A strong Lexical Resource score depends on more than simply using big words. Candidates should aim for a wide range of vocabulary deployed with precision, including accurate collocations and natural paraphrasing. Common academic synonyms for basic words include 'significant' for 'important', 'substantial' for 'big', 'demonstrate' for 'show', and 'issue' or 'challenge' for 'problem'. Tier-2 vocabulary, words that are not the most basic but appear frequently in academic texts, such as 'subsequently', 'demonstrate', and 'considerable', should be mastered to lift the lexical score. Synonym avoidance, replacing overused basic words like 'good', 'bad', and 'big' with more precise alternatives, demonstrates awareness of subtle meaning differences.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy rewards the use of varied sentence structures, including conditionals, passive voice, relative clauses, participle phrases, and complex sentences with subordinators such as 'although' or 'whereas'. Complex sentences combine an independent clause with at least one dependent clause, allowing more sophisticated expression of relationships between ideas. Noun phrase complexity, such as writing 'the rapidly expanding global economy' instead of 'the economy grew fast', raises both the grammatical and lexical scores by packaging information more densely. Nominalisation, transforming verbs or adjectives into nouns as in 'decide' to 'the decision', creates a more formal academic style typical of high-band responses.
Cohesion is built through cohesive devices, including linking words, referencing pronouns such as 'it', 'this', and 'they', substitution, and lexical repetition. Discourse markers such as 'however', 'moreover', 'as a result', and 'on the other hand' signal logical relationships between ideas. Signposting words guide the reader through structure: 'firstly' and 'subsequently' for sequencing, 'however' and 'nevertheless' for contrast, 'because' and 'therefore' for cause and result, and 'furthermore' and 'in addition' for adding information. Overuse of simple connectors like 'and' or 'but' lowers the Cohesion band score, so variety is essential. Hedging language, including phrases like 'it could be argued that', 'tend to', and 'may indicate', expresses caution and is appropriate in academic argumentation. Logical paragraphing, with one main idea per paragraph and a clear topic sentence, provides the visual structure that guides the reader and signals organised thinking.