I'd like to ask if there's any difference between "in addition" and "plus" when "plus" functions as a sentence connector.
To be more specific, there's a cloze exercise from the book FCE Use of English 2 that goes like this:
…The WWF has decided to draw more attention to the importance of Europe's ancient woodlands. They are asking for the remaining forests to be protected by controlling the trade in wood. ______, governments are being asked to regenerate forests where necessary and manage them in a more nature-friendly way.
The choices to choose from are:
A. As well as B.In addition C. Too D. Plus
The answer key says B and I personally would go for B too. However, I can't seem to find a sound reason to refute choice D.Plus. Oxford dictionary says Plus when used as conjunction is synonymous with "Furthermore", which is actually more or less the same as "In addition". The example they give is,
"I've got too much on at work. Plus my father is not well."
Thus, structure and meaning wise, plus and in addition are similar. Yet the FCE book goes for "In addition" and I also feel that "in addition" sounds more "right" here.
I wonder if there's any difference in the usage of the two choices that I'm just unable to pinpoint.
Best Answer
Plus as a conjunction is considered informal.
This is likely why your exercise lists B as the correct or best answer. Informal words are discouraged in formal and academic writing. That's about the only difference I can see. They are equivalent in meaning in this context.