Mastering these presentation phrases will help to ensure that your message is conveyed clearly and professionally. They’ll also boost your confidence as you prepare to present in English.
Practice using these phrases in your next presentation, and you’ll see how they help you succeed.
If you like learning English through movies and online media, you should also check out FluentU. FluentU lets you learn English from popular talk shows, catchy music videos and funny commercials , as you can see here:
If you want to watch it, the FluentU app has probably got it.
The FluentU app and website makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition, and useful examples.
FluentU lets you learn engaging content with world famous celebrities.
For example, when you tap on the word "searching," you see this:
FluentU lets you tap to look up any word.
Learn all the vocabulary in any video with quizzes. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning.
FluentU helps you learn fast with useful questions and multiple examples. Learn more.
The best part? FluentU remembers the vocabulary that you’re learning. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a truly personalized experience.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe
The art of delivering a compelling presentation lies in the finesse of your language skills. It’s about crafting resonating sentences, choosing captivating words, and initiating a dialogue that piques curiosity. One must know how to maneuver through this landscape, from setting the scene with a powerful introduction to concluding with a thought-provoking statement. That’s where this guide comes in. It will give you key presentation sentences, phrases, and words to help elevate your communication skills.
In the realm of presentations, first impressions matter tremendously. Your opening words set the stage for the rest of your discourse, establishing the tone and drawing in your audience. The right choice of phrases can create a compelling introduction that commands attention and sparks interest. Here, we will explore a selection of presentation-starting words and phrases to help you set a strong foundation:
Crafting an engaging opening with the presentation starting words, is akin to opening the first page of a riveting novel. These phrases serve as a doorway, inviting your audience into the fascinating narrative you are about to share.
Now that you have your audience’s attention, the next crucial step is to set the scene. It involves using key phrases to keep your audience engaged, clarify, and effectively communicate your main points. A well-set scene guides the audience through your presentation, helping them understand your narrative and easily follow your arguments. Let’s look at some essential phrases that can help you accomplish it:
These phrases help establish your narrative, maintain audience interest, and structure your arguments. They serve as signposts, guiding your audience through the presentation and facilitating understanding and engagement.
Transitioning between points or sections in your presentation is like steering a ship through water. Smooth navigation keeps your audience aboard, maintaining their interest and comprehension. Seamless transitions contribute to a coherent and compelling narrative, preventing abrupt jumps or confusing shifts in your discourse. The following phrases are powerful tools that can ensure your transitions are smooth and effective:
These phrases connect threads, linking your ideas and ensuring your presentation flows smoothly. They give your audience cues, signaling that you’re moving from one idea or point to the next, making your discourse easy to follow.
The conclusion is your final opportunity to leave a lasting impression on your audience. It’s a chance to wrap up your arguments, restate your main points, and leave your audience with a clear and compelling message to ponder. Here are some phrases that can assist you in crafting a memorable conclusion:
These phrases help you consolidate your arguments, summarize your main points, and end on a high note. A well-structured conclusion ensures your audience understands your presentation, its key messages, and its implications.
Apart from structured sentences and transitional phrases, the vocabulary you use can add a touch of sophistication. An expanded lexicon enriches your language and enhances your ability to express complex ideas with clarity and precision. Let’s explore a list of presentation words that can add depth and dimension:
These words add a layer of sophistication to your presentation, conveying your thoughts and ideas more precisely. They expand your expressive capacity and lend an authoritative and professional tone to your speech. By integrating these words into your presentation, you can deliver your message with clarity and depth, engaging your audience more effectively.
In the corporate world, effective communication is the linchpin of success. It’s an art that lies at the heart of all business interactions, from high-stakes meetings to persuasive pitches. And when it comes to delivering such a presentation, the task becomes even more critical. The business English presentation phrases you use, how you present your points, and the overall language command play a significant role in conveying your message effectively.
Presenting in a business setting often involves explaining complex ideas, discussing financial matters, and persuading potential clients or stakeholders. Here, the language must be precise, the tone - professional, and the content - structured. Unlike informal or academic ones, business presentations carry a certain degree of formality and specific jargon that sets them apart. However, business English idioms and expressions can help soften the formality, adding a touch of personality to your language.
Navigating the labyrinth of business English also involves acknowledging the importance of research and planning. A well-researched presentation reflects your dedication, expertise, and credibility. It shows you respect your audience’s time and are prepared to deliver value. It’s not just about memorizing facts and figures; it’s about understanding your topic thoroughly and answering queries convincingly.
Another characteristic of business presentations lies in their persuasive nature. Often, they are geared toward persuading clients, investors, or team members toward a particular course of action. Consequently, using persuasive techniques such as presenting benefits, sharing testimonials, or demonstrating success stories becomes prevalent. You’re not just providing information; you’re trying to influence decisions and drive action.
An essential but often overlooked aspect of business presentations is the importance of a strong opening and closing. The opening is your chance to grab the audience’s attention and make them invested in your talk, so knowing how to start a business presentation is essential. Conversely, the closing is your final shot at reinforcing your message and making a lasting impression.
Finally, business presentations often involve handling criticism or skepticism, especially when proposing new ideas or challenging existing norms. Here, your ability to accept feedback gracefully, address concerns effectively, and maintain your composure can significantly impact the outcome.
Looking to expand your vocabulary for presentations and improve your language skills online ? Promova is here to help! Our platform offers various resources and courses to help learners of all levels master new words and expressions quickly, effectively, and confidently.
With personalized lessons from certified tutors , you can get one-on-one instruction that caters to your specific needs and learning style. Additionally, our app allows you to access interactive exercises, quizzes, and vocabulary lists anytime and anywhere for easy practice on the go. Whether you are a beginner or an advanced learner looking to fine-tune your language skills – we have got you covered.
Don’t let language barriers hold you back any longer – start your learning journey with Promova today and take the first step toward achieving your goals! Try it out now with a free lesson and see how easy and effective our approach is.
As we conclude, it’s clear that effective presentations in English rely on various linguistic elements. A strong beginning, transitions, and a powerful conclusion, all while using precise vocabulary, are critical. The ability to craft compelling sentences and phrases, set the scene effectively, and transition smoothly between ideas are essential for a successful presentation. And the correct vocabulary can add depth and dimension to your discourse while conveying professionalism.
Body language can significantly impact how your message is perceived. Effective use of gestures, eye contact, and facial expressions can amplify your points, show enthusiasm, and engage the audience. Conversely, negative body language can detract from your message.
Knowing your audience is crucial. It informs the level of detail you need to include, the words and phrases you use, the examples you choose, and even the humor you might incorporate. Tailoring your presentation to your audience’s knowledge and interests can significantly enhance its effectiveness.
Everyone makes mistakes. If you stumble during your presentation, take a moment, compose yourself, and move on. Don’t let a minor error disrupt your flow. Remember, the audience is there to listen to your ideas, not critique your performance.
Indeed, many resources are available if you’re seeking to delve deeper into the world of presentation phrases. The Cambridge Dictionary and Merriam-Webster Dictionary offer many valuable collocations, from simple expressions to sophisticated vocabulary.
Suppose you want to make a lasting impression on your audience during a presentation. In that case, mastering transitional phrases and strong conclusions is essential. Not only do they keep your audience engaged, but they also help you get your message across effectively.
In this post, we’ll explore the art of using transitional phrases and strong conclusions to succeed at giving presentations. Whether you’re a seasoned public speaker or just starting out, this post will provide you with tips and tricks to keep your audience’s attention throughout your presentation.
Have you ever sat through a presentation that left you feeling bored or disinterested? Or have you ever given a presentation that failed to get your message across effectively? If so, you’re not alone. Many people struggle with public speaking, and it’s easy to see why. It’s not just about what you say but how you say it.
One of the most important aspects of a successful presentation is using transitional phrases and strong conclusions. These two elements can make or break your presentation, so it’s crucial to master them.
Transitional phrases are words or phrases that connect one idea to the next. They help to create a smooth flow between different parts of your presentation, making it easier for your audience to follow along.
Transitional phrases can be used in many different ways, depending on the type of presentation you’re giving. For example, use them to introduce a new topic, summarize a point you just made, or transition to the next section of your presentation.
As an experienced presenter, there are a variety of transitional phrases that you can use to keep your audience engaged and focused on your message. Some examples include:
These phrases are not only effective in guiding your audience through your presentation but also help to keep your audience focused. Not only that, they help to create a natural flow between ideas.
