Editing Conjunction (grammar)

{{short description|Part of speech that connects two words, sentences, phrases, or clauses}}
{{distinguish|Grammatical conjugation|Subjunctive mood{{!}}Conjunctive mood}}

In [[grammar]], a '''conjunction''' ([[List of glossing abbreviations|abbreviated]] {{sc|'''conj'''}} or {{sc|'''cnj'''}}) is a [[part of speech]] that connects [[Word|words]], [[phrase]]s, or [[Clause|clauses]]'','' which are called its [[conjunct]]s. That description is vague enough to overlap with those of other parts of speech because what constitutes a "conjunction" must be defined for each [[language]]. In [[English language|English]], a given word may have several [[Word sense|senses]] and in some contexts be a [[Preposition and postposition|preposition]] but a conjunction in others, depending on the syntax. For example, ''after'' is a preposition in "he left after the fight" but a conjunction in "he left after they fought". 

In general, a conjunction is an invariant (non-[[Inflection|inflecting]]) [[grammatical particle]] that stands between conjuncts.<!--Contrast asyndetic conjunctions.--> A conjunction may be placed at the beginning of a sentence,<ref>{{cite web |author=Richard Nordquist |title=Is It Wrong to Begin a Sentence with 'But'? |url=http://grammar.about.com/od/grammarfaq/f/butsentencefaq.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414065427/http://grammar.about.com/od/grammarfaq/f/butsentencefaq.htm |archive-date=2016-04-14 |access-date=2015-11-26 |publisher=Grammar.about.com}}</ref> but some superstition about the practice persists.<ref>{{cite book |last=Garner |first=Bryan A. |title=Legal Writing in Plain English: A Text with Exercises |publisher=The University of Chicago Press |year=2001 |isbn=0-226-28418-2 |page=20}}: "the idea that it is poor grammar to begin a sentence with ''And'' or ''But''{{-"}} is "nonsense baggage that so many writers lug around".</ref> The definition may be extended to idiomatic phrases that behave as a unit and perform the same function, {{Nowrap|e.g.}} "as well as", "provided that".

A simple literary example of a conjunction is "the truth of nature, ''and'' the power of giving interest" ([[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]]'s ''Biographia Literaria'').<ref>{{cite book|last=Greenblatt|first=Stephen|title=The Norton Anthology of British Literature, 8th Ed. Vol. D.|year=2006|publisher=Norton|location=New York|page=478}}</ref>

==Separation of clauses==
Commas are often used to separate [[clause]]s. In English, a comma is used to separate a [[dependent clause]] from the [[independent clause]] if the dependent clause comes first: ''After I fed the cat, I brushed my clothes.'' (Compare this with ''I brushed my clothes after I fed the cat.'') A [[relative clause]] takes commas if it is non-[[restrictiveness|restrictive]], as in ''I cut down all the trees, which were over six feet tall.'' (Without the comma, this would mean that only the trees more than six feet tall were cut down.) Some style guides prescribe that two [[independent clause]]s joined by a coordinating conjunction (''for'', ''and'', ''nor'', ''but'', ''or'', ''yet'', ''so'') must be separated by a comma placed before the conjunction.<ref name=Fowler3rev1>{{Cite book | author1=Fowler, H. W. | author2-link=Robert Burchfield | author2=Burchfield, R. W. | title=The New Fowler's Modern English Usage | edition=Third, revised | year=2000 | publisher=Oxford University Press | location=Oxford | isbn=0-19-860263-4 | page=[https://archive.org/details/newfowlersmodern0000fowl_2000/page/162 162] | author1-link=Henry Watson Fowler | url=https://archive.org/details/newfowlersmodern0000fowl_2000/page/162 }}</ref><ref name="getitwriteonline1">{{cite web|author=Nancy Tuten |url=https://getitwriteonline.com/articles/when-to-use-comma-before-and/ |title=When to Use a Comma before "And" |work=Getitwriteonline.com |access-date=2012-03-25}}</ref> In the following sentences, where the second clause is independent (because it can stand alone as a sentence), the comma is considered by those guides to be necessary:
* ''Mary walked to the party, but she was unable to walk home.''
* ''Designer clothes are silly, and I can't afford them anyway.''
* ''Don't push that button, or twelve tons of high explosives will go off right under our feet!''
In the following sentences, where the second half of the sentence is not an independent clause (because it does not contain an explicit [[subject (grammar)|subject]]), those guides prescribe that the comma be omitted:
* ''Mary walked to the party but was unable to walk home.''
* ''I think designer clothes are silly and can't afford them anyway.''
However, such guides permit the comma to be omitted if the second independent clause is very short, typically when the second independent clause is an [[imperative mood|imperative]],<ref name="Fowler3rev1"/><ref name="getitwriteonline1"/> as in:
* ''Sit down and shut up.''
The above guidance is not universally accepted or applied. Long [[coordinate clause]]s are nonetheless usually separated by commas:<ref>{{cite book|last=Swan |first=Michael |year=2006 |title=Practical English Usage |publisher=Oxford University Press}}</ref><!-- This was inserted as though it contradicts the above rules, but it does not. "She would never have dreamed of taking what was not hers," is an independent clause, which would already be separated by a comma according to the guidance discussed above. Perhaps the example could be moved under the rule about independent clauses, and the main text should say "independent clauses, which can include long coordinate clauses". -->
* ''She had very little to live on, but she would never have dreamed of taking what was not hers.''

