Question 8·Medium·Transitions
In trials, a new battery design maintained 90% capacity after 1,000 charge cycles. ______ it requires fewer rare-earth materials than comparable models, reducing production costs.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, always read the sentence before and after the blank and, before looking at the choices, briefly describe the relationship in your own words: is it contrast, addition, cause/effect, example, or something else? Then label each answer choice by the type of connection it usually shows and eliminate any whose function doesn’t match the relationship you identified. Finally, plug the remaining option back into the sentence to check that it makes both logical and grammatical sense.
Hints
First, connect the ideas without the transition
Read the two sentences in order, ignoring the blank. Ask yourself: Is the second sentence supporting the first, arguing against it, explaining why it’s true, or giving a specific case?
Label the relationship between the sentences
Think about what each sentence says about the battery. Are they both positive comments, or is one of them negative? Does one sentence cause the other, or are they just two separate facts?
Match the relationship to the type of transition
Decide whether the connection is contrast, result, example, or something else. Then look at each answer choice and ask which type of connection it usually signals, and eliminate any that do not fit how the two sentences relate.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what each sentence is saying
Read both sentences and restate them in your own words:
- First sentence: In tests, the new battery kept 90% of its capacity after 1,000 charge cycles (a strong, positive performance result).
- Second sentence: It also uses fewer rare-earth materials than similar models, which makes it cheaper to produce (another positive feature).
So both sentences are giving separate advantages of the same battery design.
Identify the logical relationship between the sentences
Ask: How does the second sentence relate to the first?
- Is it opposite or contrasting information? No, it is also positive.
- Is it a result of maintaining 90% capacity? No, using fewer rare-earth materials does not logically follow from capacity retention; they are different design features.
- Is it a specific example of maintaining 90% capacity? No, it is about materials and cost, not an example of capacity.
The second sentence is simply another, additional benefit of the same battery.
Match each answer choice to its type of connection
Now classify what each transition word usually does:
- However, introduces a contrast or exception.
- Consequently, shows a result or effect of what came before.
- For example, introduces a specific instance of a general idea.
- Furthermore, adds another point or benefit to what was just said.
We want the type of connection that shows the second sentence is an additional advantage, not a contrast, result, or example.
Choose the transition that fits the relationship
Because the second sentence gives another advantage of the same battery design, the transition that correctly shows we are adding a new supporting point is “Furthermore,” which is choice D.