Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Somewordsaresatisfiedspendinganeveningathome,alone,eatingicecream
rightoutofthebox,watchingSeinfeldrerunsonTV,orreadingagoodbook.Others
aren'thappyunlessthey'reoutonthetown,mixingitupwithotherwords;they're
joinersandtheyjustcan'thelpthemselves.Aconjunctionisajoiner,awordthat
connects(conjoins)partsofasentence.
Coordinating Conjunctions
Thesimple,littleconjunctionsarecalledcoordinatingconjunctions(youcan
clickonthewordstoseespecificdescriptionsofeachone):
Coordinating Conjunctions
and but or yet for nor so
(Itmayhelpyouremembertheseconjunctionsbyrecallingthattheyallhave
fewerthanfourletters.Also,remembertheacronymFANBOYS:ForAndNorBut
OrYetSo.Becarefulofthewordsthenandnow;neitherisacoordinating
conjunction,sowhatwesayaboutcoordinatingconjunctions'rolesinasentenceand
punctuationdoesnotapplytothosetwowords.)
Whenacoordinatingconjunctionconnectstwoindependentclauses,itisoften
(butnotalways)accompaniedbyacomma:
UlysseswantstoplayforUConn,buthehashadtroublemeetingthe
academicrequirements.
Whenthetwoindependentclausesconnectedbyacoordinatingconjunctionarenicely
balancedorbrief,manywriterswillomitthecomma:
Ulysseshasagreatjumpshotbutheisn'tquickonhisfeet.
Thecommaisalwayscorrectwhenusedtoseparatetwoindependentclauses
connectedbyacoordinatingconjunction.SeePunctuationBetweenTwo
IndependentClausesforfurtherhelp.
Acommaisalsocorrectwhenandisusedtoattachthelastitemofaseriallist,
althoughmanywriters(especiallyinnewspapers)willomitthatfinalcomma:
Ulyssesspenthissummerstudyingbasicmath,writing,andreading
comprehension.
Whenacoordinatingconjunctionisusedtoconnectalltheelementsinaseries,a
commaisnotused:
PresbyteriansandMethodistsandBaptistsaretheprevalentProtestant
congregationsinOklahoma.
Acommaisalsousedwithbutwhenexpressingacontrast:
Thisisausefulrule,butdifficulttoremember.
Inmostoftheirotherrolesasjoiners(otherthanjoiningindependentclauses,
thatis),coordinatingconjunctionscanjointwosentenceelementswithoutthehelpof
acomma.
HemingwayandFitzgeraldareamongtheAmericanexpatriatesofthe
betweenthewarsera.
Hemingwaywasrenownedforhisclearstyleandhisinsightsinto
Americannotionsofmaleidentity.
ItishardtosaywhetherHemingwayorFitzgeraldisthemore
interestingculturaliconofhisday.
AlthoughHemingwayissometimesdisparagedforhisunpleasant
portrayalofwomenandforhisglorificationofmachismo,we
nonethelessfindsomesympathetic,evenheroic,femalefiguresinhis
novelsand short stories.
Thesameistruewiththeconjunctionbut.Asentencebeginningwithand
orbutwilltendtodrawattentiontoitselfanditstransitionalfunction.
Writersshouldexaminesuchsentenceswithtwoquestionsinmind:(1)
wouldthesentenceandparagraphfunctionjustaswellwithouttheinitial
conjunction?(2)shouldthesentenceinquestionbeconnectedtothe
previoussentence?Iftheinitialconjunctionstillseemsappropriate,useit.
Amongthecoordinatingconjunctions,themostcommon,ofcourse,areand,
but,andor.Itmightbehelpfultoexploretheusesofthesethreelittlewords.The
examplesbelowbynomeansexhaustthepossiblemeaningsoftheseconjunctions.
AND
a. Tosuggestthatoneideaischronologicallysequentialtoanother:
"Tashondasentinherapplicationsandwaitedbythephonefora
response."
b. Tosuggestthatoneideaistheresultofanother:"Willieheardthe
weatherreportandpromptlyboardeduphishouse."
c. Tosuggestthatoneideaisincontrasttoanother(frequentlyreplacedby
butinthisusage):"JuanitaisbrilliantandShalimarhasapleasant
personality.
d. Tosuggestanelementofsurprise(sometimesreplacedbyyetinthis
usage):"Hartfordisarichcityandsuffersfrommanysymptomsof
urbanblight."
e. Tosuggestthatoneclauseisdependentuponanother,conditionally
(usuallythefirstclauseisanimperative):"Useyourcreditcards
frequentlyandyou'llsoonfindyourselfdeepindebt."
f. Tosuggestakindof"comment"onthefirstclause:"Charliebecame
addictedtogamblingandthatsurprisednoonewhoknewhim."