A comma between clauses may change the connotation, reducing or eliminating [[ambiguity]]. In the following examples, the thing in the first sentence that is very relaxing is the cool day, whereas in the second sentence it is the walk, since the introduction of commas makes "on a cool day" parenthetical:

:''They took a walk on a cool day that was very relaxing.''

:''They took a walk, on a cool day, that was very relaxing.''

If another prepositional phrase is introduced, ambiguity increases, but when commas separate each clause and phrase, the restrictive clause can remain a modifier of ''the walk'':

:''They took a walk in the park on a cool day that was very relaxing.''

:''They took a walk, in the park, on a cool day, that was very relaxing.''

In some languages, such as [[German language|German]] and [[Polish language|Polish]], stricter rules apply on comma use between clauses, with dependent clauses always being set off with commas, and commas being generally proscribed before certain coordinating conjunctions.

The joining of two independent sentences with a comma and no conjunction (as in ''"It is nearly half past five, we cannot reach town before dark."'') is known as a ''[[comma splice]]'' and is sometimes considered an error in English;<ref>{{cite book |last=Strunk |first=William |date=May 2007 |title=The Elements of Style |publisher=Filiquarian Publishing |isbn=978-1-59986-933-9 |page=12 |quote=Do not join independent clauses by a comma.}}</ref> in most cases a semicolon should be used instead. A comma splice should not be confused, though, with the literary device called ''[[asyndeton]]'', in which coordinating conjunctions are purposely omitted for a specific stylistic effect.
==Etymology==
Beginning in the 17th century, an element of a conjunction was known as a ''conjunct''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conjunct#h2 |title=conjunct |publisher=Merriam-Webster |access-date=2022-02-21}}</ref> A conjunction itself was then called a ''connective''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/connective#h2 |title=connective |publisher=Merriam-Webster |access-date=2022-02-21}}</ref> That archaic term, however, diminished in usage during the early 20th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=connective&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2Cconnective%3B%2Cc0#t1%3B%2Cconnective%3B%2Cc0 |title=connective |access-date=2022-02-21}}</ref> In its place, the terms ''coordinating conjunction'' (coined in the mid-19th century) and ''correlative conjunction'' (coined in the early 19th century) became more commonly used.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=coordinating+conjunction&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2Ccoordinating%20conjunction%3B%2Cc0 |title=coordinating conjunction |access-date=2022-05-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=correlative+conjunction&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2Ccorrelative%20conjunction%3B%2Cc0 |title=correlative conjunction |access-date=2022-05-09}}</ref>

