Question 40·Easy·Transitions
Researchers have discovered that urban environments can provide unexpected benefits for honey bee populations. ______ hives placed on city rooftops often produce more honey than those in rural areas.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, first read the sentences before and after the blank without looking at the answer choices. Decide the logical relationship: Are you moving from general to specific, adding similar information, contrasting, showing cause and effect, or indicating time? Once you know the relationship, check each option’s usual function and immediately eliminate any that signal the wrong relationship (like contrast when the sentences agree, or time when nothing about timing is mentioned). This approach lets you answer quickly and confidently without overthinking individual words.
Hints
Identify the function of the second sentence
Ask yourself: Is the second sentence disagreeing with, adding to, or illustrating the first sentence?
Look for general vs. specific
Notice that the first sentence makes a broad claim about urban environments, while the second mentions a particular case of hives on city rooftops. What type of transition connects a broad idea to a specific case?
Check the meanings of the transition words
Think about what each option usually signals: contrast, timing, or something else. Eliminate any options that would suggest the second sentence opposes or is unrelated in time to the first.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the relationship between the two sentences
The first sentence states a general idea: urban environments can benefit honey bee populations. The second sentence talks about hives on city rooftops producing more honey than rural hives, which is a specific situation related to that general idea.
Decide what kind of transition is needed
Ask: Is the second sentence contrasting with the first, happening at the same time, or giving an example or illustration of it?
Here, the second sentence supports the first by describing a particular case of bees in urban rooftop hives. That means we need a transition that introduces a specific example of the general claim.
Match each choice to its typical use
Now connect each option to its usual purpose:
- "On the other hand," signals contrast or an opposing point.
- "Meanwhile," signals something happening at the same time as something else.
- "In contrast," also signals opposition or difference.
- One remaining choice introduces a supporting example of the idea just mentioned.
Only the option that clearly signals an example will fit the general-to-specific relationship in the passage.
Select the transition that introduces an example
Because the second sentence is a specific example of how urban environments can benefit bees, the best transition is D) For example, which explicitly introduces this rooftop-hive situation as an illustration of the general claim.