Ultimately, the best transitional phrases will depend on the specific content and structure of your presentation, but incorporating a variety of these phrases can help to elevate your presentation and make it more memorable for your audience.
Here are some examples of transitional phrases you can use in your presentations:
Using transitional phrases is essential because they keep your audience engaged and help them understand the structure of your presentation. Without them, your presentation can feel disjointed and hard to follow.
In addition, using transitional phrases shows you’re well-prepared and confident in your presentation. It helps to establish credibility and can make you appear more professional.
To use transitional phrases effectively, it’s crucial to practice and become comfortable with them. Here are some tips to help you master the art of transitional phrases:
Here’s a step-by-step guide for making presentations in English. You’ll find the phrases you need for each step of your presentation.
After you give your opening statement, give a brief overview of your presentation. Say what your presentation is about, how long you will take and how you are going to handle questions.
For example, a presentation to sales staff could start like this: “Welcome / “Hello everyone.”
(Opening statement) “As you all know, this company is losing its market share. But we are being asked to increase sales by 20 – 25%. How can we possibly increase sales in a shrinking market?”
(Overview) “Today I am going to talk to you about how we can do this. My presentation will be in three parts. Firstly I am going to look at the market and the background. Then I am going to talk to you about our new products and how they fit in. Finally, I’m going to examine some selling strategies that will help us increase our sales by 20%. The presentation will probably take around 20 minutes. There will be time for questions at the end of my talk.”
Useful language for overviews
“My presentation is in three parts.” “My presentation is divided into three main sections.” “Firstly, secondly, thirdly, finally…” “I’m going to… take a look at… talk about… examine… tell you something about the background… give you some facts and figures… fill you in on the history of… concentrate on… limit myself to the question of…
“Please feel free to interrupt me if you have questions.” “There will be time for questions at the end of the presentation.” “I’d be grateful if you could ask your questions after the presentation.”
During your presentation, it’s a good idea to occasionally remind your audience why your presentation and ideas are important or relevant.
“As I said at the beginning…” “This, of course, will help you (to achieve the 20% increase).” “As you remember, we are concerned with…” “This ties in with my original statement…” “This relates directly to the question I put to you before…”
Remember that what you are saying is new to your audience. You are clear about the structure of your talk, but let your audience know when you are moving on to a new point. You can do this by saying something like “right”, or “OK”. You can also use some of the following expressions:
“I’d now like to move on to…” “I’d like to turn to…” “That’s all I have to say about…” “Now I’d like to look at…” “This leads me to my next point…”
If you are using index cards, putting the link on the cards will help you remember to keep the audience with you. In addition, by glancing at your index cards you will be pausing – this will also help your audience to realise that you are moving on to something new.
It’s important to introduce your visual to the audience. You can use the following phrases:
“This graph shows you…” “Take a look at this…” “If you look at this, you will see…” “I’d like you to look at this…” “This chart illustrates the figures…” “This graph gives you a break down of…”
Give your audience enough time to absorb the information on the visual. Pause to allow them to look at the information and then explain why the visual is important:
“As you can see…” “This clearly shows …” “From this, we can understand how / why…” “This area of the chart is interesting…”
At the end of your presentation, you should summarise your talk and remind the audience of what you have told them:
“That brings me to the end of my presentation. I’ve talked about…” “Well, that’s about it for now. We’ve covered…” “So, that was our marketing strategy. In brief, we…” “To summarise, I…”
Relate the end of your presentation to your opening statement:
“So I hope that you’re a little clearer on how we can achieve sales growth of 20%.” “To return to the original question, we can achieve…” “So just to round the talk off, I want to go back to the beginning when I asked you…” “I hope that my presentation today will help you with what I said at the beginning…”
Thank the audience for their attention and invite questions.
“Thank you for listening – and now if there are any questions, I would be pleased to answer them.” “That brings me to the end of my presentation. Thank you for your attention. I’d be glad to answer any questions you might have.”
It’s useful to re-word the question, as you can check that you have understood the question and you can give yourself some time to think of an answer. By asking the question again you also make sure that other people in the audience understand the question.
“Thank you. So you would like further clarification on our strategy?” “That’s an interesting question. How are we going to get voluntary redundancy?” “Thank you for asking. What is our plan for next year?”
After you have answered your question, check that the person who asked you is happy with the answer.
“Does this answer your question?” “Do you follow what I am saying?” “I hope this explains the situation for you.” “I hope this was what you wanted to hear!”
If you don’t know the answer to a question, say you don’t know. It’s better to admit to not knowing something than to guess and maybe get it wrong. You can say something like:
“That’s an interesting question. I don’t actually know off the top of my head, but I’ll try to get back to you later with an answer.” “I’m afraid I’m unable to answer that at the moment. Perhaps I can get back to you later.” “Good question. I really don’t know! What do you think?” “That’s a very good question. However, we don’t have any figures on that, so I can’t give you an accurate answer.” “Unfortunately, I’m not the best person to answer that.”
You think you’ve lost your audience? Rephrase what you have said:
“Let me just say that in another way.” “Perhaps I can rephrase that.” “Put another way, this means…” “What I mean to say is…”
Can’t remember the word?
If it’s a difficult word for you – one that you often forget, or one that you have difficulty pronouncing – you should write it on your index card. Pause briefly, look down at your index card and say the word.
Don’t speak in a flat monotone – this will bore your audience. By varying your speed and tone, you will be able to keep your audience’s attention. Practise emphasising key words and pause in the right places – usually in between ideas in a sentence. For example “The first strategy involves getting to know our market (pause) and finding out what they want. (pause) Customer surveys (pause) as well as staff training (pause) will help us do this.”
Don’t forget – if you speak too fast you will lose your audience!
Making Presentations
Your answer:
Correct answer:
Your Answers
Practical Media Training and Public Speaking Tips
“You are here!”
Those three words, found on maps everywhere from highway rest stops and shopping malls to tourist sites and hiking trails, capture your attention instantly, as they’re designed to do. They immediately orient you to where you are and help you spot, with ease, where you’re about to go.
There is a tool you can use during your presentation that plays a similar role – transitions. They serve as spoken you are here! signs, connecting distinct ideas, topics, or tones, and guiding your audience from one point to another.
Transitions can be a word, phrase, question, or statement. They can be subtle or overt, smooth or abrupt, gradual or purposefully shocking – whichever best serves your intention.
Without them, audiences can feel as lost as travelers without a map. As an added bonus, they also can help you to round up the stragglers. Used as a way to break the pattern , verbal transitions can reengage audience members whose attention may have wandered.
1. to elaborate.
Yes, we are sneaking in an eighth way verbal transitions can make for a better presentation. They have the power to snap your audience back to attention. It’s a strategy familiar to experienced radio hosts and podcasters, who use transitions to regain attention from members of their audience whose focus may have drifted.
Just imagine listening to the radio when the host says, “But even more than that, the most surprising thing I learned was ….” At that moment, are you really going to switch to a different station? Or are you going to stay tuned to hear the most surprising thing?
Lines such as these will recapture your wayward travelers:
Join the thousands of professionals who receive our email newsletter. Improve your public speaking and media interviewing skills—and enhance your career— by signing up.
Public speaking and media training custom courses designed to make you a more effective communicator.
This website or its third party tools use cookies, which are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the privacy policy . If you want to know more or withdraw your consent to all or some of the cookies, please refer to the privacy policy. By closing this banner or continuing to browse otherwise, you agree to the use of cookies.
Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.
Published on May 29, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on August 23, 2023.
Transition words and phrases (also called linking words, connecting words, or transitional words) are used to link together different ideas in your text. They help the reader to follow your arguments by expressing the relationships between different sentences or parts of a sentence.
The proposed solution to the problem did not work. Therefore , we attempted a second solution. However , this solution was also unsuccessful.
For clear writing, it’s essential to understand the meaning of transition words and use them correctly.
Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes
When and how to use transition words, types and examples of transition words, common mistakes with transition words, other interesting articles.
Transition words commonly appear at the start of a new sentence or clause (followed by a comma ), serving to express how this clause relates to the previous one.
Transition words can also appear in the middle of a clause. It’s important to place them correctly to convey the meaning you intend.
The text below describes all the events it needs to, but it does not use any transition words to connect them. Because of this, it’s not clear exactly how these different events are related or what point the author is making by telling us about them.
If we add some transition words at appropriate moments, the text reads more smoothly and the relationship among the events described becomes clearer.
Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Consequently , France and the United Kingdom declared war on Germany. The Soviet Union initially worked with Germany in order to partition Poland. However , Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941.
While transition words are essential to clear writing, it’s possible to use too many of them. Consider the following example, in which the overuse of linking words slows down the text and makes it feel repetitive.
In this case the best way to fix the problem is to simplify the text so that fewer linking words are needed.
The key to using transition words effectively is striking the right balance. It is difficult to follow the logic of a text with no transition words, but a text where every sentence begins with a transition word can feel over-explained.
There are four main types of transition word: additive, adversative, causal, and sequential. Within each category, words are divided into several more specific functions.
Remember that transition words with similar meanings are not necessarily interchangeable. It’s important to understand the meaning of all the transition words you use. If unsure, consult a dictionary to find the precise definition.
Additive transition words introduce new information or examples. They can be used to expand upon, compare with, or clarify the preceding text.
Function | Example sentence | Transition words and phrases |
---|---|---|
Addition | We found that the mixture was effective. , it appeared to have additional effects we had not predicted. | indeed, furthermore, moreover, additionally, and, also, both and , not only but also , , in fact |
Introduction | Several researchers have previously explored this topic. , Smith (2014) examined the effects of … | such as, like, particularly, including, as an illustration, for example, for instance, in particular, to illustrate, especially, notably |
Reference | The solution showed a high degree of absorption. , it is reasonable to conclude that … | considering , regarding , in regard to , as for , concerning , the fact that , on the subject of |
Similarity | It was not possible to establish a correlation between these variables. , the connection between and remains unclear … | similarly, in the same way, by the same token, in like manner, equally, likewise |
Clarification | The patient suffered several side effects, increased appetite, decreased libido, and disordered sleep. | that is (to say), namely, specifically, more precisely, in other words |
Adversative transition words always signal a contrast of some kind. They can be used to introduce information that disagrees or contrasts with the preceding text.
Function | Example sentence | Transition words and phrases |
---|---|---|
Conflict | The novel does deal with the theme of family. , its central theme is more broadly political … | but, however, although, though, equally, by way of contrast, while, on the other hand, (and) yet, whereas, in contrast, (when) in fact, conversely, whereas |
Concession | Jones (2011) argues that the novel reflects Russian politics of the time. this is correct, other aspects of the text must also be considered. | even so, nonetheless, nevertheless, even though, on the other hand, admittedly, despite , notwithstanding , (and) still, although, , regardless (of ), (and) yet, though, granted |
Dismissal | It remains unclear which of these hypotheses is correct. , it can be inferred that … | regardless, either way, whatever the case, in any/either event, in any/either case, at any rate, all the same |
Emphasis | The chemical is generally thought to have corrosive properties. , several studies have supported this hypothesis. | above all, indeed, more/most importantly |
Replacement | The character of Godfrey is often viewed as selfish, self-absorbed. | (or) at least, (or) rather, instead, or (perhaps) even, if not |
Causal transition words are used to describe cause and effect. They can be used to express purpose, consequence, and condition.
Function | Example sentence | Transition words and phrases |
---|---|---|
Consequence | Hitler failed to respond to the British ultimatum, France and the UK declared war on Germany. | therefore, because (of ), as a result (of ), for this reason, in view of , as, owing to x, due to (the fact that), since, consequently, in consequence, as a consequence, hence, thus, so (that), accordingly, so much (so) that, under the/such circumstances, if so |
Condition | We qualified survey responses as positive the participant selected “agree” or “strongly agree.” , results were recorded as negative. | (even/only) if/when, on (the) condition that, in the case that, granted (that), provided/providing that, in case, in the event that, as/so long as, unless, given that, being that, inasmuch/insofar as, in that case, in (all) other cases, if so/not, otherwise |
Purpose | We used accurate recording equipment our results would be as precise as possible. | to, in order to/that, for the purpose of, in the hope that, so that, to the end that, lest, with this in mind, so as to, so that, to ensure (that) |
Sequential transition words indicate a sequence, whether it’s the order in which events occurred chronologically or the order you’re presenting them in your text. They can be used for signposting in academic texts.
Function | Example sentence | Transition words and phrases |
---|---|---|
Enumeration | This has historically had several consequences: , the conflict is not given the weight of other conflicts in historical narratives. , its causes are inadequately understood. , … | first, second, third… |
Initiation | , I want to consider the role played by women in this period. | in the first place, initially, first of all, to begin with, at first |
Continuation | , I discuss the way in which the country’s various ethnic minorities were affected by the conflict. | subsequently, previously, eventually, next, before , afterwards, after , then |
Conclusion | , I consider these two themes in combination. | to conclude (with), as a final point, eventually, at last, last but not least, finally, lastly |
Resumption | my main argument, it is clear that … | to return/returning to , to resume, at any rate |
Summation | Patel (2015) comes to a similar conclusion. , the four studies considered here suggest a consensus that the solution is effective. | as previously stated/mentioned, in summary, as I have argued, overall, as has been mentioned, to summarize, briefly, given these points, in view of , as has been noted, in conclusion, in sum, altogether, in short |
Transition words are often used incorrectly. Make sure you understand the proper usage of transition words and phrases, and remember that words with similar meanings don’t necessarily work the same way grammatically.
Misused transition words can make your writing unclear or illogical. Your audience will be easily lost if you misrepresent the connections between your sentences and ideas.
“Therefore” and similar cause-and-effect words are used to state that something is the result of, or follows logically from, the previous. Make sure not to use these words in a way that implies illogical connections.
The use of “therefore” in this example is illogical: it suggests that the result of 7.5 follows logically from the question being asked, when in fact many other results were possible. To fix this, we simply remove the word “therefore.”
While the words “also,” “and,” and “so” are used in academic writing, they are considered too informal when used at the start of a sentence.
To fix this issue, we can either move the transition word to a different point in the sentence or use a more formal alternative.
Words like “although” and “because” are called subordinating conjunctions . This means that they introduce clauses which cannot stand on their own. A clause introduced by one of these words should always follow or be followed by another clause in the same sentence.
The second sentence in this example is a fragment, because it consists only of the “although” clause.
We can fix this in two different ways. One option is to combine the two sentences into one using a comma. The other option is to use a different transition word that does not create this problem, like “however.”
Students often use the phrase “ as well as ” in place of “and,” but its usage is slightly different. Using “and” suggests that the things you’re listing are of equal importance, while “as well as” introduces additional information that is less important.
In this example, the analysis is more important than the background information. To fix this mistake, we can use “and,” or we can change the order of the sentence so that the most important information comes first. Note that we add a comma before “as well as” but not before “and.”
Note that in fixed phrases like “both x and y ,” you must use “and,” not “as well as.”
The combination of transition words “and/or” should generally be avoided in academic writing. It makes your text look messy and is usually unnecessary to your meaning.
First consider whether you really do mean “and/or” and not just “and” or “or.” If you are certain that you need both, it’s best to separate them to make your meaning as clear as possible.
Words like “hereby,” “therewith,” and most others formed by the combination of “here,” “there,” or “where” with a preposition are typically avoided in modern academic writing. Using them makes your writing feel old-fashioned and strained and can sometimes obscure your meaning.
These words should usually be replaced with a more explicit phrasing expressing how the current statement relates to the preceding one.
With the use of certain tools, you can make your writing clear. One of these tools is a paraphrasing tool . One thing the tool does is help your sentences make more sense. It has different modes where it checks how your text can be improved. For example, automatically adding transition words where needed.
If you want to know more about AI for academic writing, AI tools, or writing rules make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!
Academic Writing
(AI) Tools
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.
Caulfield, J. (2023, August 23). Transition Words & Phrases | List & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 26, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-writing/transition-words/
Other students also liked, using conjunctions | definition, rules & examples, transition sentences | tips & examples for clear writing, how to write topic sentences | 4 steps, examples & purpose, "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”
Many won’t be able to resist the temptation to take a peek at their smart phones. So how do you keep your audience involved and following the discussion?
Savvy speakers use Transition/Linking Phrases as the glue that holds their thoughts together so they can move seamlessly from one point to another.
It’s important to organize your presentation so that everything supports one main idea. Develop two to three key headlines to support that idea and then further elaborate with facts, anecdotes, case studies, visuals and other evidence.
Also including transitions to connect sentences and key messages will help the audience move from idea to idea. Transitions can make or break your presentation. Linking phrases can turn your presentation into a unified whole.
