What Common Words or Phrases are used in Writing a Research Report?
Writing styles can be quite conservative when it comes to academic papers. However, they also must not turn out to be so dull that you fail to grasp the attention of your audience. There is always a lot of competition to prove yourself against whilst publishing your paper. And you need to include any elements that you think will improve your chances. Your research must sound literary, yet it should also be comprehensive. Hence, we are going to a variety of vocabulary words for essay writing, that will make your work attractive enough. But first, there are some basic tips you need to follow.
1. Analyzing vocabulary
You can use online word-cloud generation websites to check your work. Once you have copied and posted your work, you can find out to what extent your writing is being repetitive. Seeing your work in the form of a visual word cloud will help you assess it clearly. You will be able to see the key points and themes from the reader’s viewpoint. If there are any word that aren’t effective enough, then the paper can be revised. This will allow the audience to focus on the information you want their attention on.
2. Study Language Patterns
Studying language patterns from different articles can be immensely helpful. Find the articles that are most often download and cited from your target journal. Reading through them will give an idea of what is the journal’s preferred style. Jot down some point that stand out to you the most in all the articles. Then follow them to make your research most appealing to the readers.
3. Use more precise and active verbs
Synonyms are often used to replace the words which are not giving off an impactful effect. However, you can also rephrase entire clauses to ones that are stronger and more vivid. This task will become less complicated if you have made more use of active voice. Even if you want to keep your original sentence, weak verbs can be eliminated from your draft easily. Be careful though, to first identify the replacements you have chosen. They should perfectly fit the context of the writing.
Now we will move on to the actual list of common words and descriptive phrases for essays. It is very useful to build up your vocabulary constantly to meet the needs of any type of writing. Our list has recommended substitutes for the most frequently used vocabulary in research writing.
| Original Phrase/Word | Purpose | Substitute |
|
Aims to |
Expresses the purpose behind the research |
· Applies to… · Explores how…
|
| Presents
Discusses |
Introduces the topic of the paper | · Questions
· Surveys · Outlines · Highlights · Features · Investigates
|
|
Consider Analyzes Explains
|
Describes the analytical scope of a research |
· Interprets
· Evaluates · Clarifies · Delves into · Identifies · Advances · Appraises · Dissects · Defines · Tests · Probes · Explores
|
|
Covers Talks about Deals with
|
Previews other sections |
· Sketches
· Highlights · Outlines · Contemplates · Assesses
|
| Plays an important role in…
Plays a vital role in…
|
Discusses the historical importance of the research topic |
· Controls
· Regulates · Influences · Inhibits’ · Directs · Governs · Constrains
|
| …is widely used as…
…is widely accepted as… |
Describes the historical popularity of the topic |
· The preferred… · Widely accepted · The prevailing method for… · Frequently/ commonly implemented…
|
| … has gained importance in recent years
Much attention has been drawn to… |
For describing the recent focus of a research |
· …has appealed to…
· Discussions regarding (topic) have dominated recent research · …has significantly shaped questions about (topic) in recent years. · …has propelled forward in the investigations of (conflicting argument). · …has critically affected academic dialogue on… |
|
The consensus has been… |
Identifies the majority opinion currently being given about the topic |
· Several studies agree…
· Previous research confirms that… · Prior research substantiates the belief…
|
|
have documented indicates have demonstrated have displayed that |
Explores the finding of literature that already exists upon the topic
|
· Purport
· Suggest · Contend · Have proven that · Contend · Evidence
|
|
Much is known about… But, little is known about… |
Shows the breadth of the current knowledge base along with the gaps in it. |
· However, little research has been done to show…
· The academic research has explored extensively… · Previous research has investigated thoroughly… · However, previous studies have not succeeded in evaluating…
|
|
Many theories have been put forward to explain…
To solve this issue, researchers have attempted different methods… |
Creating a segue way to the research question |
· A number of writers have posited…
· Recent studies have promoted… · Prior investigations have queried various approaches to…
|
Here concludes our list of some of the most commonly used words and phrases to make your paper more impactful. It is important to freshen up your vocabulary and keep adding new words to it. Reading is a great way to enhance your knowledge about writing styles and usage of phrases. Once you master this skill, you will be able to produce a paper that is sure to get you top marks.
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