Public Services and Procurement Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Important notice

Writing Tips has been archived and won’t be updated before it is permanently deleted.

For the most up-to-date content, please consult Writing Tips Plus, which combines content from Writing Tips and The Canadian Style. And don’t forget to update your bookmarks!

Search Canada.ca
To begin your search, go to the alphabetical index below and click on the first letter of the word you are searching for.

on the one hand, on the other hand

Use these conjunctive adverbs to contrast two ideas.

On the one hand cannot be used alone. If you start a sentence with on the one hand, then you must pair it with on the other hand to introduce the second idea:

  • On the one hand, I love the freedom of working freelance. On the other hand, I crave the financial security of a full-time job.

However, you can use on the other hand by itself:

  • I love the freedom of working freelance. On the other hand, I crave the financial security of a full-time job.

Note that these phrases can make your writing heavy. Often, you can replace them with a simpler contrasting expression:

  • I love the freedom of working freelance, but I also crave the financial security of a full-time job.