Pop quiz time: which Writing/English topic do MOST of my SAT and ACT tutoring clients (who are bright and driven!) tend to lose points on when we first start working together? Transitions.
What do I mean by that term? In the context of these two tests (and in writing more broadly), transitions are words and brief phrases like “but,” “therefore,” “on the contrary,” and “therefore” that signal to the reader how certain sentences in a passage relate to each other. Of course, not every sentence needs a transition word or phrase to be complete and grammatically correct…but, a handful of transitions, thoughtfully placed, can really help a reader navigate a piece of writing!
So why am I, a test prep guru, dedicating a whole blog post to this topic? Well, while many high schools don’t teach this concept extensively, both the ACT English section and the Digital SAT Reading and Writing section DO test this concept quite a bit. That makes for a double-whammy: many students are underprepared for an aspect of the test that could gain them a fair number of points if they reviewed it on their own or with a tutor.
You won’t be caught off-guard, though—because you’re reading this post! What follows is a complete list of the transition words that have been tested on the SAT and ACT.
***January 2026 update: the Digital SAT has recently begun testing some new transition words. This post has been updated to reflect those additional words.***
ARTICLE CONTENTS
1. Kinds of Transition Word on the Digital SAT and ACT
E. Emphasize
A. Indicate contradicting ideas
B. Indicate difference between things or people
III. Words that show cause-and-effect
A. Words that come before the reason/cause
Digital SAT and ACT Transition Word Categories
When it comes to transition words, there are three main buckets or categories they fall into:
I) Words that Continue
II) Words that Contrast, and
III) Words that show Cause-and-Effect.
Each of these three categories can be further subdivided according to specific function. To streamline your reading experience here, I’m listing all of the words from each category below. BUT, please note that there are still distinctions between them:
You will notice that some words have commas after them. That means that they are what I call “hard transition words,” which act like extra information in a sentence. Hard transition words—aka “adverbs”—don’t change whether the clause is considered complete or dependent. Instead, they simply add commentary.
Other transition words don’t have a comma after them, like FANBOYS words. These do change the clause! They determine whether the clause is complete or dependent. I think of this type as “soft transition words.”
Furthermore, some transition words require certain verb forms, like using an “-ing” verb. These will be noted below.
I. CONTINUE words.
A) Words that add a piece of information to the same subject you were already discussing:
(ex: My stapler is five inches long. Additionally, it’s bright green.)
Additionally,
Also,
And [FANBOYS]
Besides,
Firstly, / First, / First of all, / In the first place,
Furthermore,
In addition,
In the second place,
Lastly,
Moreover,
Secondly,
What’s more,
B) Words that show how two things are similar:
(ex: My stapler is bright green. Likewise, my pen is bright green.)
Likewise,
Similarly,
C) Words that PROVIDE a specific example OF something you just said:
(ex: Many office supplies these days are bright green. For example, my stapler and pen are both this color.)
For example,
For instance,
Specifically,
D) Words that explain or clarify something you just said:
(ex: In our capitalist and increasingly visual society, office supply companies are catering to the demands of the public by creating prettier versions of previously ugly or boring items. In other words, they are selling green and pink pens and staplers instead of the dull gray or basic wooden versions of old.)
Effectively,
Essentially,
In other words,
That is,
There,
To be exact,
E) Words that emphasize something you just said:
(ex: Office supply companies are more concerned with appealing to as broad an audience as possible. In fact, they seem to think it’s more important to make staplers available in every color than to ensure that the staplers actually write well!)
In fact,
In many cases,
Indeed,
Again and again,
F) Words that indicate a fact or event’s place in time
(ex: Nowadays, office supply chains can’t afford not to have a major social media presence. Previously, it was enough to advertise on TV and radio.)
Afterward,
Currently,
Earlier,
Eventually,
First,*
Finally,*
Lastly,*
Nowadays,
Previously,
Second,*
Soon,
Today,
Ultimately,**
*These words can be used to add information OR indicate a sequence of events.
**“Ultimately” can be used to indicate causation OR a non-causal sequence of events.
II. CONTRAST words.
A) Words that show how two ideas contradict one other:
Admittedly
All the same,
Alternatively,
Although
But [FANBOYS]
Conversely,
Despite [+“ing” verb]
Even so,
Granted,
However,
In any case,
In reality,
In spite of [+”ing” verb]
Instead,
Meanwhile,
Nevertheless,
Nonetheless,
Otherwise,
Rather,
Regardless,
Still,
That being said, / That said,
Though
Whereas
While
Yet [FANBOYS]
As a reminder: Hard transitions are separated by commas and do not impact the clause’s completeness. Soft transitions are NOT separated by commas and (like magic) they turn complete clauses into dependent ones!
Example 1 with hard transition, which maintains two complete clauses and is separated by a comma from the surrounding word(s): She was hungry. However, she didn’t eat the pie.
Example 2 with soft transition that creates a dependent clause and is not separated by a comma from the subsequent word: Despite being hungry, she didn’t eat the pie.
B) Words that show how two things or people are different from each other:
Alternately,
Alternatively,
By comparison,
By contrast,
Elsewhere,
In comparison,
In contrast,
On the contrary,
On the other hand,
III. CAUSE-AND-EFFECT words.
A) Words that come before the reason/cause:
(Ex: Because she was so hungry, she ate an entire pie.)
Because
For [FANBOYS]
In so doing,
Since
B) Words that indicate the result/effect:
(Ex: She was quite hungry. Therefore, she ate an entire pie.)
Accordingly,
As a result,
As such,
Consequently,
Fittingly,
For this reason,
Hence,
In turn,
So [FANBOYS]
Soon,
Thus,
Therefore,
To that end,
To these ends,
Ultimately,*
With this in mind,
*“Ultimately” is listed in two categories because it can be used to indicate causation OR a non-causal sequence of events.
...Capisce?
Man…that’s a big pile of transition words!
But know this: it’s worth your while learn how to use ALL of them. I say this because you can then use these categories and subcategories in two very important ways that snag you easy points on your SAT or ACT: check out my two foolproof strategies for answering transition word questions quickly and correctly!
And if you’re looking for loads more content and strategies for improving your grammar skills and sending your SAT/ACT score climbing, you can work with me directly OR consult two self-study resources:
My ACT Grammar Cram Plan is a self-study guide that brings you through all of the grammar and rhetorical strategy content you’ll need to get an EXCELLENT score on the ACT English section.
And, of course, I’ve created a version for the Digital SAT Grammar, too!