Transitions can also be tricky. You need to use words other than “but,” “however,” and “in addition.” The words you use will serve as punctuation marks and entice the audience to listen to your next points. Keep giving them the road map to follow throughout your presentation.
After you’ve introduced your main theme, consider the following transition phrases to get started:
Launch your first key message with a phrase that says it’s your first point:
Stick to that “chunk” of content and don’t jump to your other key messages until you conclude with a phrase like:
Or, it could just be that it’s getting close to lunch and people are restless. Whatever the reason, you’ve got to regain their attention. So pause, and give them a chance to get back in sync with you.
When finished with presenting your key messages, repeat them, beginning with a phrase such as, “I’ve just covered the three most important points about…”
Now the audience is ready for your closing remarks. Please don’t use, “In conclusion…” because that’s the signal you’ve come to the end of your presentation and it’s OK to mentally tune out.
Instead, keep them listening with a more compelling phrase such as:
Don’t just say, “Thanks for listening” when you’re finished. Preface that with what you want the audience to do after the presentation. Include a call to action:
Transition phrases are the audience’s lifeline to your presentation. Choose them carefully so that your audience knows exactly where you are at any point in time. They will also help to keep you on track, so that you don’t begin wandering off topic and lose your own sense of direction.
Are there transition phrases that you use in your presentations that you find particularly effective? Please leave us a comment. We’d love to know what they are.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Enter your contact information below to subscribe to our blog and receive your free copy of our 46-page guide Presenting Yourself and More….
The newman group is . . ..
The Newman Group is a recognized leader in guiding business professionals, celebrities and authors to improve their communications skills in presentations and media interviews.
Our highly skilled and experienced professionals have the expertise in media and presentation training to meet any business situation — from helping an executive to prepare for the challenge of talking to a reporter during a business crisis to presenting a group of investors during an IPO or keeping a celebrity spokesperson on point.
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3
This is a list of phrases to help you make a professional presentation in English.
Good presenters always use language (sometimes single words, sometimes phrases) which shows where they are in their presentation. These ‘signposts’ make it easier for the audience to:
We’ve divided the phrases and sentences into sections which follow the logical progression of a well-balanced presentation.
You can also outline your presentation to give the audience a clear overview of what they can expect:
Get more – the extended e-book version of this presentation language has 10 pages with dozens of examples you can use in your presentation. Speakspeak.com is a free site. Support us by downloading this e-book for just $6* – thanks!
|
Getting started at uni, study skills, referencing.
For educators.
Still can't find what you need?
The RMIT University Library provides study support , one-on-one consultations and peer mentoring to RMIT students.
Expectations have risen significantly of presentations in the age of online video. No longer are a few plain slides enough – people want to immerse themselves in the speaker’s story. They want to be engaged, inspired – they want to take away something from what the speaker said and use it to make a difference to their lives. A tall order for most of us mere mortals!
Nevertheless, there are techniques that tutors can teach to turn an average business presentation into a great one. Check out our recommendations and vocabulary set below.
There’s no magic formula for creating a great presentation, but you can find a lot of inspiration from TED Talks.
The average TED Talk takes months to prepare. They engage the audience because they a structured around three principles.
To dive deeper into this subject, check out this article How to Create Your TED Talk: An 8-Step Process.
Students can build upon these ideas to create attention-grabbing presentations in English.
Traditionally, speakers end a presentation by taking questions. However, nowadays it is recommended to answer a few questions as they arise during the presentation. This is because sometimes Q&As do not go well; questions are outside the scope of the presentation and the end of the speech can become dominated by someone other than the speaker.
For further reading, check out Different Ways to End a Presentation or Speech and Stop Ending Your Speeches With ‘Any Questions’ and End with this Instead.
‘Good morning everyone, my name is XXX and I am a XXX for my company XXX.
I am here to talk to you today about xxx and why it is important for xxx.’
To share an anecdote – a short story about why the issue you’re going to speak about is important for you and the audience.
To share a quote – a thoughtful quote from a significant person related to the topic of the presentation.
Structuring.
Firstly, secondly, thirdly, lastly, finally.
As well as + noun
‘We tested the new antibiotic on chickens as well as sheep.’
And that’s not all – a big extra point.
‘The findings won him tenure at the university. And that’s not all; years later they won him the Nobel Prize.’
Not to mention – a big extra point.
‘Climate change is affecting the country, we’re having more extreme weather like heavy rains and gales – not to mention all the floods.’
In addition, additionally
Furthermore – a new point.
However – formal way to say ‘but.’
‘We wanted to test the idea; however, we didn’t have the budget.’
Nevertheless – a synonym of ‘however’.
‘We don’t usually do this for clients, nevertheless, we will try.’
Although/ even though – expresses something that is the opposite of what you expect.
‘Although Albert Einstein was a genius, he spent the early part of his life as an administrator in a patient office.’
Even if + conditional – a contradiction in a hypothetical argument.
‘Even if we had the resources, we wouldn’t be able to complete the project on time.’
Despite + gerund – a contradiction.
‘Despite training for weeks, he wasn’t getting any fitter.’
Despite the fact + noun / another tense.
‘Despite the fact he studied, he didn’t pass the exam.’
So – general consequence of something happening.
‘The financial crisis affected the company badly, so we had to cut costs.’
So that – a person or organisation does something to cause an outcome.
‘We scaled back our activities so that we could focus on our core business.’
Consequently
Which means that…
‘Our company did an IPO last year which means that we have more money to invest this year.’
Due to + noun
‘T he company’s public image was damaged due to the s candal .’
Due to the fact + verb
‘ The company’s public image was damaged due to the fact there was a scandal .’
Thanks to + noun (only for positive results).
‘Thanks to new funding, the school was able to build a new gym.’
Since / as + verb
‘Since we don’t have much time, I’ll keep the presentation short. ’
Therefore + verb
‘ We’re moving offices next month ; therefore, we’ll have to put this project on hold until next year .’
Especially, particularly, specifically.
To give an example.
For instance.
‘There are many difficult mountains to climb in Europe , f or instance, Monte Bianco’
Such as + list.
‘He has written articles about many industries in his career such as finance, IT, medicine and manufacturing.’
In comparison
Whereas – a combination of ‘while’ and ‘in comparison.’
‘Our company has made investments over the last few years, whereas our competitors have focused on cost-cutting.’
Conversely .
‘Younger people are moving to cities. Conversely, older people prefer to live in the country.’
To be common-sense – to be what you expect or to be rational or reasonable.
To be counter-intuitive – to be the opposite of what you expect.
To go against the grain – to do something against the common way of thinking, living or working.
To be a trend-setter – to be the first person to do something which others follow.
To be human nature – to be the way people commonly behave.
To take some questions
‘OK, I’ll take some questions now.’
To fire away
‘OK, I’m ready for questions so fire away.’
In conclusion/ to conclude
In summary/ to summarise
To wrap up – when you want to end a presentation quickly.
‘OK, so to wrap up, the main points to take away are…’
The key takeaways …
‘The key takeaways of this talk is…’
To leave you with a thought …
‘Let me leave you with this thought….’
A call to action
‘So, this is my call to action: next time you answer a call…’
The rule of three is a powerful way to end a presentation. The speaker ends with three punchy words or phrases . For example:
‘So, to conclude this presentation about smart working; use communication tools effectively , collaborate more and judge performance on output not time spent online. Thanks, and have a great day.’
Famous examples of the rule of three:
Have a student who’s nervous about the presentation? Quell their anxiety with this short TED talk about how to create an engaging presentation.
Andromeda is a Fluentify English tutor. She has been teaching English in Spain and online since 2012. In addition to teaching, she is a TEFL writer. She recently moved to Edinburgh, Scotland and is currently working on her Scottish accent.
Home Blog Presentation Ideas How to Write a Presentation Script
Delivering a successful presentation is a combination of a confident speech and professional-quality graphics. The first element is sometimes neglected, as presenters rely mostly on the slides and add an improvisation element to the speech. Truth is, if you aim to hone your presentation skills, you need to work on the speech. And for that to be a powerful asset, the answer is to learn how to write an effective presentation script.
This article will detail how to create a presentation script, which elements it should contain, how to relate the script to the presenter’s notes, and much more.
Table of Contents
How do you start a presentation script, how do you write a presentation script, how to connect a presentation script with presenter notes, recommended ppt templates to write a presentation script, final words.
