Transitions: Name the Logical Relationship
SAT Reading & WritingExpression of IdeasFoundation
Predict the relationship before looking at transition words.
What you need to know
- Transitions signal continuation, contrast, cause, result, example, emphasis, concession, or sequence.
- Several words can share a category but differ in exact use.
- The relationship comes from the surrounding ideas, not the transition’s popularity.
- Read across the blank; the sentence before it is part of the question.
The AYLOTI method
- Summarize the idea before the blank.
- Summarize the idea after the blank.
- Name their relationship in one word.
- Choose a transition in that category and reread.
AYLOTI • Sir Hunain Zia • SAT Score 1594/1600 • 154 Total A Grades (Personal), 11 World Records, 7 Distinctions
Worked example
Early models predicted instability. Tests of the revised model showed stable performance. Which relationship applies?
- Prediction: instability.
- Result: stability after revision.
- The ideas contrast, so however or by contrast fits.
Answer: Contrast; “However,” is a logical transition.
Common SAT traps
- Choosing “therefore” whenever the second sentence follows the first.
- Confusing example with result.
- Ignoring that a concession admits a point before qualifying it.
Quick check
If sentence 2 gives a specific case of sentence 1, which category fits?
Example or illustration, using a transition such as “For example,”
Before you move on
- Explain the core rule without looking back.
- Redo the worked example using your own steps.
- Write the trap you are most likely to fall for.
