Question 163·Easy·Transitions
Public libraries used to be viewed primarily as places to borrow books. _____ they now function as community hubs offering classes, job-search resources, and digital media labs.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, always read the sentence before and after the blank and briefly describe their relationship in your own words (for example: add similar idea, show contrast, show cause/effect, show sequence, or mark a time shift). Then eliminate any choices that express the wrong relationship, even if they sound smooth by themselves. Finally, plug the remaining option(s) into the sentence to check that the logic—rather than just the sound—fits perfectly.
Hints
Focus on the time words
Notice the phrase "used to be" in the first sentence. Think about how that affects the time frame of the second sentence.
Decide the relationship between the two sentences
Ask yourself: Is the second sentence giving a similar idea, a result, an unexpected contrast, or an update about how things are now compared with the past?
Test each transition in the sentence
Read the full two-sentence passage with each option in place. Which one makes the logical relationship between past and present clearest and most natural?
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what each sentence is saying
Read both parts together:
- First sentence: In the past, public libraries were seen mainly as places to borrow books.
- Second sentence: Now they serve as community hubs with classes, job-search help, and digital media labs.
So the author is describing a change from the past to the present.
Identify the relationship that the transition must show
Ask: How does the second sentence relate to the first?
- It does not just add a similar idea; it updates or contrasts over time.
- It does not describe a result or effect caused by the first sentence.
- It does not introduce an unexpected contrast; it simply explains what libraries are like now.
The main relationship is a shift from what used to be true to what is true now.
Match the relationship to the transition choices
Check each option against that relationship:
- A) Similarly, suggests the second sentence describes something similar to the first, but the point is that libraries have changed, not stayed similar.
- B) Because of this, introduces a cause-and-effect relationship, but the first sentence is just a description of the past, not a cause of the new functions.
- C) Nevertheless, shows an unexpected contrast, as if the second point goes against the first, but here the second sentence is a natural update, not a surprising contradiction.
- D) Today, clearly marks a time shift from the past description to what is true now, which matches the intended contrast between "used to be" and the present.
Therefore, the correct transition is D) Today,.