofreading-services-help-get-rid-of-study-problems

But for now, let’s examine the brilliant example of parallelism usage – a famous speech of Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg. Let’s examine one of the parallelisms he used:

But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate – we cannot consecrate – we cannot hallow – this ground. 

This parallelism serves an emphasis on the idea by means of which the American president is striving to inspire his people. You can find many other instances of parallelisms in political speeches. It is regarded as a powerful figure of speech, which is widely used in both press and belles-lettres, which have the main purpose – to affect audience’s mind. If you got stuck and have no idea how to apply parallelisms in your essay, just mail us ‘ proofread my essay within 24 hours ’, and the work will be ready.

As you see, coherence is a complex phenomenon. It encompasses numerous aspects, each of them is aimed at making a text logical and intelligible for a target audience. This is not only about academic writing but writing as a whole. It is impossible for your listeners to get what you mean if your message is deprived of clarity. If we are talking about the ways coherence is achieved in language, it is closely bound to grammar and vocabulary. Our experts are masterful in writing. You can follow our blog to boost your writing abilities: https://edit-it.org/blog/get-the-best-proofreading-service-with-us

We have mentioned the most efficient techniques to “glue” sentences between each other. If you are eager to find out more about cohesive devices, you can always benefit from our blog where you can have at your disposal vast information on writing development: https://edit-it.org/blog/students-choose-services-to-proofread-paper-online

In addition, our qualified essay editing service is working twenty-four hours a day to be always within call for you. Our experts, who have ample experience in providing services of all kinds, from qualified dissertation writing services to college paper proofreading services . Thus, whatever your activity is, it is for sure they have something to share with you. There is no limit to imperfection, do not you think so? If you agree, then you cannot but find our possible friendship profitable only. The more opportunities you take, the more roads are open for you. Do not miss this one, and if we are here for you , let us assist in achieving new laurels on your academic path. There are numerous grateful feedbacks from customers we helped and have been collaborating up to date. We are not only one-time urgent aid but a reliable partner for mutual development . Your success is part of our success!

More popular topics:

  • Essay Editing Services: How to Improve Writing
  • Online Proofreading Service: Get Professional Help!
  • Dissertation Editor: Main Role and Functions
  • What Should You Know About The Complex Object?

Calculate Your Price

Having doubts?

Try our service for FREE!

Recent posts

  • Best Cheapest Proofreading Cost from Our Writing Service
  • English Proofreading Online: Best Service for Students
  • Secrets of Implicit and Explicit Memory at Edit-it.org
  • Let Professional Rate My Paper With Regard to Requirements
  • Copy Editing Fees Affordable for Everyone

IMAGES

  1. How to write a cohesive 5 paragraph essay part 1

    coherent essay form

  2. 009 Essay Example Coherent ~ Thatsnotus

    coherent essay form

  3. Is the New Right Internally Coherent Essay Example

    coherent essay form

  4. How Do I Write a Coherent Paragraph and Make Transitions?

    coherent essay form

  5. IELTS Writing Task 2: tips to improve coherence and cohesion

    coherent essay form

  6. Essay

    coherent essay form

COMMENTS

  1. Cohesion And Coherence In Essay Writing

    Coherence is about making everything flow smoothly to create unity. So, sentences and ideas must be relevant to the central thesis statement. The writer has to maintain the flow of ideas to serve the main focus of the essay. 5. Stick to the purpose of the type of essay you're-writing.

  2. Unity and Coherence in Essays

    Unity. Unity is the idea that all parts of the writing work to achieve the same goal: proving the thesis. Just as the content of a paragraph should focus on a topic sentence, the content of an essay must focus on the thesis. The introduction paragraph introduces the thesis, the body paragraphs each have a proof point (topic sentence) with ...

  3. The Writing Center

    It helps lay the foundation for more complex or new ideas. While the Eighteenth Century is known for its rich Augustan tradition and its novels of sensibility and the gothic, writers did experiment with the blossoming form of the novel. A well-organized paper uses techniques to build cohesion and coherence between and within paragraphs to guide ...

  4. Creating Cohesive and Coherent Paragraphs

    Cohesive Writing Connects Topic and Stress: Sentences are cohesive when the stress of one sentence is used as the topic of the next. Below, the first example reads like a list of facts. The ideas are related but the sentences don't connect. The second example connects the topics and stress which creates a sense of flow.

  5. Coherent Paragraphs

    Examples: Middle Paragraphs . From a student essay comparing P'u Sung-ling's (17th century) The Cricket Boy and Franz Kafka's (20th century) The Metamorphosis, two stories that deal with a son's relationship to his family.(The writer's thesis: according to these authors, one must connect in meaningful ways with other human beings in order to achieve what Virginia Woolf calls ...

  6. Coherent Paragraphs

    One way to achieve paragraph coherence is to follow the ADVICE format. Here's how this structure looks in practice: Announce: Announce the paragraph's main idea in the first sentence. This is also called the topic sentence. Develop: Develop the core idea of the paragraph and anticipate your proof, support, or evidence.