A presentation script is a written guide that outlines what a speaker will say during a presentation. It includes the key points, transitions, and supporting details needed to communicate the message clearly and effectively. The script helps the speaker stay on track, ensuring the presentation is organized, concise, and delivered within the allotted time. It often integrates cues for visual aids and other presentation elements.
Every effective presentation script starts with clearly understanding its purpose and objectives. Defining these elements early ensures your script remains focused, relevant, and aligned with your desired outcomes.
Your core message is the central idea you want your audience to take away from your presentation. It should be clear, concise, and memorable. To define your core message, ask yourself:
Once you have a clear core message, everything in your script for a speech should support and reinforce it. This focus will help you avoid straying into irrelevant topics and ensure your presentation remains cohesive.
Next, the presenter should establish clear objectives for the talk. Objectives must be specific, measurable outcomes you want to achieve with your presentation. They give you a clear direction and help you measure the success of your presentation. Objectives can be:
For example, suppose your core message is about the importance of cybersecurity. In that case, your objectives might include informing the audience about common threats, persuading them to adopt better security practices, and instructing them on implementing them.
Check our article on SMART goal setting for a practical approach to defining measurable goals.
Once you’ve defined your core message and objectives, your script should be structured to achieve these outcomes. This involves:
By defining the purpose and objectives of your presentation script, you set the stage for a focused, effective, and impactful delivery.
In this section, we’ll explore section by section how to write a presentation script. The following image is a guideline of presentation script examples on how to create icebreakers for each section
The introduction is your opportunity to capture the audience’s attention and set the tone for the rest of the presentation. It should be engaging and clearly overview what the audience can expect.
If you are wondering how to start a presentation , key elements of a strong introduction include:
Let’s say your presentation is about digital marketing trends. In that case, you might start with a surprising statistic about the growth of AI technology usage, followed by a statement about the importance of staying ahead of digital trends, and then outline the specific trends you will discuss in an upcoming slide.
The body of your script is where you present your main content. It should be organized logically, with each section building on the previous one to reinforce your core message.
Break down your content into clear, manageable sections. Each section should cover a specific point or idea. Smooth transitions between sections help maintain the flow of your presentation and keep the audience engaged . Phrases like “building on that idea,” “another important factor,” or “let’s now shift our focus to” can help guide the audience through your presentation.
Use data, examples, case studies , and visuals to support your points. This will strengthen your argument and make your presentation more engaging.
For instance, in a presentation about social media’s impact on consumer behavior, you might organize the body into sections on social media usage trends, the psychology of social media influence, and case studies of successful social media campaigns.
One of the most effective ways to make your presentation engaging and relatable is by incorporating stories and examples. These elements help illustrate your points, making them more memorable and impactful.
Consider the following strategies:
You can learn more about this technique with our article on storytelling for presentations .
The conclusion is your final opportunity to reinforce your core message and leave a lasting impression on your audience.
A strong conclusion should:
If your presentation was about the importance of innovation in business, you might conclude by summarizing its key benefits, restating that innovation is crucial for long-term success, and ending with a call to action for the audience to start thinking about how they can innovate in their roles.
Get more insights on how to end a presentation with our article.
Although the presentation script is a fantastic resource for preparing your presentation and also for rehearsal, presenters cannot bring lengthy text pages with them and start reading if they feel lost. This is where presenter notes come in handy, and in this section, we’ll learn how to turn the presentation script into presenter notes.
The first step in this process is to go through the detailed script a couple of times, highlighting the main ideas, data, and messages to convey to the audience. You can follow the process as with meeting notes and apply the strategies explained in that article.
Now, we need to condense the information into simpler sentences, direct phrases, or keywords that trigger memory recall. These phrases will be added to the slides in the format of speaker notes linked to each slide. It’s crucial to mark the transitions from one topic to another in the presentation so we can articulate the speech or remember to emphasize a point.
Remember, if we suddenly need to include last-minute details, we can use visual cues or a printed version of our slides with extra handwritten notes.
Before we conclude this article, we want to recommend some PowerPoint templates that can help the presentation script creation process, especially for team collaboration, where the presentation goes through multiple iterations. Remember these designs also serve as Google Slides templates .
Say you need to create a sample script for a presentation or work with your team for a department presentation: this is where this best PPT template is beneficial. We can summarize processes or points that we intend the presentation to cover into six actionable steps that can be discussed within the team. The icons included help us to connect concepts with the steps we’re describing.
Use This Template
In sales and product presentations, we need to contextualize the dates on which we expect things to happen. By using this timeline PPT template as a visual aid, presenters can carry a printed version or digital version on another device to remind themselves of the milestones that a product or service is due in the near future.
Although this template is tailored to sales presentations, this slide deck is ideal for writing a recap of the presentation script. You can add facts, questions, numeric data, and more.
This diagram template for PowerPoint and Google Slides is a highly visual 3D aid intended for defining the steps to write the script or to present processes. Use this staircase design template to summarize key information about your presentation speech.
Creating a detailed, professional presentation script doesn’t have to be a daunting process. As long as we understand the basis of how to structure what we intend to say, questions and answers about which content to include shall arise.
Follow the steps shown in this article and you will master the process to create your own presentation scripts in no time.
Like this article? Please share
Presentation Skills, Speech Filed under Presentation Ideas
Filed under Google Slides Tutorials • July 25th, 2024
Hiding a slide in Google Slides is a task that takes less than a minute. Learn how to quickly implement this tool for your presentations in this article.
Filed under Education • July 10th, 2024
Become a proficient presenter by mastering the art of how to memorize a presentation. Nine different techniques + PPT templates here.
Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials • June 28th, 2024
Improve your presentation’s design by mastering drop shadows in PowerPoint. In this article, we introduce you to the step-by-step process with cliparts for impressive shadow effects.
As a "part of speech" transition words are used to link words, phrases or sentences. They help the reader to progress from one idea (expressed by the author) to the next idea. Thus, they help to build up coherent relationships within the text.
This structured list of commonly used English transition words — approximately 200, can be considered as quasi complete. It can be used (by students and teachers alike) to find the right expression. English transition words are essential, since they not only connect ideas, but also can introduce a certain shift, contrast or opposition, emphasis or agreement, purpose, result or conclusion, etc. in the line of argument. The transition words and phrases have been assigned only once to somewhat artificial categories, although some words belong to more than one category.
There is some overlapping with prepositions and postpositions, but for the purpose of usage and completeness of this concise guide, I did not differentiate.
Linking & Connecting Words — Part 1/2
Opposition / limitation / contradiction, examples / support / emphasis, cause / condition / purpose, effect / consequence / result, conclusion / summary / restatement, time / chronology / sequence, space / location / place.
The transition words like also, in addition, and, likewise , add information , reinforce ideas , and express agreement with preceding material.
in the first place
not only ... but also
as a matter of fact
in like manner
in addition
coupled with
in the same fashion / way
first, second, third
in the light of
not to mention
to say nothing of
equally important
by the same token
identically
together with
comparatively
correspondingly
furthermore
additionally
Transition phrases like but , rather and or , express that there is evidence to the contrary or point out alternatives , and thus introduce a change the line of reasoning ( contrast ).
although this may be true
in contrast
different from
of course ..., but
on the other hand
on the contrary
at the same time
in spite of
even so / though
be that as it may
(and) still
even though
nevertheless
nonetheless
notwithstanding
These transitional phrases present specific conditions or intentions .
in the event that
granted (that)
as / so long as
on (the) condition (that)
for the purpose of
with this intention
with this in mind
in the hope that
to the end that
for fear that
in order to
seeing / being that
provided that
only / even if
inasmuch as
These transitional devices (like especially ) are used to introduce examples as support , to indicate importance or as an illustration so that an idea is cued to the reader.
in other words
to put it differently
for one thing
as an illustration
in this case
for this reason
to put it another way
that is to say
with attention to
by all means
important to realize
another key point
first thing to remember
most compelling evidence
must be remembered
point often overlooked
to point out
on the positive side
on the negative side
specifically
surprisingly
significantly
particularly
in particular
for example
for instance
to demonstrate
to emphasize
to enumerate
Some of these transition words ( thus, then, accordingly, consequently, therefore, henceforth ) are time words that are used to show that after a particular time there was a consequence or an effect .
