Linking words and phrases are used to connect ideas within clauses, sentences, and paragraphs. In this lesson, we will show you a list of common linking words and phrases in Spanish. This list is very useful for writing essays.
Linking words and phrases in Spanish
Sequence
- First/Firstly - Primero/En primer lugar
- Second - Segundo
- Third - Tercero
- Previously - Anteriormente
- Subsequently - Posteriormente
- Then - Entonces
- Later - Luego
- After that - Después de es
- Finally - Finalmente/Por último
- In the end - Al final
- Therefore - Por lo tanto/Por eso
- So - Así que
Examples:
Al final, los tres cerditos aprendieron la lección - In the end, the three little pigs learned their lesson
Primero, permítame revisar su pasaporte - First, let me check your passport
Addition
- And - y
- As well as - Además de
- Even - incluso
- Also/Moreover/Furthermore/In addition - Además
- Too/As well - También
- In other words - O sea
Contrast
- But - Pero
- However - Sin embargo
- Although - Aunque
- Nevertheless - No obstante
- In spite of/Despire - A pesar de (que)
- On the one hand - Por un lado/una parte
- On the other hand - Por otro lado/otra parte
Examples:
En su familia todos son altos, sin embargo, ella es baja - In her family all are tall, however, she is short
Me gustaría jugar hoy al tenis, pero me duele el brazo - I would like to play tennis today, but my arm hurts
See also: Common Spanish phrases and expressions in formal letters
Reason
- Because - Porque
- As - Como
- Because of - A causa de (que)
- Due to/Because of - Debido a (que)
- Since/Given that - Dado que
- Since/Because - Ya que
- Since/As - Puesto que
- Thanks to - Gracias a (que)
- Because of - Por culpa (de)
- For this reason - Por esta razón
Note:
While "porque" is often used in the middle of a sentence, "como" is usually placed at the beginning.
For example:
Como estaba lloviendo cuando salí, traje un paraguas - As it was raining when I left, I brought an umbrella
"Gracias a (que)" is a connector used in positive connotation. "Por culpa (de)" should be used in negative one, though.
Examples:
Por culpa de la tormenta, se cortó la luz - Because of the storm, the power went off
Gracias a ese club, conocí a muchas personas agradables - Thanks to this club, I met many nice people
Summarising
- In conclusion - En conclusión
- In summary - En resumen
- In brief - En definitiva
- In short - En pocas palabras
- To summarise - Para resumir
- To conclude - Para finalizar
Giving examples
- For example/For instance - Por ejemplo
- Namely - A saber
Opinions
- I agree that ___ - Estoy de acuerdo en que ___
- I disagree that ___ - No estoy de acuerdo en que ___
- I believe that ___ - Creo que ___
- I think that ___ - Pienso que ___
- From my point of view - Desde mi punto de vista
- In my opinion - Opino que/En mi opinión
- To begin with - Para empezar
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