My Experience with Culture Shock

Read the following text and fill in the blanks with the linking words below. You may use the same
connector more than once, but not all of them will be used.

 Furthermore, because, because of, in spite of the fact that, but, in contrast, although, for, since, and,
eventually, even though, in order to, moreover, indeed, first, as a result of, as a result, also, actually, so
that, in fact.

 Every person who has lived in a new culture has had some experience with
culture shock, (1) __________________ I am no exception, (2) __________________ I, too,
have had an experience with culture shock. (3) __________________ I have lived in the
United States for almost one year, I sometimes feel homesick, and still miss my family.
When I first came to the U.S., I was very excited. (4) __________________ everything was
new, everything was interesting. I enjoyed my independence from my parents;
I (5) __________________ enjoyed experiencing new situations and making new
friends. (6) __________________ everything was a little strange, I enjoyed these new
experiences.

(7) __________________ I got used to many of the differences,

and (8) __________________ I was used to them, I still wasn’t
comfortable. (9) __________________, little by little I grew tired of the
differences. (10) __________________ the things in America weren’t new to me anymore,
the differences weren’t interesting. (11) __________________, they had actually become
boring. (12) __________________, I began to miss things about Indonesia, such as food,
friends and the warm tropical climate more and more. I soon began depressed and
homesick. I stayed in my room (13) __________________ I was tired of speaking English
all the time. (14) __________________ I studied hard, my grades weren’t good. I wanted to
go home.

(15) __________________ these feelings, I decided to see my

advisor (16) __________________ I could get some advice about returning home without
finishing my studies. He told me two important things about culture
shock. (17) __________________, I learned that any person in a new culture has a similar
kind of experience, (18) __________________ that culture shock can’t be
avoided. (19) __________________, I learned that culture shock is not only universal, but
also temporary. (20) __________________ his advice, I realized that I should be patient,
and that I shouldn’t go home just yet. My advisor also suggested that I try to keep busy
and talk about my culture shock with my friends.

I followed this good advice, (21) __________________, as a result, my culture shock has

become less troublesome. (22) __________________ I sometimes still miss my life in
Indonesia, I don’t feel as depressed as I did. (23) __________________, I no longer want to
return home before I finish my studies. I know that I can adjust to this new life.
My Experience with Culture Shock

        Every
person who has lived in a new culture has had some experience
with culture shock, (1) and I am no exception, (2) for/because/since I, too,
have had an experience with culture shock. (3) In spite of the fact
that/Although/Even though I have lived in the United States for almost one
year, I sometimes feel homesick, and still miss my family. When I first came to
the U.S., I was very excited. (4) Since/Because everything was new,
everything was interesting. I enjoyed my independence from my parents;
I (5) alsoenjoyed experiencing new situations and making new friends. (6) In
spite of the fact that/Although/Even though everything was a little strange,
I enjoyed these new experiences.
(7) Eventually I got used to many of the differences, and (8) even
though/although/in spite of the fact that I was used to them, I still wasn’t
comfortable.(9) In fact/Indeed, little by little I grew tired of the
differences. (10) Because/Since the things in America weren’t new to me
anymore, the differences weren’t interesting. (11)In fact/Indeed, they had
actually become boring. (12) As a result, I began to miss things about
Indonesia, such as food, friends and the warm tropical climate more and
more. I soon began depressed and homesick. I stayed in my
room (13) because/sinceI was tired of speaking English all the
time. (14) Even though/Although/In spite of the fact that I studied hard, my
grades weren’t good. I wanted to go home.
(15) Because of these feelings, I decided to see my advisor (16) so that I
could get some advice about returning home without finishing my studies. He
told me two important things about culture shock. (17) First, I learned that any
person in a new culture has a similar kind of experience, (18) and that culture
shock can’t be avoided.(19) Moreover/Furthermore, I learned that culture
shock is not only universal, but also temporary. (20) As a result of  his
advice, I realized that I should be patient, and that I shouldn’t go home just
yet. My advisor also suggested that I try to keep busy and talk about my
culture shock with my friends.
I followed this good advice, (21) and, as a result, my culture shock has
become less troublesome. (22) Even though/Although/In spite of the fact
that I sometimes still miss my life in Indonesia, I don’t feel as depressed as I
did. (23)Moreover/Furthermore, I no longer want to return home before I
finish my studies. I know that I can adjust to this new life.
Read the sentence carefully and select the correct answer choice.
Example: Margaret buys a cup of coffee at the newsstand. So/Then, she goes to work. –
Answer: Then
1. We have a mouse in the house. Unfortunately/Therefore, we should get a cat.

