100+ Useful Phrases for Writing Essays (PDF)

Last Updated on March 21, 2023 by Ralph Nyadzi

Are you looking for the right words and phrases for writing essays in high school, polytechnic or university?

Make sure to use a good number of the expressions below to improve your essay.

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These phrases for writing essays at the high school or tertiary level will take your essay writing skills to another level.
The appropriate use of the expressions below can do a lot of good to the quality of your essay.

All you need to do is to choose the words (vocabulary items), phrases or whole sentences below that appeal to you most and also suit your purpose for writing the essay.

Here is one outcome I can assure you of. That is if you’re able to appropriately use these words and phrases for writing essays.

Your essays will always sound smart and attract very high marks.

The expressions for essay writing in this post are good for all manner of candidates.

In fact, for your WASSCE or NECO/SSCE English Language paper, I will urge you to take these words, sentences and phrases for writing essays very seriously.

You are allowed to download a PDF copy of this document.

Useful Expressions for Essays Writing

It is aimed at revamping the economy to make it buoyant
I call on all seated here to …………………
Let’s rally behind our new leadership
In our bid to stamp out corruption
All major stakeholders in education
There is an urgent need to come up with appropriate policies
It will have far-reaching implications/consequences
People from all walks of life
The solutions to this menace are not far fetched
We need to chart a new course in our quest to free ourselves from the shackles of poverty, disease and ignorance
On the social front,……….
On the economic front, ……………….
Pragmatic programmes are needed ……………………
In the political sphere, ………………..
Pressing problems
It is against the backdrop of this chaotic situation that we assumed office……………….
We must shelve our differences
We must bury our differences
Let’s forge ahead in unity
It is high time you took this matter seriously
They didn’t hesitate in embracing the idea
Myriad (countless) problems
I deem it crucial
It is kind of you to bestow this honour on me
More importantly
Render dedicated service
Immense benefits/advantages
We stand to benefit
Exemplary behaviour
I cannot but appreciate your kindness
Brave the danger
Pose a threat to one national security
Apprehend the perpetrators of this heinous crime
Stamp out the menace of armed robbery
Bring the situation under control
The armed robbers continue to leave a tall trail of atrocities
It could be attributed to
Fight the menace of child-trafficking
Bring the situation under control
Curtail/curb the menace
Night patrols should be stepped up
It is our collective responsibility to ……………
Milk the country’s coffers stone dry
It is a big source of worry/headache
This gives cause for concern
The rumours came in the wake of the arrest of three pastors on the suspicion that ……..
The shattered economy
A careful analysis of the problem indicates that ……
We could cite indiscipline as a major contributory factor to……………
Added to this is …………
The proliferation of small arms is one cause of ………………
This would enhance our capacity to deal decisively with the menace of …
They have unleashed a reign of terror on our roads and communities.
I went through a harrowing experience
The danger is looming large and we need to nip it in the bud
Let’s take action before something untoward happens
I have been compelled to write and express my disgust at the growing spate of internet fraud among our youth
There is no gainsaying the fact that all is not well with our educational system
It has yielded no results
This current situation clearly negates our efforts to minimize, if not eliminate drug trafficking from our body-politic
The nefarious activities of these criminals create panic, fear and insecurity
Consequently, it behoves the government to act quickly to forestall disaster
We are sending out the wrong signals to prospective investors
We need to combat the spate of deviant behaviour in our society
Parents must be at the forefront of the fight against teenage pregnancy
The NCCE must assume centre stage in this public awareness creation effort
It is an understatement to say that discipline has collapsed in our schools
Considering the complex nature of the problem…….
All hands need to be on deck
Punishment for such behaviour should be more deterrent.
The law regarding environmental degradation should be given teeth and be made to bite.
The state/government must put in place measures/mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the performance of teachers/police/supervisors, contractors etc.
Above all/ Lastly/In a nutshell/To crown it all
His health is failing rapidly
Reduce drastically
Stringent measures are needed to stabilize the situation