Note that for and because are placed before the cause/reason. The other devices are placed before the consequences or effects.
as a result
under those circumstances
in that case
because the
consequently
accordingly
These transition words and phrases conclude , summarize and / or restate ideas, or indicate a final general statement . Also some words (like therefore ) from the Effect / Consequence category can be used to summarize.
as can be seen
generally speaking
in the final analysis
all things considered
as shown above
in the long run
given these points
as has been noted
for the most part
in conclusion
to summarize
by and large
on the whole
in any event
in either case
These transitional words (like finally ) have the function of limiting, restricting, and defining time . They can be used either alone or as part of adverbial expressions .
at the present time
from time to time
sooner or later
up to the present time
to begin with
in due time
in the meantime
in a moment
without delay
all of a sudden
at this instant
first, second
immediately
straightaway
by the time
occasionally
Many transition words in the time category ( consequently; first, second, third; further; hence; henceforth; since; then, when; and whenever ) have other uses.
Except for the numbers ( first, second, third ) and further they add a meaning of time in expressing conditions, qualifications, or reasons. The numbers are also used to add information or list examples . Further is also used to indicate added space as well as added time.
These transition words are often used as part of adverbial expressions and have the function to restrict, limit or qualify space . Quite a few of these are also found in the Time category and can be used to describe spatial order or spatial reference.
in the middle
to the left/right
in front of
on this side
in the distance
here and there
in the foreground
in the background
in the center of
adjacent to
opposite to
Transition Words are also sometimes called (or put in the category of) Connecting Words. Please feel free to download them via this link to the category page: Linking Words & Connecting Words as a PDF. It contains all the transition words listed on this site. The image to the left gives you an impression how it looks like.
Transition words and phrases are vital devices for essays , papers or other literary compositions. They improve the connections and transitions between sentences and paragraphs. They thus give the text a logical organization and structure (see also: a List of Synonyms ).
All English transition words and phrases (sometimes also called 'conjunctive adverbs') do the same work as coordinating conjunctions : they connect two words, phrases or clauses together and thus the text is easier to read and the coherence is improved.
Usage: transition words are used with a special rule for punctuation : a semicolon or a period is used after the first 'sentence', and a comma is almost always used to set off the transition word from the second 'sentence'.
Example 2: however, transition words can also be placed at the beginning of a new paragraph or sentence - not only to indicate a step forward in the reasoning, but also to relate the new material to the preceding thoughts..
Use a semicolon to connect sentences, only if the group of words on either side of the semicolon is a complete sentence each (both must have a subject and a verb, and could thus stand alone as a complete thought).
Further helpful readings about expressions, writing and grammar: Compilation of Writing Tips How to write good ¦ Correct Spelling Study by an English University
Are you using WORD for writing professional texts and essays? There are many easy Windows Shortcuts available which work (almost) system-wide (e.g. in every programm you use).
VisualStory®
Slide:ology®
Speaker Coaching
Presentation expert Clif Atkinson tells a great story about a 2009 education conference where two speakers got very different reactions from their audiences. The first speaker started off with interactive exercises, he was entertaining, and overall, he was a hit. The second speaker launched in with a more traditional PowerPoint presentation , and he … didn’t go over quite so well.
In fact, while he presented, bored attendees started a “backchannel” on Twitter. They critiqued his slides, his content, and his delivery until finally, someone suggested a t-shirt. By the end of the keynote, you know exactly what happened: a t-shirt was made and for sale on CafePress.
All this to say that audience participation isn’t always a good thing. What you’re aiming for isn’t just participation for the sake of participation, but an interaction that gets the audience closer to embracing your ideas.
You want to keep them engaged, on their toes, and show them that you value and want to connect with them. To that end, we offer you these 10 positive ways to interact with audience members to foster engagement and participation.
Audience engagement example #1.
Ask a series of “raise your hand if… ” questions. The first simple thing to try is to ask your audience a series of questions. Each question should demand a gradually-more-difficult response throughout your presentation.
Within the first 60 seconds of a presentation, I like to ask the audience a simple question about themselves — then get them to respond by raising their hands. (“Raise your hand if you’ve ever…”)
Why do this so early? A recent study on attention span during lectures showed that the first lapses in listener attention tend to happen within the first minute of the talk. So, by asking a question like this right away, you spark an interaction and establish a small, immediate connection.
If they’re willing to raise their hand at the beginning of a talk (and answer a poll, agree to a premise, etc.), they might be more willing to follow your call-to-action by the end of your presentation.
Tell a joke. Another simple way that you can forge a connection at the beginning of your presentation is by telling a joke. A joke is, in itself, a smart way to interact with audience members since it’s a natural back and forth. It either asks the audience to answer a question (Why did the chicken cross the road?), or it elicits laughter (hopefully).
A study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology proved that using humor improves peoples’ perception of you in a professional setting. So try making your listeners laugh, and they’ll think even more highly of you from the get-go. (Note: joke-telling requires subtlety; get lots of feedback on your joke-telling abilities before trying it in front of an audience. Seriously! Telling a bad joke, or even a good joke badly, is a great way to lose your audience, too.)
Use a polling tool. Polls are one of the best ways to interact with audience members. They cause people to think critically about what they hear and urge them to share their own opinions and expertise. Aside from the typical hand-raising poll, technology can help here. Put a question on the screen, then ask people to respond via their smartphone or laptop.
There are many polling tools out there that you can use to collect responses, including Polleverywhere.com , which is a popular app that can collect and broadcast poll results in real-time.
Turn to X (formerly Twitter). I’ve always been a fan of the power of Twitter, especially when it comes to boosting audience engagement during a presentation or event. Sure, it can be used to design a t-shirt about your boring talk. But better yet, you can use it to interact with audience members who are responding to your ideas in real time.
One of the simplest techniques is to create a unique hashtag for your talk. Ask them to send tweets with that hashtag, and make it easy for them by keeping your hashtag visible during your talk. You can even use a tool like Everwall to easily project what people are tweeting about your talk onto a screen in front of them.
Be strategic though, about when and how often you display Tweets. You don’t want to distract people. Choose a strategic moment in the talk when you can step aside and let the opinions of the audience speak for themselves. Or, in a day packed with presentations, use Twitter in between talks to help boost audience participation.
Displaying live content from Twitter works twice as hard as other interaction techniques. It encourages listeners to grapple with what they’re hearing during a talk (and to wait and see their own tweet up on the stage), and the tweeted content is available to the entire internet. This means that you can increase the reach of your event (organically!) beyond just the people who are in the room.
Get the slides in peoples’ hands. Presentation slides help you communicate your ideas clearly, but they can also get people to participate while you speak. Give people a closer look at slides by using a tool that can bring those slides directly into their hands. You can use a tool like a Slidedo c™ to create visually-digestible versions of your slides for your audience in advance.
Another way to help people engage more with your slides is to simply invite them to snap a photo. Pause a moment, then say, “Okay, everyone, take out your smartphones. This is the slide you want to take home with you.” Not only do they get a nice visual takeaway, but you also get another moment to do a call-and-response with your audience.
Prop it up. Physical, tangible props or visual aids are another one of the easiest ways to interact with audience members while you present. You can use a prop onstage to demonstrate ideas, or you can pass it around the audience so that they can engage with it. Anything tangible increases the number of senses engaged and boosts your audience’s attention.
One example of a great speech that uses a prop is Jill Bolte Taylor’s TED Talk “My Stroke of Insight” in which Taylor used a human brain model as a prop to explain what happens during a stroke. Many props end up becoming a S.T.A.R. Moment ™, as well, which adds even more impact.
Get active. The fact that you’re giving the talk doesn’t mean it has to be one-sided. You can get people to interact with activities. For instance, you can instruct audience members to pair off, then give them 5 minutes to complete an exercise. This exercise could simply be an icebreaker to get to know someone else in the room.
On the other hand, it could be an exercise that helps them develop useful skills you’re trying to impart (i.e. sales techniques, communication strategies, and more). Whatever you ask of them, just remember that each back-and-forth helps you work toward your big ask or call-to-action at the end.
Get people to repeat information out loud. It may seem like an elementary exercise, but if you want to be memorable and engaging, ask people to repeat key concepts out loud. In a study on memory , researchers at the University of Montreal found that repeating information boosts a person’s ability to recall that information. So, by asking your audience to repeat key facts and concepts from your talk, you increase the chances they’ll remember it.
Take questions along the way. Questions make it easy to interact with audience members, yes, but they can also help educate them about your information or idea. Don’t wait until after your talk or for when you can meet one-on-one with audience members to answer their questions.
Designate times within your talk when you collect and answer questions from attendees. You can use a tool like Slido which allows audience members to submit questions in real time. Then you can sort through those questions and answer the ones you deem best or most helpful.