 Unfortunately
 Therefore
2. Megan got into a car accident. Furthermore/As a result, her insurance rate increased.
 Furthermore
 As a result
3. Michael is very athletic and plays on the school basketball team. However/In addition, his
brother just stays at home and plays video games all day.
 However
 in addition
4. There are many occupations today. Such as/For Example, you can become a doctor,
engineer, teacher, artist, athlete, musician, or chef, just to name a few.
 Such as
 For example
5. The US government has been spending its money recklessly for too long.
Furthermore/As a result, the plans that Congress proposes are destined to put the nation at
great economic risk in the future.
 Furthermore
 As a result
6. Getting a college degree is important. In conclusion/More importantly, building a good
network of friends is crucial to future success.
 In conclusion
 More importantly
7. Hawaii is a beautiful place to live. In addition/On the contrary, Siberia is a very
inhospitable location.
 In addition
 On the contrary
8. Eating well will help you live a healthier life. Moreover/As a result, exercising every day is
also highly recommended.
 Moreover
 As a result
9. Do you enjoy completing these grammar exercises? Then/Yet, you should be able to
improve your writing skills in no time!
 Then
 Yet
10. Without getting a college degree, it will be difficult to get a job. Moreover/However,
some will say, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”
 Moreover
 However
11. The economy looks like it is improving. Therefore/However, with unemployment still very
high, we are far from passing through the recession.
 Therefore
 However
12. Dr. Xavier gave his patients other forms of medical treatment. In addition/On the
contrary, Dr. Magneto’s patients only took sugar pills. As a result, Dr. Xavier’s patients
healed more quickly than Dr. Magneto’s patients.
 In addition
 On the contrary
13. First, the author assumes that the two groups from these studies are the same group of
people. Therefore/However, considering these kinds of studies are based on random
sampling, the first group may not be the same people who responded in the second study.
 Therefore
 However
14. Studies have proven that not only wine but also a beer can be good for your health.
Therefore/However, only one drink a day will have helpful benefits. Beyond that, drinking
will cause more problems.
 Therefore
 However
15. Getting a degree from law school is a great accomplishment. However/In addition, it
does not guarantee that one will have a job after graduation.
 However
 In addition
16. The Catholic Church has faced many struggles. However/In addition, child molestation
may be the biggest challenge the Pope and the clergy must resolve in recent times.
 However
 in addition
17. Moving from one country to another can result in culture shock. However/In addition, the
language barrier that many immigrants face can lead to a long life of hardship.
 However
 In addition
18. The author’s assumption that men are inferior to women is severely lacking. More
importantly/However, she does bring up a valid point that men are unable to give birth to
babies.
 More importantly
 However
19. Lowering the national deficit would bring many positive benefits. However/For example,
banks would have more money to loan small business owners that could potentially
stimulate the economy.
 However,
 For example
20. A cease-fire between North and South Korea has been in effect for 50 years.
However/Furthermore, without a peace treaty, the potential for another war is always
there.

Exercise 2:
Always ask yourself what the exact relationship is between the sentences or parts of
sentences. Are you leading to the result of something? And are you making a deduction?
Are you introducing some contradictory evidence or ideas? Your choice of word or phrase
obviously depends on this. And always check in a good dictionary if you’re not quite sure
about a word’s use or its position in a sentence. Remember that punctuation will affect what
you use.

Insert the best alternative

1. Polls show that Tony Blair is the most popular Prime Minister this century.
________________ , there are even members of his own party who are uneasy with his
approach.
 a-In particular
 b-However
 c-For instance
2. There are some slight variations in temperature. ________________ , 26 to 27ºC should
be expected.
 a-consequently
 b-otherwise
 c- however
3. The two main Channel Islands; _______________ _, Jersey, and Guernsey are much
closer to France than to England.
 a-for example
 b-namely
 c-in particular
4. It was announced that nurses’ working hours would be increased by 25%.
______________ , even fewer trainee nurses are expected to join the profession.
 a- As a result
 b-So that
 c- Likewise
5. Sales of CDs have experienced a small but steady fall over the past 12 months.
_____________ , vinyl records have seen an increase in their share of the market, up to
1.7%.
 a- Above all
 b-Similarly
 c-In contrast
6. The Vice Chancellor explained that in light of the current financial climate and because of
unexpected bad debts, it would be necessary to peg salary levels at their current level for all
grades of staff. ______________ , no-one was getting a pay rise.
 a- Nevertheless
 b-In other words
 c-Similarly
7. It is clear that the situation in Brazil will improve only slowly. ______________ , the
economic problems being experienced in Japan, the outlook is slightly more optimistic.
 a-Furthermore
 b-In comparison
 c-nonetheless
8. In order to try to reduce car use in the inner cities, the government has announced new
restrictions on company parking spaces and ______________ a new tax on individual car
use.
 a- as well as
 b- in addition
 c- in the same way
9. Essays must be handed in by the deadline. ______________ ,they will not be marked.
 a- obviously
 b-otherwise
 c-as a result
10. ______________ it has been shown that fractures can occur at even relatively low
pressures, the use of the material should not be completely discounted.
 a- Nevertheless
 b-Because
 c-Even though
Answers
Exercise 1.

1. Therefore 11. However

2. As a result 12. on the contrary

3. However 13. However

4. for example 14. However

5. furthermore 15. However

6. More importantly 16. in addition

7. on the contrary 17. in addition

8.  Moreover 18. however

9. then 19. For example

10.  however 20. furthermore

Exercise 2.
1. However
2. Consequently
3. Namely
4. As a result
5. In contrast
6. Nevertheless
7. In comparison
8. In the same way
9. Otherwise
10. Even though