Coherence and Cohesion: The Criterion Most Candidates Misread

The most common mistake with this criterion is to treat it as a count of linking words. The result is essays where every sentence opens with Firstly, Moreover, Furthermore or In addition, as if each one earned a mark.

The band 5 descriptor allows "limited/overuse of cohesive devices". At band 6, cohesion "may be faulty or mechanical due to misuse, overuse or omission" source: ielts.org. So adding more linking words can cost marks.

This guide is part of our series on the four Writing criteria. The hub is How IELTS Writing Is Marked, and the previous part covered task response.

Coherence and cohesion is marked in both Writing tasks, on both the Academic and General Training tests source: ielts.org.

Two words, two different measurements

Coherence is about order. Can a reader follow your ideas from the start to the end? Cohesion is about the words that join your ideas.

This guide uses two terms for those words. "Linking words" means words such as Firstly, However and In addition. "Cohesive devices" is the descriptors' wider term. It covers linking words, but also other ways of joining ideas.

The criterion also assesses reference and substitution, such as pronouns and the definite article "the" source: ielts.org. These are words that point back to something you already wrote, such as "they" or "this change". They save you repeating it.

The ladder from band 5 to band 9

At the top of the scale, a reader hardly notices how the ideas are joined. The lower bands describe problems a reader does notice.

source: ielts.org

Paragraphing is part of this criterion too. It appears at every band in the table, from inadequate or missing at band 5 to skilfully managed at band 9.

What changes from band 6 to band 7

At band 6, cohesion "may be faulty or mechanical". At band 7, cohesive devices are "used flexibly" source: ielts.org. So both bands use linking words. What changes is how they are used.

Mechanical linking looks the same in every essay: Firstly, Secondly, Finally. The writer adds the same words whatever the ideas are. Flexible linking picks what fits the two ideas it joins, and often that is not a linking word at all. It can be:

• a pronoun, such as "this" or "they"
• "the" in front of an idea you have already named
• the order of your sentences, so the second one clearly follows from the first

Here is one short paragraph written two ways, for this page.

Firstly,^{note 1} many cities build new roads. Secondly, cars are cheaper than before. Moreover, buses are slow. In conclusion, traffic is getting worse.

Many cities build new roads, and cars are cheaper than before. These two changes^{note 2} put more cars on the road. Buses are slow, so drivers have little reason to leave their^{note 3} cars at home. The result^{note 4} is worse traffic.

1. At band 6, cohesion may be "mechanical due to misuse, overuse or omission" source: ielts.org. In the first version, every sentence opens with a linking word, whatever the idea is. The words are added by habit, not chosen for the idea they join.
2. At band 7, a "range of cohesive devices including reference and substitution is used flexibly" source: ielts.org. "These two changes" points back to the whole first sentence, so the reader knows what causes the traffic.
3. Pronouns are cohesive devices too source: ielts.org. "Their" points back to "drivers", so the word does not need repeating.
4. Coherence is "the linking of ideas through logical sequencing" source: ielts.org. The second version gives the causes first and the effect last. So "The result" needs no "In conclusion" in front of it.

The second version has fewer linking words than the first. Its ideas are easier to follow because each sentence builds on the one before.

How to improve coherence and cohesion

The quickest way to improve is often to take words out. Write a practice essay and delete every linking word. Then put back only the ones a reader needs to see how two ideas connect. You will need fewer than you expect.

If your ideas only make sense when the linking words are there, the problem is the order of your ideas, which is coherence. More linking words will not fix it.

Then look at your paragraphs. They are the first thing a reader sees on the page. Give each paragraph one central topic, make that topic clear at the start, and develop it in a logical order. The band 6 and band 7 rows in the table above show why this matters.

A reliable essay structure helps here. It decides your paragraphs and the order of your ideas before you write a sentence. Our guide to structuring Task 2 shows a four paragraph shape that does exactly this.

To choose a linking word by its job, see IELTS linking words.

How much it counts

The four criteria are weighted equally, and each task is assessed on its own source: ielts.org. So coherence and cohesion is a quarter of the band for each Writing task.

Which criteria mark Writing Task 1, Writing Task 2 and Speaking

Criterion	Writing		Speaking
	Task 1	Task 2
Task Achievement	assessed	not assessed	not assessed
Task Response	not assessed	assessed	not assessed
Coherence and Cohesion	assessed	assessed	not assessed
Fluency and Coherence	not assessed	not assessed	assessed
Lexical Resource	assessed	assessed	assessed
Grammatical Range and Accuracy	assessed	assessed	assessed
Pronunciation	not assessed	not assessed	assessed

Each task is marked on four criteria of equal weight. Lexical Resource and Grammatical Range and Accuracy mark all three.

Sources: ielts.org, Writing band descriptors; Speaking band descriptors; IELTS scoring in detail

Speaking is marked on a different criterion instead, fluency and coherence.

Next in the series: lexical resource, and why a bigger vocabulary is not the answer. For a plan across all four criteria, see our Writing improvement plan.

The public Writing band descriptors and key assessment criteria are published on ielts.org, and the equal weighting of the criteria is on its IELTS scoring in detail page. Descriptors updated May 2023. Last checked on 27 September 2026. The example paragraph was written for this page and is not from any test.