Referencing
A list of reference words that can be used to improve one's cohesion score for task 1 and 2 IELTS writing.
How does this help your IELTS writing score?
Although referencing shouldn't be overused, it helps with clarity, cohesion, and to avoid noun repetition. For IELTS writing, the coherence and cohesion band descriptors for both tasks 1 and 2 indicate that one can't score higher than band 5 if one does not make use of references or higher than band 6 if one uses them incorrectly.
Reference words
- Formal: They / These / This / Them
- Informal: That / Us / My / One of them / Your / His / Her / Their / It / Those
That vs which
That is used to reference something specific while which adds more information. Thus, if the connected section can be removed, use which, otherwise always use that.
E.g. The pencil that has a broken nib is in the drawer.
E.g. The pencil, which has a broken nib, is in the drawer.