Concluding Sentence Starters: 120+ Examples for Essays, Research Papers, and More

The right words are the foundation of a strong conclusion. The sentence starter you select helps your ideas to flow together and sets the tone for your closing paragraph. No matter what kind of writing you are doing — essay, research paper, or other academic assignment — choosing the right phrase can make your ending more effective.

This guide gives you more than 120 concluding sentence starters, real-life examples, and practical tips to help you write with confidence.

What are Concluding Sentence Starters?

A concluding sentence starter is a word or short phrase that comes at the beginning of the last paragraph of an essay, article, or report. It signals that you are to wrap up the discussion, summarise main points, and restate your central idea — a little bridge between your body paragraphs and your final thought.

So, what is a conclusion sentence, exactly? It’s the sentence, or two, that closes out a paragraph or paper, tying the evidence back to your thesis statement without introducing anything new.

Every writer eventually asks, how many sentences should a conclusion be? For most essays, three to five sentences is plenty: one to restate your point, one or two to summarize, and one to leave a lasting impression.

If this feels overwhelming, don’t worry Further in the text, we will give you everything you need to know about conclusion starters.

You can also hit EduBirdie with the “do my essay” message and rest assured that your text will be concluded correctly. 

Are Conclusion Sentence Starters Important?

Readers notice weak conclusions immediately, so a strong conclusion starter matters because it stops your ending from feeling abrupt or robotic. Readers tend to remember beginnings and endings more than the middle, so a weak final paragraph can undercut even solid body paragraphs.

Using varied conclusion phrases also shows range — it proves you’re not just reaching for the same phrase every time you write.

Beyond style, these starters serve a real function in academic writing: they cue the reader to shift from evidence to synthesis, which makes your entire argument easier to follow.

Be careful and do not get confused: these words are different from the starter words for essays!

Here’s How to Choose the Right Concluding Sentence Starter

Picking the right sentence starter for a conclusion depends on two things: what you’re writing, and the tone you’re going for. There are many ways to start a conclusion paragraph, from formal academic phrasing to a conversational sign-off.

Based on the Writing Type

Conclusion paragraph starters differ based on the type of work you are writing. The most popular types are:

• Essay.
• Research paper.
• Argumentative essay.
• Persuasive writing.
• Report.
• Presentation.
• Blog post.

An essay conclusion usually calls for a reflective or summarizing tone, while a research paper leans on phrases like “the findings suggest” or “the evidence points” to a clear result. Persuasive writing wants urgency, and a blog post can get away with something more conversational.

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Based on Tone

Of course, the tone matters a lot too. Your text’s tone can be:

• Formal.
• Neutral.
• Conversational.

For academic and business writing, formal conclusion starters (“in summary,” “ultimately”) suit the purpose. Neutral options (“overall,” “taken together”) work almost anywhere. Conversational starters (“so, what’s the takeaway?”) fit blogs, newsletters, and casual reports.

If you’re wondering how to start a conclusion paragraph for a class assignment, formal starters like “in summary” are always a safe bet. And knowing how to start a conclusion in an essay is half the battle — the rest is just delivering one clear final point.

Best Conclusion Starters by Category

To learn words to start a conclusion is just as important as the ability to understand how to start essay with quote. The opening draws readers in, while the conclusion leaves them with a final impression. If either feels weak, your paper may lose both clarity and impact.

That’s why you’ll find below a list of the best ending paragraph starters to make sure your work is perfectly summed up, whether you’re writing a research paper or a blog post.

General Closing Sentence Starters

• In conclusion.
• Overall.
• To sum up.
• All things considered.
• In short.
• To wrap up.
• In summary.
• On the whole.
• All in all.
• Taking everything into account.
• At its core.
• With all this in mind.

Academic Concluding Sentence Starters

• Based on the evidence presented.
• The findings suggest.
• The results indicate.
• According to the data.
• This analysis demonstrates.
• The evidence points to.
• These results confirm.
• The data collected shows.

Ways to Start a Conclusion in an Essay

• In conclusion.
• To conclude.
• As this essay has shown.
• Bringing these ideas together.
• Reflecting on the above.
• Drawing these points together.
• As demonstrated throughout this essay.

The above options work well for general essays, but more specialized assignments often call for more precise wording.

Conclusion Starter for a Research Paper

• This study suggests.
• Future research should.
• Further study is needed.
• The results of this research paper indicate.
• Taken together, these findings.
• This research contributes to.
• These findings add to the existing literature.

Words to Start a Conclusion in an Argumentative Essay

• Given the arguments presented.
• Without a doubt.
• Clearly, the evidence shows.
• It’s evident that.
• Considering all the facts.
• The case for this is clear.
• In light of the evidence.

Persuasive Closing Sentence Starters

• Therefore.
• For these reasons.
• It’s time to.
• The choice is clear.
• Ultimately, the decision.
• The evidence leaves little room for doubt.
• Given what’s at stake.

Not every conclusion needs an academic or persuasive tone, though. Less formal writing allows for a more direct and personal ending.

Informal Conclusion Phrases

• So, what’s the takeaway?
• Long story short.
• At the end of the day.
• Here’s the bottom line.
• To wrap things up.
• Bottom line.
• When it comes down to it.

