Task 2 · Cross-cutting skill
A connector is not decoration. It is a claim about how two ideas relate, and the reader will hold you to it. Learn them by relationship — addition, contrast, cause, example, concession, comparison, closing — and the right word stops being a guess.
Official criteria and WeLearn strategy
Official format: IELTS assesses Coherence and Cohesion across the whole response. Linking language is one part of that criterion, not a separate official task.
WeLearn strategy: WeLearn practises connectors by function, so the argument progresses instead of being decorated with a list of transition phrases.
Review focus: Choose connectors by the relationship between the ideas, not by variety.
Explained answer: A strong response uses a connector because the relationship requires it. Nothing here is scored automatically.
Start here
Each page explains what the family signals, lists its connectors with the position and punctuation each one takes, shows worked examples, names the two mistakes it produces, and gives three exercises.
The next idea goes the same way as the one before it.
6 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesContrast · Conectores de contrasteThe next idea pushes against the one before it.
7 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesCause and effect · Conectores de causa y efectoWhat comes next is the consequence of what came before.
6 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesExamples · Conectores para dar ejemplosWhat comes next is one case of the claim you just made.
6 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesConcession · Conectores de concesiónYou accept the other side has a point, and you are about to answer it.
6 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesComparison · Conectores de comparaciónThe next case behaves like the one before it.
5 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesConclusion · Conectores de conclusiónThis is the end of the whole text, not of a paragraph.
5 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesCondition · Conectores de condiciónThe second idea only happens if the first one is true.
6 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesCorrelative pairs · Conjunciones correlativasTwo elements are joined as a pair, and the sentence needs both halves.
5 connectors · 2 worked examples · 3 exercisesMixed test · 1 of 8
Inside a family page the answer is always from that family. Here you have to read the relationship first.
Online learning has democratised access to higher education for students worldwide. _______, it has opened professional development pathways for working adults who cannot attend traditional campuses.
Answer to move on. A first wrong attempt gives you a hint and a second try.
WeLearn progressive engine
No level tells you which family the answer belongs to — that is the point. Every blank sits inside the text: click it to pick from a list, or type straight into it. From level two onwards you write the connector yourself, and any connector from the right family counts.
Level 1 of 6
Read both halves. Which connector describes what the second one does to the first?
Cycling to work costs nothing once the bicycle is paid for. , it removes the daily uncertainty of a delayed train or a queue of traffic.
Click a blank and choose a connector.
Critical reading
Five serious linking errors. Click each one to see what is wrong and how to fix it.
In conclusion, technology has clearly changed how people communicate. Furthermore, there are both benefits and drawbacks to consider carefully. However, for example, social media platforms allow people to stay in contact across great distances. Moreover, some experts argue that face-to-face communication is becoming rarer. Therefore, in conclusion, we must all think carefully about how we use digital technology going forward.