Except in an emergency, these doors must remain closed. STUDY NOTE: Grammar
Except and except for mean the same thing. You can use except for and except in at the beginning of a sentence. Otherwise, except does not come at the beginning of a sentence.
apart from / aside from preposition used when mentioning one or two things that do not fit the main thing that you are saying, especially when they are not very important:
Aside from one or two minor errors, this is an excellent piece of research.
The films were all made in Hollywood, apart from one, which was made in the UK.
The weather was not very good in the first week. Apart from that, it was a good holiday.
excluding / not including preposition used when saying that something, especially a total number or amount, does not include a particular thing or person:
The software costs $49.95, not including tax.
Excluding students, the total number of unemployed rose from 2 million to 2.3 million.
STUDY NOTE: Grammar
Excluding is more formal than not including.
with the exception of / with one exception formal phrases used when you want to emphasize that something does not include a particular thing or person:
Denmark has more wind turbines than any other place in the world, with the exception of California.
With the exception of skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women.
The prisons are, with one exception, overcrowded and lacking in facilities for prisoners.
but preposition used especially after nothing, no one, any, anyone, anything, all, everything and everyone, when saying that something is the only thing, or someone is the only person:
There is nothing but trees, for mile after mile.
The garment covers everything but the eyes.
All but a few of her family died of the disease.
other than a phrase meaning except, used especially in negative sentences:
He had no interests other than teaching.
No one other than her knew about the plan.
Daley has said little about his childhood, other than that it was happy and normal.
Some airlines will not allow you to take pets other than dogs, cats and birds.
in a few cases / in a small number of cases used when emphasizing that something only happens a few times or to a few people:
In a few cases the information has gone missing from the files.
Surgery can only help in a small number of cases.
2. Someone or something that is not included
exception noun [uncountable and countable] someone or something that is different from the others and cannot therefore be included in a statement:
The health of most of the patients improved, although there were one or two exceptions, (=one or two patients did not get better)
Apart from a few minor exceptions (=unimportant exceptions), the two countries' legal systems are very similar.
Not many first-rate writers have written about film. A notable exception (=an important exception) is Grahame Greene, who reviewed movies regularly between 1935 and 1940.
All societies, without exception, share the same characteristics. (=used when saying that there are no exceptions)
Giving Opinions
*see also Agreeing, Disagreeing
What you say when giving your opinion about something
Ways of saying what another person's opinion is
To say what your opinion is about something
1. What you say when giving your opinion about something
in my opinion / in my view used when giving your opinion about something:
Their concerns are, in my opinion, fully justified.
In my opinion, the cathedral is one of the world's most beautiful churches.
In my view, the court made the right decision.
STUDY NOTE: Grammar
Don't say 'According to my opinion' when you mean in my opinion.
I think that used when giving your opinion about something:
I think that everyone should be able to own their own home.
I think that hunting should be banned. STUDY NOTE: Grammar
In formal essay writing, people often try to avoid using phrases with 'I' or 'me', and use more impersonal phrases such as in this writer's view or in this writer's opinion.
When you are writing essays, it is a good idea to quote another writer to support your argument, rather than just say I think that ... This will give your argument much more authority.
For example: As Hobsbawm (1969) has pointed out, the rise of the cotton industry created a huge demand for cotton goods.
in this writer's view / opinion used in formal essays when giving your opinion:
In this writer's view, the present system is in need of reform.
In this writer's opinion, the arguments against using nuclear energy are overwhelming.
it seems to me that used when saying that you think that something is probably true. You use this especially when you have considered a situation carefully and want to give your overall opinion about it:
It seems to me that there is some truth in her argument.
I believe that used about strongly held beliefs, for example about moral issues:
I believe that the death penalty is morally wrong.
2. Ways of saying what another person's opinion is
somebody's opinion / view is that used when saying what another writer's opinion is about something:
The judge's opinion was that she was fit to stand trial.
His view is that consumers should be told the whole truth about the product they are buying.
The general opinion is that the combined vaccine works better. (=most people think this)
in somebody's opinion / view used when saying what another writer's opinion is about something:
The important thing, in Galileo's opinion, was to accept the facts and build a theory to fit them.
Criticism is quite different, in Barthes's view, from ordinary reading.
In his opinion, the portrait painter seeks to capture the moment when the model looks most like himself or herself.
be of the opinion that / take the view that to have a particular opinion. These are formal phrases:
Until then, most scientists were of the opinion that these variations in weather were compatible with established climate patterns.
Levitt takes the view that low prices are the key to marketing success.
have / hold an opinion to have a particular opinion: