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Discourse Markers

1 min
C1
CEFR C1·other

Formula

organize, signal attitude, manage flow
Addition
moreover, furthermore, what's more
Contrast
on the other hand, mind you, having said that
Result
as a result, consequently, hence
Topic shift
by the way, anyway, incidentally

Examples

Positive
Having said that, the rewards could be significant.
Negative
I don't enjoy big parties. Mind you, this one might be fun.
Question
By the way, did you hear about the meeting?

Usage

  • •Connect ideas across sentences (not just within them)
  • •Signal the speaker's attitude or stance
  • •Make speech and writing flow more naturally and sound more advanced

More Examples

  • The hotel was lovely. Mind you, the food was terrible.

    Subtle contrast / concession

  • Having said that, I do see your point.

    Softening a contrast

  • On the other hand, working from home has its drawbacks.

    Presenting an opposing view

  • By the way, are you free tomorrow?

    Topic change

  • Frankly, I think the idea is brilliant.

    Signaling honesty / personal stance

  • In other words, we need a new strategy.

    Rephrasing for clarity

Common Mistakes

  • ✗Overusing one marker: starting every sentence with "However" feels repetitive.
  • ✗Wrong register: "Mind you" is informal; in academic writing prefer "However" / "Nevertheless".
  • ✗Misplaced commas: "Mind you the food was terrible" → "Mind you, the food was terrible" (comma after).

Tips

  • ✓Discourse markers are mostly OPTIONAL — they signal RELATIONSHIPS, not grammatical necessity.
  • ✓Match register: "by the way" (casual) vs "incidentally" (formal); both mean the same thing.

Advanced Notes

Discourse markers operate at the level of the text, not the sentence — they are the glue between ideas rather than within them. Register awareness is critical: "hence" and "consequently" belong in academic or formal writing, while "mind you" and "anyway" are conversational repair markers you hear in British English. Learners at C1 often know the formal set ("furthermore", "nevertheless") but miss the informal set entirely, making their spoken English sound stiff. Corpus research shows "however" is the most overused marker in learner academic writing; building a broader repertoire is what distinguishes C1 from C2 text.

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Compare With

Linking Words: However, Although, Despite, In Spite Of(B1)