==Coordinating conjunctions==
'''Coordinating conjunctions''', also called '''coordinators''', are conjunctions that join, or [[coordination (linguistics)|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 most commonly used [[English coordinators|coordinators]]: ''for'', ''and'', ''nor'', ''but'', ''or'', ''yet'', and ''so''.<ref>{{Cite book
 | last1 = Paul | first2 = Michael
 | last2 = Adams
 | title = How English Works: A Linguistic Introduction
 | place = New York | publisher = Pearson Longman
 | year = 2009 | edition = 2nd | page = 152 | isbn = 978-0-205-60550-7 }}</ref> These are not the only coordinating conjunctions; various others are used, including: "and nor" (British), "but 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").<ref>{{cite book |last=John|first=Algeo|title=British or American English? A Handbook of Word and Grammar Patterns |year=2006 |publisher=Cambridge Univ. Press}}</ref>{{rp|ch. 9}}<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Burchfield |editor-first=R. W. |title=Fowler's Modern English Usage |url=https://archive.org/details/newfowlersmodern00fowl |url-access=registration |edition=3rd |year=1996|isbn=978-0-19-869126-6 }}</ref>{{rp|p. 171}} Types of coordinating conjunctions include cumulative conjunctions, adversative conjunctions, alternative conjunctions, and illative conjunctions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.englishgrammar.org/kinds-coordinating-conjunctions/#TfMTBXsU1AACq83r.99 |title=Kinds of co-ordinating conjunctions|date=2010-08-25}}</ref>

Here are some examples of coordinating conjunctions in English and what they do:

*'''For''' – an ''illative'' (i.e. inferential), presents rationale ("They do not gamble or smoke, for they are ascetics.")
*'''And''' – a ''cumulative'', adds non-contrasting items or ideas ("They gamble, and they smoke.")
*'''Nor''' – presents an ''alternative'' non-contrasting (also negative) idea ("They do not gamble, nor do they smoke.")
*'''But''' – an ''adversative'', presents a contrast or exception ("They gamble, but they don't smoke.")
*'''Or''' – presents an ''alternative'' non-contrasting item or idea ("Every day they gamble, or they smoke.")
*'''Yet''' – an ''adversative'', presents a strong contrast or exception ("They gamble, yet they don't smoke.")
*'''So''' – an ''illative'' (i.e. inferential), presents a [[Logical consequence|consequence]] ("He gambled well last night, so he smoked a cigar to celebrate.")

Only ''and'', ''or'', ''nor'' are actual coordinating logical operators connecting atomic propositions or syntactic multiple units of the same type (subject, objects, predicative, attributive expressions, etc.) within a sentence. The cause and consequence (illative) conjunctions are pseudo-coordinators, being expressible as [[antecedent (logic)|antecedent]] or [[consequent]] to [[logical implication]]s or grammatically as subordinate [[conditional clause]]s.

== Correlative conjunctions ==
[[Correlative]] conjunctions are conjunctions within a syntax that aggregates or contrasts correlated actions, characteristics, or items in the manner of:<ref>{{cite web |title=What Is A Correlative Conjunction? Definition & Examples |url=https://www.thesaurus.com/e/grammar/correlative-conjunctions/ |website=thesaurus.com |publisher=Dictionary.com |access-date=October 18, 2024}}</ref>

1. The use of '''whether''' paired with '''or''', as well as '''if''' paired with '''then''' as conditional conjunctions, e.g. -
:* "Vegetables are nutritious '''whether''' you love them '''or''' you hate them."
:* "'''If''' you can't afford it, '''then''' don't buy it."

2. A nominal phrase headed by a ''negating determiner'' paired with an ensuing nominal phrase headed by '''nor''', e.g., "The suites convey ''neither'' corporate coldness '''nor''' warmth."

3. An ''adjective'' (or ''adjectival phrase'') or an ''adverb'' (or an ''adverbial phrase'') paired with an ensuing '''conjunction''', e.g. -
:* "Successes that are ''as'' scattered '''as''' they are rare."
:* "He ran ''both'' far '''and''' fast."
:* "She's ''either'' a singer '''or''' an actress."
:* "A puppy that's ''not only'' cute '''but also''' smart."
:* "''Neither'' the caller’s name '''nor''' the number was visible."
:* "''Just as'' we left, '''so''' we also decided never to return."
:* "There are ''as many'' dogs '''as''' there are cats."
:* "''No sooner'' had we received the call '''than''' we left the house."
:* "I'd ''rather'' flee '''than''' fight."
:* "It's ''not'' a frog '''but''' rather a tadpole."

