Conjunctions

What is a conjunction?
A conjunction is a part of speech that is used to connect words, phrases, clauses, or
sentences. Conjunctions are considered to be invariable grammar particle, and they
may or may not stand between items they conjoin.

Types of Conjunctions
There are several different types of conjunctions that do various jobs within sentence
structures. These include:

Subordinating conjunctions Also known as subordinators, these

conjunctions join dependent clauses to independent clauses.

Coordinating conjunction Also known as coordinators, these

conjunctions coordinate or join two or more sentences, main clauses, words, or other
parts of speech which are of the same syntactic importance.

Correlative conjunction These conjunctions correlate, working in pairs to

join phrases or words that carry equal importance within a sentence.

Conjunctive adverbs While some instructors do not teach conjunctive

adverbs alongside conjunctions, these important parts of speech are worth a mention
here. These adverbs always connect one clause to another, and are used to show
sequence, contrast, cause and effect, and other relationships.
When people first learn to write, they usually begin with short, basic sentences like
these: My name is Ted. I am a boy. I like dogs. One of the most important jobs
conjunctions do is to connect these short sentences so they sound more like this: I am
a boy named Ted, and I like dogs.

Conjunction Rules

There are a few important rules for using conjunctions. Remember them and you will
find that your writing flows better:

Conjunctions are for connecting thoughts, actions, and ideas as well as nouns,
clauses, and other parts of speech. For example: Mary went to the
supermarket and bought oranges.

Conjunctions are useful for making lists. For example: We made pancakes,
eggs, and coffee for breakfast.

When using conjunctions, make sure that all the parts of your sentences agree.
For example: I work busily yet am careful does not agree. I work
busily yet carefully shows agreement.

Conjunctions List
There are only a few common conjunctions, yet these words perform many functions:
They present explanations, ideas, exceptions, consequences, and contrasts. Here is a
list of conjunctions commonly used in American English:

And

As

Because

But

For

Just as

Or

Neither

Nor

Not only

So

Whether

Yet

Examples of Conjunctions
In the following examples, the conjunctions are in bold for easy recognition:

I tried to hit the nail but hit my thumb instead.

I have two goldfish and a cat.

Id like a bike for commuting to work.

You can have peach ice cream or a brownie sundae.

Neither the black dress northe gray one looks right on me.

My dad always worked hard so we could afford the things we wanted.

I try very hard in school yet I am not receiving good grades.

CONJUNCTIONS
Conjunctions are words used as joiners.
Different kinds of conjunctions join different kinds of grammatical structures.
The following are the kinds of conjunctions:

A. COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS (FANBOYS)

for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

Coordinating conjunctions join equals to one another:

words to words,

phrases to phrases,

clauses to clauses.

Coordinating conjunctions usually form looser connections than other conjunctions do.

Coordinating conjunctions go in between items joined, not at the beginning or end.

Punctuation with coordinating conjunctions:

When a coordinating conjunction joins two words, phrases, or subordinate clauses, no
comma should be placed before the conjunction.

A coordinating conjunction joining three or more words, phrases, or subordinate

clauses creates a series and requires commas between the elements.

A coordinating conjunction joining two independent clauses creates a compound

sentence and requires a comma before the coordinating conjunction

B. CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
either. . .or

both. . . and

neither. . . nor

not only. . . but also

These pairs of conjunctions require equal (parallel) structures after each one.

C. CONJUNCTIVE ADVERBS
These conjunctions join independent clauses together.
The following are frequently used conjunctive adverbs:
after all

in addition

next

also

incidentally

nonetheless

as a result

indeed

on the contrary

besides

in fact

on the other hand

consequently

in other words

otherwise

finally

instead

still

for example

likewise

then

furthermore

meanwhile

therefore

hence

moreover

thus

however

Punctuation
:

nevertheless

Place a semicolon before the conjunctive adverb and a comma after

theconjunctive adverb.

D. SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
These words are commonly used as subordinating conjunctions

after

in order (that)

unless

although

insofar as

until

as

in that

when

as far as

lest

whenever

as soon as

no matter how

where

as if

now that

wherever

as though

once

whether

because

provided (that)

while

before

since

even if

so that

even though

supposing (that)

how

than

if

that

inasmuch as

though

in case (that)

till

why

Subordinating conjunctions also join two clauses together, but in doing so, they make
one clause dependent (or "subordinate") upon the other.

A subordinating conjunction may appear at a sentence beginning or between two

clauses in a sentence.

A subordinate conjunction usually provides a tighter connection between clauses than a

coordinating conjunctions does.
Loose:
Tight:

It is raining, so we have an umbrella.

Because it is raining, we have an umbrella.

Punctuation Note:

When the dependent clause is placed first in a sentence, use a comma between the two
clauses. When the independent clause is placed first and the dependent clause second, do not
separate the two clauses with a comma.

Not to be confused with conjugation and conjunctive (grammar).

English grammar

Adjectives

Adverbs

English articles

Clauses (in English)

Collocation (in English)

Double negatives

Compounds

Conditionals

Conjunctions

Determiners

Gender

Idiom (in English)

Interjections

Inversion

Nouns

Pronouns

Phrases

Plurals

Possessives

Prepositions

Verbs

Auxiliaries, contractions

Irregular verbs

Modal verbs

deduction

habits and past facts

Passive voice

Phrasal verbs

Subjunctive

Verb usage
Grammar disputes

v
t
e

In grammar, a conjunction (abbreviated CONJ or CNJ) is a part of speech that connects

words, sentences, phrases, or clauses. A discourse connective is a conjunction joining
sentences.[citation needed] This definition may overlap with that of other parts of speech, so
what constitutes a "conjunction" must be defined for each language. In general, a
conjunction is an invariable grammatical particle, and it may or may not stand between
the items in a conjunction.
The definition may also be extended to idiomatic phrases that behave as a unit with the
same function, e.g. "as well as", "provided that".
A simple literary example of a conjunction: "the truth of nature, and the power of giving
interest" (Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Biographia Literaria)[1]
Conjunctions may be placed at the beginning of sentences: [2] "But some superstition
about the practice persists".[3]
Contents
[hide]

1Coordinating conjunctions

2Correlative conjunctions

3Subordinating conjunctions

4Starting a sentence

5See also

6References

7External links

Coordinating conjunctions[edit]
Coordinating conjunctions, also called coordinators, are conjunctions that join,
or coordinate, two or more items (such as words, main clauses, or sentences) of equal
syntactic importance. In English, the mnemonic acronym FANBOYS can be used to
remember the coordinators for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.[4] These are not the only
coordinating conjunctions; various others are used, including [5]:ch. 9[6]:p. 171 "and nor" (British),
"but nor" (British), "or nor" (British), "neither" ("They don't gamble; neither do they
smoke"), "no more" ("They don't gamble; no more do they smoke"), and "only" ("I would
go, only I don't have time"). Types of coordinating conjunctions include cumulative
conjunctions, adversative conjunctions, alternative conjunctions, and illative
conjunctions.[7]
Here are some examples of coordinating conjunctions in English and what they do:

For presents rationale ("They do not gamble or smoke, for they are ascetics.")

And presents non-contrasting item(s) or idea(s) ("They gamble, and they

smoke.")

Nor presents a non-contrasting negative idea ("They do not gamble, nor do

they smoke.")

But presents a contrast or exception ("They gamble, but they don't smoke.")

Or presents an alternative item or idea ("Every day they gamble, or they

smoke.")

Yet presents a contrast or exception ("They gamble, yet they don't smoke.")

So presents a consequence ("He gambled well last night, so he smoked a cigar

to celebrate.")

Correlative conjunctions[edit]
Correlative conjunctions work in pairs to join words and groups of words of equal weight
in a sentence. There are many different pairs of correlative conjunctions:

either...or

not only...but (also)

neither...nor

both...and

whether...or

just as...so

the...the

as...as

as much...as

no sooner...than

rather...than

Examples:

You either do your work or prepare for a trip to the office. (Either do, or prepare)

He is not only handsome, but also brilliant. (Not only A, but also B)

Not only is he handsome, but also he is brilliant. (Not only is he A, but also he is
B)

Neither the basketball team nor the football team is doing well.

Both the cross country team and the swimming team are doing well.

You must decide whether you stay or you go.

Just as many Americans love basketball, so many Canadians love ice hockey.

The more you practice dribbling, the better you will be at it.

Football is as fast as hockey (is (fast)).

Football is as much an addiction as it is a sport.

No sooner did she learn to ski, than the snow began to thaw.

I would rather swim than surf.

