谚语，即proverb。很多都陪伴我们一路成长，有很多的警世名言都可以应用到写作中，可以给你的文章提升说服力。谚语的应用一般要注意一下几点：
第一， 要考虑到东西方文化的差异。毕竟我们的文章是给外国友人欣赏的，所以要注意谚语的背景。说句不客气的话，我们上下五千年的历史长河里流淌了太多的文化，有太多东西让这些可爱的阅卷人看不懂了。
例如：no pain, no gain 不劳无获，no sacrifice , no gain 不入虎穴，焉得虎子
这两个no…no…的成语很多人都知道，其含义可以被全世界人接受，所以在TOEFL的文章中被频繁使用。 但是，no hunt, no bark 这个成语，直译过来是说不去打猎就不需要听到狗叫了，成语里的典故讲的是韩信说过的一句话：鸟尽弓藏，兔死狗烹。这句话我们很容易理解，而因为文化背景的区别，从原文理解起来对西方逻辑有点困难，所以不建议各位在 托福 的写作中应用。
第二， 学会灵活地运用谚语。挑选谚语是第一步，接下来的就是你如何去使用它了。比较常见的是作为主旨句出现在段落之中，这个前边提到了一些，例如：Knowledge will never lie 和It’s delightful to have friends from distant lands。表示友谊重要性的还有Friendship never sinks即友谊之船永不沉没，等等。
以下提供一些写作中比较常见的好的谚语，希望各位斟酌使用。
Practice makes perfect. 熟能生巧
Patience is the road to understanding. 理解万岁
All roads lead to Rome. 条条大路通罗马
Attitudes define everything. 态度决定一切
Every coin has its two sides. 有利有弊
One’s meat is another’s poison. 己所不欲，勿施于人
讲了这么多的句型和从句，应用起来也要注意方法，切忌移花接木，强买强卖。我见过很多考生喜欢写强调句，因为格式简单，模仿起来也容易，但是如果在每一个段落都出现倒装或者强调句，那也就不能凸现强调的意义了，反而让人感觉重复，索然无味。有些时候文章的段落里是不需要大篇幅应用从句的，强行介入的从句反而会使句子读起来文字繁冗罗列，好像负担很重的样子；谚语的使用要谨慎小心，合理的使用可以让阅卷人对你佩服的五体投地，盲目的应用可能会让人曲解你所表达的意思，所以我们不要做画蛇添足的事，对于TOEFL文章而言，更多精力要放在段落的整体性上，不需要应用的语法和词汇就干脆不用，宁缺毋滥。
构思协调结构，结构配合论证，论证揣摩方法，文章才会有整体感和说服力；单词组成句子，句子形成段落，段落构成文章，不仅仅针对TOEFL，任何一篇好的文章都不是一个孤立的个体，而是一点一滴积累起来的，有一种群拥而起的感觉。文章中闪光的词汇和句型，都是点滴的精华，使得你的文章可以让人读后有一种赏心悦目的感觉，如果这样的话，你的作文就成功了，因为只有读者说好的文章才是真正意义上的好文章。
以下贡献一篇IBT托福的议论文范文，文章结构上遵循规则，总分总的格式贯穿到底。内容上句式寻求清晰明了，语言也符合first draft的要求，论证则以例证为主导，通篇阅读下来有很好的整体性， 推荐各位考生模仿。
Private highway or Public transportation。
I believe that our government should spend more money on transportation. Here is why。
First of all, public transportation such as buses and subways can deliver a great amount of people at the same time. For instance, subways can always transfer hundreds of people to their destinations as soon as possible. Long distance buses will give a handful of help to many people who work in a different city as they live. In addition, local buses are heroes for making our everyday life easier。
Secondly, public transportation can effectively relieve the traffic congestion in rush hour. For example, living in a metropolitan like New York or Toronto, people are highly recommended to take public transportation. Not only the gasoline price today is scaring people away, but they always agree that it can take them forever to get out of a traffic jam in rush hour。
Last but not least, buses and subways today are typically powered by low emission fuels and even electricity. The government should realize that this will make a great contribution to the city’s environment. In the other hand, environmental problem has been raised as a global concern. I think our government should not consider the future impact of car emissions at last; otherwise they will eventually spend more money from their budget to save the environment。
As a matter of fact, highway improvement is somehow required as well. Nowadays, in the city I am living, almost every family owns a car. My parents are living outside the city, they drive to work everyday. In holidays, they will invite me to have a trip. We can plan the trip wherever we want to go. People have more freedom to travel with cars, and it turns out that highways are always occupied during weekend。
To conclude, public transportation requires more attention from our government. For instance, such as the quality of buses, the appropriate increase of routes and the safety concerns。