BUT
a. Tosuggestacontrastthatisunexpectedinlightofthefirstclause:"Joey
lostafortuneinthestockmarket,buthestillseemsabletolivequite
comfortably."
b. Tosuggestinanaffirmativesensewhatthefirstpartofthesentence
impliedinanegativeway(sometimesreplacedbyonthecontrary):
"Theclubneverinvestedfoolishly,butusedtheservicesofasage
investmentcounselor."
c. Toconnecttwoideaswiththemeaningof"withtheexceptionof"(and
thenthesecondwordtakesoverassubject):"Everybodybut
Goldenbreathistryingoutfortheteam."
OR
a. Tosuggestthatonlyonepossibilitycanberealized,excludingoneor
theother:"Youcanstudyhardforthisexamoryoucanfail."
b. Tosuggesttheinclusivecombinationofalternatives:"Wecanbroil
chickenonthegrilltonight,orwecanjusteatleftovers.
c. Tosuggestarefinementofthefirstclause:"SmithCollegeisthe
premierallwomen'scollegeinthecountry,orsoitseemstomostSmith
Collegealumnae."
d. Tosuggestarestatementor"correction"ofthefirstpartofthesentence:
"Therearenorattlesnakesinthiscanyon,orsoourguidetellsus."
e. Tosuggestanegativecondition:"TheNewHampshirestatemottoisthe
rathergrim"Livefreeordie."
f. Tosuggestanegativealternativewithouttheuseofanimperative(see
useofandabove):"Theymustapprovehispoliticalstyleorthey
wouldn'tkeepelectinghimmayor."
Authority used for this section on the uses of and, but, and or: A University Grammar of English by
Randolph Quirk and Sidney Greenbaum. Longman Group: Essex, England. 1993. Used with
permission. Examples our own.
The Others . . .
TheconjunctionNORisnotextinct,butitisnotusednearlyasoftenasthe
otherconjunctions,soitmightfeelabitoddwhennordoescomeupinconversation
orwriting.Itsmostcommonuseisasthelittlebrotherinthecorrelativepair,neither
nor(seebelow):
Heisneithersanenorbrilliant.
ThatisneitherwhatIsaidnorwhatImeant.
>Itcanbeusedwithothernegativeexpressions:
ThatisnotwhatImeanttosay,norshouldyouinterpretmystatement
asanadmissionofguilt.
Itispossibletousenorwithoutaprecedingnegativeelement,butitisunusualand,to
anextent,ratherstuffy:
George'shandshakeisasgoodasanywrittencontract,norhasheever
provenuntrustworthy.
ThewordYETfunctionssometimesasanadverbandhasseveralmeanings:in
addition("yetanothercauseoftrouble"or"asimpleyetnoblewoman"),even("yet
moreexpensive"),still("heisyetanovice"),eventually("theymayyetwin"),andso
soonasnow("he'snothereyet").Italsofunctionsasacoordinatingconjunction
meaningsomethinglike"nevertheless"or"but."Thewordyetseemstocarryan
elementofdistinctivenessthatbutcanseldomregister.
Johnplaysbasketballwell,yethisfavoritesportisbadminton.
Thevisitorscomplainedloudlyabouttheheat,yettheycontinuedto
playgolfeveryday.
Insentencessuchasthesecondone,above,thepronounsubjectofthesecondclause
("they,"inthiscase)isoftenleftout.Whenthathappens,thecommaprecedingthe
conjunctionmightalsodisappear:"Thevisitorscomplainedloudlyyetcontinuedto
playgolfeveryday."
Yetissometimescombinedwithotherconjunctions,butorand.Itwouldnotbe
unusualtoseeandyetinsentencesliketheonesabove.Thisusageisacceptable.
ThewordFORismostoftenusedasapreposition,ofcourse,butitdoesserve,
onrareoccasions,asacoordinatingconjunction.Somepeopleregardtheconjunction
forasratherhighfalutinandliterary,anditdoestendtoaddabitofweightinesstothe
text.Beginningasentencewiththeconjunction"for"isprobablynotagoodidea,
exceptwhenyou'resinging"Forhe'sajollygoodfellow."For"hasserioussequential
implicationsandinitsusetheorderofthoughtsismoreimportantthanitis,say,with
becauseorsince.Itsfunctionistointroducethereasonfortheprecedingclause:
Johnthoughthehadagoodchancetogetthejob,forhisfatherwason
thecompany'sboardoftrustees.
Mostofthevisitorswerehappyjustsittingaroundintheshade,forit
hadbeenalong,dustyjourneyonthetrain.
BecarefuloftheconjunctionSO.Sometimesitcanconnecttwoindependent
clausesalongwithacomma,butsometimesitcan't.Forinstance,inthissentence,
SotoisnottheonlyOlympicathleteinhisfamily,soarehisbrother,
sister,andhisUncleChet.
wherethewordsomeans"aswell"or"inaddition,"mostcarefulwriterswouldusea
semicolonbetweenthetwoindependentclauses.Inthefollowingsentence,whereso
isactinglikeaminorleague"therefore,"theconjunctionandthecommaareadequate
tothetask:
Sotohasalwaysbeennervousinlargegatherings,soitisnosurprise
thatheavoidscrowdsofhisadoringfans.