Subordinating conjunctions[edit]
Subordinating conjunctions, also called subordinators, are conjunctions that join
an independent clause and a dependent clause, and also introduce adverb clauses.
The most common subordinating conjunctions in the English language
include after, although, as, as far as, as if, as long as, as soon as, as
though, because, before, even if, even though,every time, if, in order that, since, so, so
that, than, though, unless, until, when, whenever, where, whereas, wherever, and while.
Complementizers can be considered to be special subordinating conjunctions that
introduce complement clauses: e.g. "I wonder whether he'll be late. I hope that he'll be
on time". Some subordinating conjunctions (until and while), when used to introduce a
phrase instead of a full clause, become prepositions with identical meanings.
The subordinating conjunction performs two important functions within a sentence:
illustrating the importance of the independent clause and providing a transition between

two ideas in the same sentence by indicating a time, place, or cause and therefore
affecting the relationship between the clauses. [8]
In many verb-final languages, subordinate clauses must precede the main clause on
which they depend. The equivalents to the subordinating conjunctions of non-verb-final
languages such as English are either

clause-final conjunctions (e.g. in Japanese); or

suffixes attached to the verb, and not separate words[9]

Such languages often lack conjunctions as a part of speech, because:

the form of the verb used is formally nominalised and cannot occur in an
independent clause

the clause-final conjunction or suffix attached to the verb is a marker of case and
is also used in nouns to indicate certain functions. In this sense, the subordinate
clauses of these languages have much in common with postpositional phrases.

In other West Germanic languages like German and Dutch, the word order after a
subordinating conjunction is different from that in an independent clause, e.g. in
Dutch want("for") is coordinating, but omdat ("because") is subordinating. The clause
after the coordinating conjunction has normal word order, but the clause after the
subordinating conjunction has verb-final word order. Compare:
Hij gaat naar huis, want hij is ziek. ("He goes home, for he is ill.")
Hij gaat naar huis, omdat hij ziek is. ("He goes home because he is ill.")
Similarly, in German, "denn" (for) is coordinating, but "weil" (because) is
subordinating:
Er geht nach Hause, denn er ist krank. ("He goes home, for he is ill.")
Er geht nach Hause, weil er krank ist. ("He goes home, because he is ill.")

Starting a sentence[edit]
See also: Disputes in English grammar

Many students are taught, and one guide maintains, that English
sentences should not start with conjunctions such as "and", "but",
"because", and "so".[10] Some hypothesize that teachers invented this
"rule" to encourage students to avoid overly simple sentences. [11] This
superstition has "no historical or grammatical foundation". [12] First-rate
writers from across the English-speaking world regularly begin sentences
with conjunctions, in even the most formal writing:

"But she must give security that she will not marry without royal
consent, if she holds her lands of the Crown, or without the consent of
whatever other lord she may hold them of."[13]

"But we, or our chief justice if we are not in England, are first to be
informed."[13]

"So please you, step aside."[14]

"Yet, if thou swearst, Thou mayst prove false." [14]

"And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the
protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our
Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor." [15]

"But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined
by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and
against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House
respectively."[16]

"But in choosing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the
Representatives from each State having one Vote; a quorum for this
Purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two thirds of the
States, and a Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a
Choice."[17]

"And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in

which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the
Effect thereof."[18]

"And they shall make a List of all the Persons voted for, and of the
Number of Votes for each; which List they shall sign and certify, and
transmit sealed to the Seat of the Government of the United States,
directed to the President of the Senate." [17]

"And this power has been exercised when the last act, required from
the person possessing the power, has been performed." [19]

"But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate,

we can not hallow this ground." Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg
Address

"Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the
bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be
sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid
by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years
ago, so still it must be said "the judgments of the Lord are true and
righteous altogether."[20]

"So he took him to his own house, and dressed him up clean and
nice, and had him to breakfast and dinner and supper with the family,
and was just old pie to him, so to speak."[21]

"And after supper he talked to him about temperance and such things
till the old man cried, and said he'd been a fool, and fooled away his
life; but now he was a-going to turn over a new leaf and be a man
nobody wouldn't be ashamed of, and he hoped the judge would help
him and not look down on him."[21]

"Because no man can ever feel his own identity aright except his eyes
be closed; as if darkness were indeed the proper element of our
essences, though light be more congenial to our clayey part." [22]

"Because, while the whales of this order, though smaller than those of
the former order, nevertheless retain a proportionate likeness to them
in figure, yet the bookbinder's Quarto volume in its dimensioned form
does not preserve the shape of the Folio volume, but the Octavo
volume does."[22]

"So the inquiries can coexist, though there is much overlap between
them."[23]

"And it appears that it was this latter factor which underlay the
dismissal of the appeal by the majority. But it seems to me that the
question of whether it is fair, just and reasonable is better considered
against the background of whether a sufficiently proximate
relationship exists."[24]

"But the earlier decisions in Pratap Narain Singh Deo and Valsala K.
were not brought to the notice of the Court in the two later decisions
in Mubasir Ahmed and Mohd. Nasir."[25]