This allows you to create more of a curated Q&A experience, instead of relying on strong, high-quality questions from your audience that also happen to reinforce your main message. Collecting them through an app this way allows you to have some quality control, as well.
Create an interactive experience. You can take action a step further — with interaction. Your goal here is to make the audience feel like they are participating in something. Have them move around the room. When you create a space that doesn’t feel like an auditorium or allow to physically interact with the audience, it feels like something is happening to them.
One great interactive talk I attended was about the effects of war on the availability of different spices in certain regions of the world. Stapled to the program for the show were two small plastic envelopes. In each envelope was a flavored marshmallow, labeled A and B.
At the right moment in the presentation, the presenter asked everyone to eat marshmallow A, then compare it to the taste of marshmallow B. And in that moment, everyone in that room shared the same flavor experiences (and a moment of realization about one of the many indirect costs of war).
At the end of the day, your audience is going to participate in your talk one way or another. You want to be sure to control the nature of that participation by being smart about the ways you interact with audience members while you present.
If you try out some of the ways to interact with audience members discussed above, you can be pretty sure that no one will be bored enough to create a t-shirt about how boring you are. You may even end up with an audience who feels moved to make a t-shirt about how engaging you are – but who can’t do it because they are just so busy participating in your fascinating talk.
For more tips on keeping engagement high in your next presentation, take our Resonate® workshop . It’s designed to help you structure your presentation in a persuasive and engaging manner naturally. Get equipped with the course, today!
This article was originally published on September 23, 2020. It has been updated in July 2024 for relevancy.
Captivate™
Improve your public speaking
Overcome bad habits, conquer fears, and increase your confidence in any speaking setting. Discover your strengths and build on them to improve your delivery.
Structure and storyboard a talk
Analyze your audience and organize your ideas into a story structure that will move them. Transform content into visual concepts and build a storyboard for your presentation.
Personalized help for speakers
Up-level your speaking skills with one-on-one support. We’ll help you rehearse your talk, polish your presence, and transform your message delivery.
Craft a persuasive talk
Learn how the world’s greatest speakers use story to persuade. Develop a story structure that powerfully expresses your ideas, applying the principles of empathy, contrast, and variety.
Presentation Principles™
Learn presentation basics
Follow a step-by-step method to write compelling stories, amplify ideas visually, and present with confidence while learning at your own pace.
Turn ideas into visuals
Use visual thinking and design principles to transform information into effective and memorable graphics for presentations.
Create “skimmable” documents
Build helpful pre-reads and impactful leave-behinds with presentation software to support knowledge sharing and decision-making.
How to master audience engagement when you present
Looking for audience engagement strategies to keep an audience engaged during a presentation? We’ll teach all the presentation techniques to engage and audience from concept to delivery.
6 signs your organization needs a better presentation template
Let’s end “Franken-decks” together. Our presentation templates come with custom icon libraries, image libraries, template training, and so much more thanks to our holistic approach.
Why you should absolutely avoid using filler words (and how to actually stop)
Want to learn what are filler words and how to stop using them for good? Use these expert public speaking tips to nail your next board meeting, presentation or keynote and learn to embrace the “pause for effect.”
17 rhetorical devices that will make you sound like Steve Jobs
Want to communicate like Steve Jobs? Join us in an analysis of one of his most famous speeches and how he employed rhetorical devices to make it memorable and moving.
The ultimate guide to contrast: What your presentation is missing
Need to deliver a great presentation? Master the art of contrast to make sure it’s unforgettable and met with success, every time.
The secret to writing a call to action in a persuasive speech
Struggling to write a call-to-action for your speech or presentation? Make sure you address the 4 audience types so your CTAs are met with success.
APA Style uses two types of capitalization for titles of works (such as paper titles ) and headings within works : title case and sentence case .
In title case, major words are capitalized, and most minor words are lowercase. In sentence case, most major and minor words are lowercase ( proper nouns are an exception in that they are always capitalized).
Title case capitalization is covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Section 6.17 and the Concise Guide Section 5.7
In title case, capitalize the following words in a title or heading:
Lowercase only minor words that are three letters or fewer in a title or heading (except the first word in a title or subtitle or the first word after a colon, em dash, or end punctuation in a heading):
Use title case for the following:
In the book Train Your Mind for Peak Performance: A Science-Based Approach for Achieving Your Goals
In the article “Turning Frowns (and Smiles) Upside Down: A Multilevel Examination of Surface Acting Positive and Negative Emotions on Well-Being”
Beck Depression Inventory–II
the Results section
Journal of Latinx Psychology
Chicago Tribune
Broadcom is one of the companies behind many custom AI accelerators. As such, it is a big deal that the company is showing off an AI compute ASIC with optical attach during Hot Chips 2024, as this is likely being done for a customer project. Broadcom makes custom AI accelerators for hyper-scalers. The company also showed off its co-packaged optics and silicon photonics which we love to see.
Please note that we are doing these live at Hot Chips 2024 this week, so please excuse typos.
Co-packaged optics have been a topic for a long time.
One of the big challenges in interconnects and networking is just the electrical I/O reach through PCB. There are designs using cables to go externally from the switch chip to the optical cages, but the endgame still feels like it is optics. On the other hand, the NVIDIA NVLink NVL72 is a great example of copper rather than optical attach.
Silicon Photonics makes for optical modules with fewer components.
Broadcom is now using silicon photonics and co-packaged optics for not just switches, but also for scale-up compute.
For those wondering, that switch photo is the Broadcom Tomahawk 5 Bailly .
Here is the CPO schematic. An important difference between Intel’s old silicon photonics and what Broadcom is doing, is that Broadcom is using a pluggable laser. Lasers fail, so having a pluggable laser helps with serviceability. Likewise,
Broadcom has a version of the Tomahawk 5 slide we have shown before in this presentation with the components of CPO (co-packaged optics.)
The Tomahawk 4 “Humboldt” was the first generation system.
That looks a lot like the OCP 2022 CPO demo for Broadcom.
This is the Tomahawk 4 implementation of Silicon Photonics.
The new version is Tomahawk 5 Bailly. This is a 51.2T Ethernet switch in the same class as the Marvell Teralynx 10 51.2T 64-port 800GbE Switch we recently showed.
In the new version, Broadcom has improved packaging. The FOWLP is used in things like mobile chips so it created a more stable platform for the optical interconnect.
Here are the steps for creating the chips with engines.
Here is the cross-section of the optical engine. Broadcom says that this is a more scalable way to manufacture and integrate the optical engines.
Broadcom showed this idea of having 128 ports of 400G optics on the table a few months ago versus the Bially. Those optical modules include light sources, so it would have been more accurate if Broadcom included the light sources.
Broadcom says that an 800G module will take 13-15W of power. With CPO, and removing things like DSP complexity, this is down to under 4.8W.
One of the significant challenges is not just getting optical attached but also operating without errors.
Here, Broadcom is saying that it is further optimizing the solution. These are steps to show vendors that the quality is up to what one gets with traditional pluggable optics.
In 51.2T switches, the optical network pluggable use a lot of power. Using co-packaged optics lowers the total power. As a result, one saves around 30% power.
The next step is using similar technology to combine compute ASICs with the co-packaged optics. Here we can see the CoWoS packaged with HBM, a compute ASIC, and the optical chiplet.
The GPU attach looks a bit more advanced than the chip above with more HBM and more compute tiles. Still the idea is that one can get 64 links off of the chip to connect directly to switches.
Moving the optics away from the xPU is also important because it moves optical engines further from the hot compute. This may not seem like a big deal, but it matters to ensure optics operate reliably.
Today it is a 64x 100G device and two devices per for 12.8T. Where this gets crazy is going from 12.8T of density to 102.4T. That is an almost crazy amount of bandwidth.
Broadcom is showing the use of bi-directional optics for high-radix networks. The transmit and receive are on different wavelengths.
That bi-directional optics approach lowers the cost of fiber which is why it is attractive.
There is a lot here.
Optical attach must happen at some point. Intel showed its Silicon Photonics Connector in 2022, but it is still using copper interconnects on its chips, even though there were plans to replace HBM stacks with optical connections via Lightbender next year in 2025 (Intel stopped Lightbender.) Broadcom does a lot of optical networking just by virtue of its networking business and is shipping co-packaged optics switches now. Moving to optical I/O is going to be a big deal for the AI space as companies strive to build bigger packages.
This is easily one of the coolest presentations this year.