Worse still
Worst of all
There is no doubt that the growing rate of unemployment poses a grave danger to social stability
We must not, as a people, relent in our efforts to create better opportunities for our young graduates
It must be emphasized that
Unwholesome goods/Practices
This will ginger (motivate) everybody to ………….
There is therefore an urgent need for us to ……………
I believe you’ll rise to the occasion and prove the sceptics wrong
We need to stem the alarming tide of road accidents
There should be no delay in instilling a high sense of sanity/ discipline in road users
A couple of years back
Vehicles plying our roads should be subjected to thorough checks to ascertain their roadworthiness
Lake transport could be made safer if life jackets, life rafts and fire extinguishers are available in cases of emergency.
That there are serious lapses in the enforcement of safety measures cannot be overemphasized.
It is an open secret that …..
The lack of maintenance culture is the bane of our society
Many problems continue to bedevil the education sector
This can boost tourism
Affordable prices
Everybody must strive to contribute their quota toward this all-important national effort to eradicate malaria…….
Food production has plummeted (fallen) sharply
It cannot be denied that
The industry boomed/ flourished/ grew
The drastic decline in the fortunes of our national football teams could be attributed to
Prices have sky–rocketed/ increased sharply
Given this deplorable state of affairs, we need to …
It has the potential to…..
We must remove the bottlenecks which tend to hinder (militate against) the growth of the industry
Address (solve) the problem
Make a headway
It has the tendency to ruin your future
You can still live up to your promise
I pray for your speedy recovery
I do not wish to belabour (flog) this point/issue, except to add that…….
Let’s put it behind us and move forward
We can then showcase our school as a model of discipline
To forestall (prevent) such occurrences in the future
It was a traumatic experience
It is mind–boggling how such huge sums of money could have disappeared under the very nose of the director
This school is not without its fair share of problems
We should not gloss over (ignore) these apparent systemic weaknesses
A breakthrough can still be achieved
Any false move on the part of the defenders could spell the doom of our team
Enrolment in tertiary institutions has appreciated (increased) significantly
Acute accommodation problems
I have my misgivings/doubts about his sincerity
There is a need to institute preventive measures, not curative ones.
Such viable projects would do our community a world of good
The astronomical rental charges/bills, prices are killing our businesses
We need to take a second look at this policy due to its obvious failure
Government must hold consultations with all major players in this sector
Durable solutions can be found if……….
in the meantime
Let me reiterate (emphasize) my long-held, view/ belief that ……
We must join hands to fight this common enemy
Of late, there has been a public outcry against the ostentatious lifestyle of some of our pastors and ministers.
More often than not, ……..
Colossal (huge/large) sums of money
Your irritating (offensive) behaviour
His recent misfortunes/exploits readily come to mind
The needless death of the patient is a clear manifestation of sheer incompetence on the part of the hospital authorities
Workers’ salaries are grossly inadequate
Each time doctors embark on strike action, they hold the whole nation to ransom
She harbours bad feelings against me
All is not well with discipline in this school
This justifies the need for draconian rules to deal a fatal blow to the practice of occultism
She had the foresight to institute a founders’ day on her assumption of office
The requisite resources must be provided
They only suffered mild injuries
This obviously raises a fundamental question: Who is responsible for road maintenance in this country?
It is a recipe for disaster
It is the contention of this writer that the manager is culpable in this clear case of negligence and dereliction of duty
The police too have a case to answer
Our roads have become death traps
Not too long ago, ……………….
It has hitherto (up till now) yielded no fruitful dividends
I would like to draw your attention to three negative developments
The time has come for all of us to put our shoulders to the wheel and help solve this problem once and for all.
Drivers must be held liable for their acts of commission and omission (their actions and inactions)
We cannot afford to throw up our arms in despair
This behaviour of yours is going a shade too far
This is refreshing news
There was a loud silence in the room
An equally important factor is …………
These conflicts do not augur well for national progress
The three regions continue to lag (not lack) behind in terms of development