  7. Cohesion & Coherence

    Here are a few tips for composing cohesive paragraphs: "1. Begin sentences with information familiar to your readers. 2. End sentences with information that readers cannot anticipate. 3. Begin sentences with information that readers will find simple; end with information they will find complex" (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 67).

  8. Essay Structure: The 3 Main Parts of an Essay

    Basic essay structure: the 3 main parts of an essay. Almost every single essay that's ever been written follows the same basic structure: Introduction. Body paragraphs. Conclusion. This structure has stood the test of time for one simple reason: It works. It clearly presents the writer's position, supports that position with relevant ...

  9. PDF 4 Steps to Writing a Coherent Paragraph writingcentre.stu

    graphs are coherent and unified, follow th. se steps: 1. Begin Each Paragraph with a Topic SentenceTh. topic sentence expresses the main idea of the paragraph. It's. ke a thesis statement, but only for that one paragraph. Use your to. sentence as a guide for the content of your paragraph. Ask: Do the othe.

  10. Creating Coherent Paragraphs: Topic Sentences, Echo Words, Transitions

    Below is a video on how to write coherent, easy-to-read paragraphs. The video covers the three most important concepts that make for coherence: Writing a strong topic sentence that establishes the subject of the paragraph; Using "echo words" -- i.e., consistent terms for the concepts throughout;

  11. Student Success

    In a coherent text, the ideas are in the right order, the ideas are explained and exemplified just enough, and the ideas are linked together clearly. To help you write coherent text, we will look at coherence at a number of levels. We'll start with a general overview, looking at an example paragraph in different versions which are coherent ...

  12. How to write a cohesive essay

    This article provides tips on how you can make your essay cohesive. 1. Identify the thesis statement of your essay. A thesis statement states what your position is regarding the topic you are discussing. To make an essay worth reading, you will need to make sure that you have a compelling stance. However, identifying the thesis statement is ...

  13. Step #3: Coherent, Unified Paragraphs

    6. Step #3: Coherent, Unified Paragraphs. "Vintage Book" by Suzy Hazelwood, Pexels is in the Public Domain, CC0. Strong essays are built with solid, coherent, and unified paragraphs. They should be digestible units of thought that have similar structure to the essay itself: a topic sentence, a body of support, and a concluding or ...

  14. PDF Guidelines for Developing a Coherent Essay

    Chapter 10. Guidelines for Developing a Coherent Essay. views traditionally are relatively short. In such cases, you should state explicitly, near the beginning of your review, what will and will not be covered (Le., the delimitations of your review). The excerpt in Example 10.2.1 illustrates application of this guideline.

  15. Coherence

    Linguistic coherence refers to the clear and logical arrangement of words, phrases, and sentences in a piece of writing to ensure the message is understood as intended. It involves the use of grammatically correct sentences, appropriate use of conjunctions, pronouns and transitional phrases, correct sequencing of ideas, and maintaining the same ...

  16. Essay writing

    Two key aspects of coherence. Cohesion: This relates to the linking of ideas within a sentence, the linking of sentences (the ties between sentences) within a paragraph and the linking between paragraphs. Unity: This relates to the question of relevance and maintaining the central focus of a single paragraph and throughout the essay.

  17. 1.6: Coherent Paragraphs

    This page titled 1.6: Coherent Paragraphs is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by . This brings us to the well-known (but apparently not well enough known) paragraph: the basic unit of composition. The traditional and still useful rule that a paragraph must have unity, coherence, ….

  18. Academic Paragraph Structure

    Table of contents. Step 1: Identify the paragraph's purpose. Step 2: Show why the paragraph is relevant. Step 3: Give evidence. Step 4: Explain or interpret the evidence. Step 5: Conclude the paragraph. Step 6: Read through the whole paragraph. When to start a new paragraph.

  19. Writing Coherently

    Define coherence in terms of writing. Identify strategies to revise your argument for coherence. The term "coherence" comes from the verb "to cohere," which means "to be united," "to form a whole," or "to be logically consistent". Coherence in writing refers to the big picture of a text. How can you construct an essay or ...

  20. When & How to Write Coherently

    Coherence is a matter of perception, so you have to write in a way that your reader will understand. Make sure you use terms that the reader will understand. Also, use lines of reasoning that the reader can follow. In school assignments, the reader is your teacher or professor, so this is the person you need to keep in mind as you write.

  21. Coherence in Writing

    Coherence is an important aspect of good writing—as important as good grammar or spelling. However, it is also rather harder to learn how to do it, because it is not a matter of simple rules. Coherent writing moves smoothly between ideas. It guides the reader through an argument or series of points using signposts and connectors.

  22. Cohesive Essay Thought, Narrative & Example

    A cohesive essay focuses on one subject and uses supporting evidence and analysis to defend the topic. Cohesive essay writing relies on order and structure for the fluency of the message. Planning ...

  23. Words and Phrases to Build Up Coherent Text

    Global Level Coherent Text: coherence occurs on the level of the entire text (for example, a novel or monograph). In general, coherence is an art of turning single sentences into one integral text. The simple way to make a text coherent is to arrange your thoughts in logical order , which is a paramount feature of any good essay.