Mlperf inference v4.1 nvidia b200 whallops amd mi300x untetherai rises, microsoft maia 100 ai accelerator for azure, cerebras enters ai inference blows away tiny nvidia h100 gpus by besting hbm, leave a reply.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Sign me up for the STH newsletter!
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .
Discover the paralympics.
Find all the information about the competition
Discover more
Access all our original series for free.
You are just one step away from thousands of unique stories.
Ready to make a difference.
With Worldwide Olympic & Paralympic Partner Samsung and the power of sport and technology, we are enabling people in our digital community to solve, move and create for a better tomorrow.
Featured events.
Celebrate paris 2024 paralympic games with hospitality packages.
Cheer best Para athletes on with official packages that include access to the Opening Ceremony or to some of the most popular Para sports!
Download the official app.
Never miss a moment! Enjoy full access to breaking news, live sports, original series, and so much more.
Download now
Questions? Contact us
The Olympic Games Paris 2024 mascot is Olympic Phryge. The mascot is based on the traditional small Phrygian hats for which they are shaped after.
The name and design were chosen as symbols of freedom and to represent allegorical figures of the French republic.
The Olympic Phryge is decked out in blue, white and red - the colours of France’s famed tricolour flag - with the golden Paris 2024 logo emblazoned across its chest.
Around 10,500 athletes from 206 NOCs will compete.
The summer edition of the Olympic Games is normally held every four years.
Los Angeles, USA, will host the next Olympic Games from 14 to 30 July 2028. Brisbane , Australia, will host the Games in 2032.
The summer edition of the Olympic Games is a multi-sport event normally held once every four years usually in July or August.
The Olympic Winter Games are also held every four years in the winter months of the host location and the multi-sports competitions are practised on snow and ice.
Both Games are organised by the International Olympic Committee.
The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athen s, Greece.
IMAGES
COMMENTS
Speech transitions: words and phrases to connect your ideas. When delivering presentations it's important for your words and ideas to flow so your audience can understand how everything links together and why it's all relevant. This can be done using speech transitions because these act as signposts to the audience - signalling the ...
Linking. Linking is closely related to sequencing. Similar to writing, you can have a smoother presentation by connecting your ideas rather than suddenly jumping from one point to another. You can also refer back to points that you've mentioned before to make your presentation more cohesive. In connection to what I said earlier…
Here are some phrases which you can use to structure the introduction in this way: Introduce. 1. Good morning/afternoon (everyone) (ladies and gentlemen). 2. It's a pleasure to welcome (the President) here. 3. I'm … (the Director of …) Introduce the presentation topic.
A word or phrase that connects the ideas of a speech and indicates the relationship between them. Transitions: A word or phrase that indicates when a speaker had finished one thought and it moving on to another. Internal preview: A statement in the body of the speech that tells the audience what the speaker is going to discuss next.
When delivering a presentation, it's important for your words and ideas to flow so your audience can understand and follow along. This can be accomplished by using transitions to bridge the gap between ideas. Transitions can be a word or phrase that act as a signpost to the audience, signaling the relationship between points and ideas. ...
Craft a list of transitional words and phrases: To ensure smooth and seamless transitions between your ideas, compile a list of words and phrases that can serve as connectors. Examples include "however," "in addition," and "on the other hand.". Identify logical connections: Assess the flow of your speech and identify the logical ...
Effective - successful in producing a desired or intended result. Springboard - springboard is also something that provides an opportunity to achieve something. Handout - a document given to students or reporters that contains information about a particular subject. Q&A - an abbreviation for 'question and answer'.
The way you start your presentation sets the tone for the rest of it. Begin by greeting your audience and introducing the topic. Here are some phrases to get you started: 1. Good morning, everyone. Depending on the time of day, you can also say "Good afternoon, everyone" or "Good evening, everyone.". 2.
Let's explore a list of presentation words that can add depth and dimension: Elucidate-make something clear, explain. Pivotal-of crucial importance in relation to the development or success of something else. Insights-an accurate and deep understanding. Nuanced-characterized by subtle distinctions or variations.
Here are some examples of transitional phrases you can use in your presentations: "Moving on to our next topic…". "Now, let's take a look at…". "Next up…". "Let's switch gears and talk about…". "In addition to reducing your risk of chronic diseases, a healthy diet can also improve your mood and energy levels.".
If you need more specific vocabulary, like for a presentation to the board, your manager, or a client on their finances, check out our blog post on the most common English for accounting vocabulary. 4. Prepare some visual aids. These days, most people use a slide deck when presenting business ideas.
Transitions are words or sentences that help your audience understand the flow of your speech or presentation. They make it easy for your audience to follow along. A transition is a signpost that tells the audience where you are going, just like signposts along the highway tell you which direction you are heading.
Phrases for introducing visuals. It's important to introduce your visual to the audience. You can use the following phrases: "This graph shows you…". "Take a look at this…". "If you look at this, you will see…". "I'd like you to look at this…". "This chart illustrates the figures…". "This graph gives you a ...
2. Highlight a key message. "The important point here is that …". "More than anything, we've learned that …". 3. Link similar ideas. "In the same way …". "Just as Department A was slow to respond to the problem, a similar critique could be made of department B, because …". 4.
Get your FREE Professional English Phrase Booster here: https://bit.ly/phraseboosterIn this lesson, you'll learn 40 great phrases for making a presentation i...
Transition words and phrases (also called linking words, connecting words, or transitional words) are used to link together different ideas in your text. They help the reader to follow your arguments by expressing the relationships between different sentences or parts of a sentence. Transition words example
Linking phrases can turn your presentation into a unified whole. Transitions can also be tricky. You need to use words other than "but," "however," and "in addition." The words you use will serve as punctuation marks and entice the audience to listen to your next points. Keep giving them the road map to follow throughout your ...
Power words and phrases can make the same idea sound very different. Let's take Apple's famous slogan as an example: Think different. You can also convey the same idea using other descriptive words: Don't think like everybody else, think outside the box, be creative. Source: 12 Tips List PowerPoint Templates by SlideModel.com.
understand the speaker more easily. get an idea of the length and content of the presentation. We've divided the phrases and sentences into sections which follow the logical progression of a well-balanced presentation. 1. Welcoming. Good morning and welcome to [name of company, name of conference hall, hotel, etc.].
The use of signaling and transition words (also referred to as Signposting), helps you show your audience how the presentation is structured and how ideas relate to each other. Examples of useful signals and transition statements for oral presentations are listed below. Use these examples as a resource next time you are preparing and practicing ...
The rule of three is a powerful way to end a presentation. The speaker ends with three punchy words or phrases. For example: 'So, to conclude this presentation about smart working; use communication tools effectively, collaborate more and judge performance on output not time spent online. Thanks, and have a great day.'.
How to Connect a Presentation Script with Presenter Notes; Recommended PPT Templates to Write a Presentation Script; Final Words; What is a Presentation Script. A presentation script is a written guide that outlines what a speaker will say during a presentation. It includes the key points, transitions, and supporting details needed to ...
Linking Words & Connecting Words as a PDF. It contains all the transition words listed on this site. The image to the left gives you an impression how it looks like. Usage of Transition Words in Essays. Transition words and phrases are vital devices for essays, papers or other literary compositions. They improve the connections and transitions ...
Audience engagement example #2. Tell a joke. Another simple way that you can forge a connection at the beginning of your presentation is by telling a joke. A joke is, in itself, a smart way to interact with audience members since it's a natural back and forth. It either asks the audience to answer a question (Why did the chicken cross the ...
Effective presentation skills help you get your point across and connect with the people you're communicating with, which is why nearly every employer requires them. Understanding what presentation skills are is only half the battle. Honing your techniques is essential for mastering presentations of all kinds and in all settings.
the first word of the title or heading, even if it is a minor word such as "The" or "A" the first word of a subtitle; the first word after a colon, em dash, or end punctuation in a heading; major words, including the second part of hyphenated major words (e.g., "Self-Report," not "Self-report")
Broadcom AI ASIC With Optical Connect Hot Chips 2024_Page_07. Broadcom has a version of the Tomahawk 5 slide we have shown before in this presentation with the components of CPO (co-packaged optics.) Broadcom AI ASIC With Optical Connect Hot Chips 2024_Page_08. The Tomahawk 4 "Humboldt" was the first generation system.
Welcome to the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games website. Follow the world's top athletes as they go for gold in France (Jul 26-Aug 11, 2024).