Q&A guide

Which collocations frame advantages cleanly?

Use verb-noun pairs that state a benefit without fluff.

• deliver benefits, bring efficiencies, improve access, raise standards, support innovation, reduce costs
  Template: The policy can deliver benefits and improve access for rural students.

How do I express disadvantages without drama?

Name the harm or cost precisely.

• pose a risk, incur costs, erode trust, widen inequality, undermine privacy, create dependency
  Template: Subsidies may incur costs and create dependency if rules are loose.

How do I show balance between the two sides?

Mix comparison and evaluation collocations.

• weigh the costs against the benefits, on balance, to some extent, by comparison, in practical terms
  Template: On balance, the benefits outweigh the costs to some extent when funding is ring fenced.

What helps me write conditional conclusions?

Use condition collocations so your judgement is not all or nothing.

• works best when, is preferable if, under certain conditions, provided that, contingent on
  Template: Remote work is preferable if firms set clear output targets.

Which pairs show scale and timing?

• short term gain, long term cost, phase in, pilot and scale up, set a threshold, set a cap, meet a target
  Template: Cities can pilot night buses and scale up if they meet targets on safety.

Example 1, technology topic

Claim: Social media in schools has clear upsides and downsides.
Advantage: Class forums support collaboration and improve access to resources.
Disadvantage: Unchecked use can undermine privacy and erode focus.
Balance: By comparison, device rules deliver benefits when schools set a threshold for daily screen time.

Example 2, environment topic

Advantage: Tree corridors reduce emissions from cooling and mitigate heat.
Disadvantage: Land acquisition can incur costs and displace vendors.
Close: On balance, corridors work best when compensation is fair and routes avoid dense markets.

Mini case, Dhaka candidate

Mehedi wrote, Online learning has pros and cons, people like it, others do not. His teacher marked vague verbs. He built a 20 item bank: deliver benefits, reduce travel time, undermine interaction, weigh the costs, pilot a scheme, set a cap. Next draft: Online modules reduce travel time and improve access for shift workers, but large classes undermine interaction. On balance, blended learning is preferable if schools set a cap on class size and pilot group tutorials. His coherence improved and the tone sounded natural.

What measurable targets should I use while writing?

• Quota: one strong collocation per sentence in body paragraphs, maximum eight per essay to avoid clutter.
• Timing: draft two contrast lines in 90 seconds using by comparison and on balance.
• Precision: add one number or threshold to each disadvantage, for example incur costs of maintenance after year three.

What mistakes do writers make with collocations?

• Double linking, therefore and as a result together. Keep one.
• Unnatural pairs, heavy evidence is wrong, strong evidence is correct.
• Over-formal verbs, commence an initiative. Prefer launch a programme.
• Repetition of weak verbs, do, make, get. Upgrade, conduct a survey, pass a law, obtain results.

How do I handle edge cases fairly?

• Mixed audiences: If a policy helps one group but harms another, say benefits are uneven and widen inequality among low income users.
• Uncertain data: Use careful hedges, limited evidence suggests, appears to, until figures are verified.
• Topic creep: If a paragraph drifts, insert a comparison line, by comparison, and return to the central trade off.

Paragraph frames you can paste

Advantages paragraph
X can deliver benefits in three ways. First, it improves access to A. Second, it reduces costs for B. Third, it supports innovation in C. In practical terms, these gains are strongest for D.

Disadvantages paragraph
However, X may incur costs and pose a risk to A. It can erode trust if rules are weak and create dependency among B. By comparison, safeguards work best when agencies set a threshold for use and monitor outcomes.

Mini glossary

• Collocation: natural word pair, for example deliver benefits.
• Trade off: a choice where gaining one thing loses another.
• Lens: viewpoint for analysis, for example cost or equity.
• Hedge: softener for accuracy, to some extent, appears to.

Actionable closing
Build a 24 item bank today: 6 advantage pairs, 6 disadvantage pairs, 6 balance markers, 6 condition phrases. Draft two body paragraphs using the frames above. Enforce the quota of one collocation per sentence and add one threshold or target to each paragraph. Before you submit, delete double linkers and replace three weak verbs with precise pairs.