Reflective Ending Sentence Starters

• Looking back.
• Reflecting on this experience.
• This journey has taught me.
• In hindsight.
• If I’ve learned anything, it’s this.
• Looking at how far I’ve come.

Reflective starters focus on personal experience, while analytical conclusions return the reader to evidence, interpretation, and results.

Analytical Conclusion Paragraph Starters

• This analysis reveals.
• Based on this literary analysis.
• The data suggests.
• These key findings show.
• What this analysis makes clear is.
• Taken as a whole, this analysis.

There are plenty of good ways to start a conclusion without leaning on the same three phrases every time.

📌 Quick tip: A good conclusion sentence avoids vague language. Instead, it gives the reader something particular to remember.

Concluding Sentence Starters Comparison Table

Here’s a quick side-by-side comparison of the different types of texts. You can come back to this table any time you wonder how to start conclusion paragraph in your case.

Strong Conclusion Sentence Examples

Still not sure how to start a conclusion sentence once you’ve picked a category above? Seeing a few full examples side by side usually makes it click faster than any rule ever could. Adapt the wording below to your own topic and evidence.

Essay Example

• “In conclusion, learning a second language does more than open doors professionally — it reshapes how you see the world.
• “All things considered, the habits you build in your first year of college tend to shape the next four.”
• “To conclude, kindness costs nothing, yet it’s often the hardest thing to practice consistently.”

Research Paper Example

• “Overall, the results suggest that sleep deprivation has a measurable effect on short-term memory, a finding that warrants further study.”
• “Based on the data collected, remote employees reported higher job satisfaction but lower long-term engagement.”
• “Taken together, these findings point to a clear link between screen time and disrupted sleep cycles.”

Argumentative Essay Example

• “Given the evidence discussed throughout this essay, schools should prioritize mental health resources as much as academic performance.
• “Without a doubt, stricter emissions regulations are the only realistic path to meeting climate targets on time.
• “Considering all the facts, a four-day workweek benefits both productivity and employee wellbeing.”

Informative Conclusion Paragraph Example

• “To sum up, composting food waste reduces landfill methane and improves soil health — a small habit with an outsized impact.
• “In short, regular exercise improves not just physical health but memory and mood as well.”
• “All in all, small businesses that adopt basic SEO practices see measurably higher organic traffic within months.

5 Common Mistakes in the Conclusion Paragraph Sentence Starters

Even after you’ve chosen sentence starters for conclusions, there are still a few common mistakes to avoid.

In the concluding paragraph, EduBirdie advises rereading your work and checking for typical mistakes before submitting. The ones we most often see are:

• Repeating the thesis word for word: it signals to the reader that you didn’t actually build on your original idea. A conclusion should show how your thinking developed through the paper, not loop back to square one.
• Introducing new ideas: new information after the ending paragraph starters confuses the reader and suggests the point was missing from the body, where it belonged in the first place.
• Overusing “In conclusion”: it’s not wrong, but if it’s the only transition you ever reach for, your writing starts to sound formulaic. Swapping in “overall,” “ultimately,” or “taken together” every so often keeps your conclusions from blurring together across essays.
• Making the ending too long: a conclusion that drags on defeats its own purpose. Three to five focused sentences almost always land better than a full extra paragraph rehashing everything you already said.
• Ending without a takeaway: if a reader finishes your conclusion and still isn’t sure what to do with the information, the ending hasn’t done its job. Every conclusion should leave them with one clear point to take away.

📌 Remember: it is okay to make mistakes. But it is important to notice them and know how to correct them before handing in your work!

4 Tips for Good Conclusion Sentence Starters

After all, picking the right sentence starter for conclusion is only half the job. The words that follow matter just as much because they determine whether your conclusion feels complete and convincing.

That’s why EduBirdie cannot leave you without the tips we use ourselves when writing concluding paragraphs:

• Connect back to the thesis: your conclusion should echo it rather than restate it. Instead of copying your opening claim word for word, reference the idea behind it in a new language. If your thesis argued that remote work improves productivity, your conclusion might open with something like “Given the patterns outlined above, remote work clearly reshapes how people work.”
• Summarize without repeating: a conclusion is not a highlight reel of what you said; it is a distilled version of your argument. Pick the two or three most important ideas, and connect them in a sentence or two.
• Leave the reader with a final thought: the best conclusions don’t just stop. They land on something the reader carries with them. This could be a broader implication (“what this means for the industry as a whole”), a call to action, or a question that extends the discussion beyond the page.
• Match the tone of the paper: a conclusion that suddenly turns casual after four pages of formal academic writing, or vice versa, breaks the reader’s trust in your voice. If your essay has been analytical throughout, keep the ending analytical. If it’s a reflective personal piece, it’s even expected to end on a more emotional note.

Thus, a strong conclusion should not simply repeat what came before. It should bring your main ideas together and leave the reader with a clear sense of why they matter.

Final Thoughts on the Final Sentence

Choosing the right conclusion starter is about more than replacing “in conclusion” with another phrase.

The best conclusions match your writing style, fit your tone, and support your main idea without saying it again in the same words. With the examples and tips in this guide, you will now write conclusions that sound natural, keep your argument focused, and leave readers with a clear final takeaway.

If you need help polishing an essay from the introduction to the conclusion, EduBirdie is always here to help you!

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