Sometimes,atthebeginningofasentence,sowillactasakindofsummingupdevice
ortransition,andwhenitdoes,itisoftensetofffromtherestofthesentencewitha
comma:
So, the sheriff peremptorily removed the child from the custody of his
parents.
Generally,theonlyquestionaboutthanariseswhenwehaveto
decidewhetherthewordisbeingusedasaconjunctionorasa
preposition.Ifit'sapreposition(andMerriamWebster'sdictionary
providesforthisusage),thenthewordthatfollowsitshouldbeinthe
objectform.
He'stallerandsomewhatmorehandsomethanme.
Justbecauseyoulooklikehimdoesn'tmeanyoucanplay
betterthanhim.
He'stallerandsomewhatmorehandsomethanI[am
handsome].
Youcanplaybetterthanhe[canplay].
Subordinating Conjunctions
ASubordinatingConjunction(sometimescalledadependentwordor
subordinator)comesatthebeginningofaSubordinate(orDependent)Clauseand
establishestherelationshipbetweenthedependentclauseandtherestofthesentence.
Italsoturnstheclauseintosomethingthatdependsontherestofthesentenceforits
meaning.
Hetooktothestageasthoughhehadbeenpreparingforthismoment
allhislife.
Becausehelovedacting,herefusedtogiveuphisdreamofbeinginthe
movies.
Unlessweactnow,allislost.
Noticethatsomeofthesubordinatingconjunctionsinthetablebelowafter,
before,sincearealsoprepositions,butassubordinatorstheyarebeingusedto
introduceaclauseandtosubordinatethefollowingclausetotheindependentelement
inthesentence.
In formal, academic text, it's a good idea to reserve the use of like
for situations in which similarities are being pointed out:
Thiscommunitycollegeislikeatwoyearliberalarts
college.
However, when you are listing things that have similarities, such as
is probably more suitable:
Thecollegehasseveralhighlyregardedneighbors,likesuch
astheMarkTwainHouse,St.FrancisHospital,the
ConnecticutHistoricalSociety,andtheUConnLawSchool.
Omitting That
The word that is used as a conjunction to connect a subordinate
clause to a preceding verb. In this construction that is sometimes
called the "expletive that." Indeed, the word is often omitted to
good effect, but the very fact of easy omission causes some
editors to take out the red pen and strike out the conjunction that
wherever it appears. In the following sentences, we can happily
omit the that (or keep it, depending on how the sentence sounds to
us):
Isabelknew[that]shewasabouttobefired.
Shedefinitelyfelt[that]herfellowemployeeshadn't
supportedher.
Ihope[that]shedoesn'tblameme.
Theproblemis,thatproductioninherdepartmenthas
dropped.
Remember,thatwedidn'thavetheseproblemsbeforeshe
startedworkinghere.
Whenatimeelementintervenesbetweentheverbandthe
clause:"Thebosssaidyesterdaythatproductioninthis
departmentwasdownfiftypercent."(Noticethepositionof
"yesterday.")
Whentheverboftheclauseislongdelayed:"Ourannual
reportrevealedthatsomelossessustainedbythis
departmentinthethirdquarteroflastyearwereworsethan
previouslythought."(Noticethedistancebetweenthe
subject"losses"anditsverb,"were.")
Whenasecondthatcanclearupwhosaidordidwhat:"The
CEOsaidthatIsabel'sdepartmentwasslackingoffandthat
productiondroppedprecipitouslyinthefourthquarter."
(DidtheCEOsaythatproductiondroppedorwasthedropa
resultofwhathesaidaboutIsabel'sdepartment?The
secondthatmakesthesentenceclear.)
Authorityforthissection:Dos,Don'ts&MaybesofEnglishUsageby
TheodoreBernstein.GramercyBooks:NewYork.1999.p.217.
Examplesourown.
Becauseemailnowplayssuchahugeroleinour
communicationsindustry.
Becauseemailnowplayssuchahugeroleinour
communicationsindustry,thepostalservicewouldvery
muchliketoseeittaxedinsomemanner.
Correlative Conjunctions
Someconjunctionscombinewithotherwordstoformwhatarecalled
correlativeconjunctions.Theyalwaystravelinpairs,joiningvarioussentence
elementsthatshouldbetreatedasgrammaticallyequal.
Sheledtheteamnotonlyinstatisticsbutalsobyvirtueofher
enthusiasm.
Poloniussaid,"Neitheraborrowernoralenderbe."
Whetheryouwinthisraceorloseitdoesn'tmatteraslongasyoudo
yourbest.
Correlativeconjunctionssometimescreateproblemsinparallelform.ClickHERE
forhelpwiththoseproblems.Hereisabrieflistofcommoncorrelativeconjunctions.
Conjunctive Adverbs
Theconjunctiveadverbssuchashowever,moreover,nevertheless,
consequently,asaresultareusedtocreatecomplexrelationshipsbetweenideas.
RefertothesectiononCoherence:TransitionsBetweenIdeasforanextensivelist
ofconjunctiveadverbscategorizedaccordingtotheirvarioususesandforsome
adviceontheirapplicationwithinsentences(includingpunctuationissues).