Guidelines on Argumentative Question

•Read and understand the task of the question.
•Jot down the main points, both for and against the argument.
•Make a clear stand.
•Support your points with logical reasons and examples.
•Each point of view should be in a separate paragraph.
•End with your conclusion which must be your own opinion.


a) Different ways of giving opinion
–In my opinion, living in the countryside is better than living in the town.
–My opinion on this matter is…..
–It is my opinion that ….
–I strongly feel that…..
–Personally, I am of the opinion that …..
–Frankly, I think that ….
–From my point of view, I think …..
–In my view, ….
–If you ask me, my opinion is …..
–As I see it, ….
–I am in favour of ….
–As far as I am concerned, ….
–It seems to me that …..


b) Giving reasoned opinions

i) To start
- First of all, …… / Firstly, …..
- In the first place, ….. / To begin with, …

ii) To add information or points in support of an existing opinion
- Furthermore, …..
- Besides, …..
- Moreover, ….
- Apart from this, ….
- In addition, …..
- Other than that,…..
- Another advantage is that …..
- Added to this is the fact that …..
- Similarly, ……

iii) To show an opposite stand or to show contrasting information
- But
- However, ….
- On the one hand, ….
- On the other hand, ….
- On the contrary, ….
- Nevertheless, …
- In contrast, …
- Conversely, ….
- Alternatively, ….

iv) To agree with a viewpoint or opinion
- I am also of the opinion that ….
- Yes, I agree that ….
- I share your view that ….
- It is true that …..
- I could not agree more with you that ….

v) To disagree with a viewpoint or opinion
- I disagree with the view that …..
- I do not quite agree with you that ….
- I do not think that ….
- I am afraid, I do not agree with you …..
- I am inclined to disagree with you ….

vi) To end an argument
- Finally / Lastly / Hence
- In conclusion
- The gist of the argument is ….
- Therefore, …
- For these reasons, I feel that …..
- Considering these reasons …..
- After taking into consideration all these factors, I feel that ….