"And now we have Facebook and Twitter and Wordpress and Tumblr
and all those other platforms that take our daily doings and transform
them into media."[26]

"So any modern editor who is not paranoid is a fool". [27]

"Because, in the end, free markets and free minds will win". [27]

"And strikes are protected globally, existing in many of the countries

with labour laws outside the Wagner Act model." [28]

See also[edit]

Asyndeton

Cohesion (linguistics)

Conjunctive adverb

Conjunctive mood, sometimes used with conjunctions

Genitive connector

Logical conjunction

On a white bus

Polysyndeton

Relativizer

Serial comma the comma used immediately before a coordinating

conjunction preceding the final item in a list of three or more items

So (sentence closer)

So (sentence opener)

Syndeton

References[edit]
1. Jump up^ Greenblatt, Stephen (2006). The Norton Anthology of British
Literature, 8th Ed. Vol. D. New York: Norton. p. 478.
2. Jump up^ Richard Nordquist. "Is It Wrong to Begin a Sentence With
"But"?". Grammar.about.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
3. Jump up^ Garner, Bryan A. (2001). Legal Writing in Plain English: A
Text with Exercises. The University of Chicago Press. p. 20. ISBN 0226-28418-2.: "[t]he idea that it is poor grammar to begin a sentence
with And or But" is "nonsense baggage that so many writers lug
around".

4. Jump up^ Paul; Adams, Michael (2009). How English Works: A

Linguistic Introduction (2nd ed.). New York: Pearson Longman.
p. 152. ISBN 978-0-205-60550-7.
5. Jump up^ Algeo, John (2006). British or American English? A
Handbook of Word and Grammar Patterns. Cambridge Univ. Press.
6. Jump up^ Burchfield, R. W., ed. (1996). Fowler's Modern English
Usage (3rd ed.).
7. Jump up^ [1]
8. Jump up^ "What are Subordinating Conjunctions?".
Gingersoftware.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
9. Jump up^ Dryer, Matthew S. (2005). "Order of adverbial subordinator
and clause". In Haspelmath, Martin; Dryer, Matthew S.; Gil, David;
Comrie, Bernard. The World Atlas of Language Structures. Oxford
University Press. ISBN 0-199-25591-1.
10. Jump up^ "Grammarly Handbook | Starting a Sentence with a
Conjunction Grammar Rules". Grammarly.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
11. Jump up^ Landis, Jacquelyn. "Can And or But Begin a Sentence?".
Dailywritingtips.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
12. Jump up^ University of Chicago (2010). The Chicago Manual of
Style (16th ed.). Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press. p. 257. ISBN 978-0226-10420-1.
13. ^ Jump up to:a b Magna Carta (2012-03-10). "English translation of
Magna Carta - The British Library". Bl.uk. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
14. ^ Jump up to:a b "The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet" (PDF).
Folgerdigitaltexts.org. Retrieved2015-11-26.
15. Jump up^ Jefferson, Thomas (2012-03-10). "United States Declaration
of Independence". Retrieved 11 March 2016.
16. Jump up^ "National Constitution Center". Constitutioncenter.org.
Retrieved 2015-11-26.
17. ^ Jump up to:a b "U.S. Senate: Constitution of the United States".
Senate.gov. Retrieved2015-11-26.
18. Jump up^ "U.S. Senate: Constitution of the United States". Senate.gov.
Retrieved 2015-11-26.

19. Jump up^ "Google Scholar". Scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2015-1126.

20. Jump up^ "Abraham Lincoln: Second Inaugural Address. U.S.
Inaugural Addresses. 1989". Bartleby.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
21. ^ Jump up to:a b "HUCKLEBERRY FINN, By Mark Twain, Complete".
Gutenberg.org. Retrieved2015-11-26.
22. ^ Jump up to:a b "Moby Dick; Or the Whale, by Herman Melville".
Gutenberg.org. Retrieved2015-11-26.
23. Jump up^ "Google Scholar". Scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2015-1126.
24. Jump up^ "Michael and others v. The Chief Constable of South Wales
Police and another, The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom" (PDF).
Supremecourt.uk. 2015. Retrieved2015-11-26.
25. Jump up^ [2] Archived January 19, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
26. Jump up^ "An Optimist's Guide to Political Correctness". The Atlantic.
Retrieved 2015-11-26.
27. ^ Jump up to:a b "The case for liberal optimism". The Economist. 201501-31. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
28. Jump up^ "Saskatchewan Federation of Labour v. Saskatchewan SCC Cases (Lexum)". Scc-csc.lexum.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.

External links[edit]