== Conjunctions of time ==

Examples:
{| class="wikitable"
| after	||We'll do that ''after'' you do this.
|-
| as long as ||That's fine ''as long as'' you agree to our conditions.
|-
| as soon as ||We'll get to that ''as soon as'' we finish this.
|-
| by the time ||He had left ''by the time'' you arrived.
|-
| long before ||We'll be gone ''long before'' you arrive.
|-
| now that ||We can get going ''now that'' they have left.
|-
| once ||We'll have less to worry about ''once'' the boss leaves.
|-
| since||We haven't been able to upload our work ''since'' the network went down.
|-
| till ||Please hold on ''till'' the server reboots.
|-
| until	||We are waiting ''until'' you send us the confirmation.
|-
| when ||They can do what they want ''when'' they want.
|-
| whenever||There is a good chance of rain ''whenever'' there are clouds in the sky.
|-
| while||I really appreciate you waiting ''while'' I finish up.
|}

== Subordinating conjunctions ==
{{see also|Conjunctive adverb}}

Subordinating conjunctions, also called subordinators, are conjunctions that introduce [[Content clause|content]], [[Relative clause|relative]], and [[Adverbial clause|adverbial clauses]] as [[Dependent clause|subordinate]] ones, and join them to other clauses, whether [[independent clauses|independent]] or dependent. The most common subordinating conjunctions in English 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'', ''that'', ''though'', ''unless'', ''until'', ''when'', ''whenever'', ''where'', ''whereas'', ''wherever'', and ''while''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Subordinating Conjunctions |url=https://www.grammarly.com/blog/subordinating-conjunctions/ |website=[[grammarly.com]]|date=18 May 2017 }}</ref> 
 
A [[complementizer]] is subordinating conjunction that introduces a [[content clause]] (that is, a clause that is a [[Complement (linguistics)|complement]] of the verb phrase, instead of the more typical nominal subject or object): e.g. "I wonder ''whether'' he'll be late. I hope ''that'' he'll be on time". Some subordinating conjunctions, when used to introduce a phrase instead of a full clause, become prepositions with identical meanings. [[Relativizer|Relativizers]] are subordinators that introduce relative clauses.

The subordinating conjunction performs two important functions within a sentence: marking the higher rank of the independent clause and transiting between the two clauses’ ideas by indicating the nexus of time, place, or cause. Subordinators therefore structure the relationship between the clauses.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gingersoftware.com/content/grammar-rules/conjunctions/subordinating-conjunctions/ |title=What are Subordinating Conjunctions? |publisher=Gingersoftware.com |access-date=2015-11-26}}</ref>

In many [[subject–object–verb|verb-final]] [[language]]s, [[dependent clause|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 language|Japanese]]); or
* [[suffix]]es attached to the [[verb]], and not separate words<ref>{{cite book |last=Dryer |first=Matthew S. |year=2005 |chapter=Order of adverbial subordinator and clause |title=The World Atlas of Language Structures |editor=Haspelmath, Martin |editor2=Dryer, Matthew S. |editor3=Gil, David |editor4=Comrie, Bernard |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-199-25591-1}}</ref>

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 [[Grammatical case|case]] and is also used in [[noun]]s to indicate certain functions. In this sense, the subordinate clauses of these languages have much in common with [[adpositional phrase|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 {{Lang|nl|want}} ('for') is coordinating, but {{Lang|nl|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:

: {{Lang|nl|Hij gaat naar huis, '''want''' hij '''is''' ziek}}. ('He goes home, for he is ill.')
: {{Lang|nl|Hij gaat naar huis, '''omdat''' hij ziek '''is'''.}} ('He goes home, because he is ill.')

Similarly, in German, {{Lang|de|denn}} ('for') is coordinating, but {{Lang|de|weil}} ('because') is subordinating:
:{{Lang|de|Er geht nach Hause, '''denn''' er '''ist''' krank.}} ('He goes home, for he is ill.')
:{{Lang|de|Er geht nach Hause, '''weil''' er krank '''ist'''.}} ('He goes home, because he is ill.')

== Starting a sentence ==
{{see also|English usage controversies}}

It is now generally agreed that a sentence may begin with a coordinating conjunction like ''and'',<ref name="MWDEU and">{{Cite book| page = [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877796336/page/69 69]| title = Merriam-Webster's Concise Dictionary of English Usage| date = 2002| publisher = Penguin| isbn = 9780877796336| url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877796336/page/69}}</ref> ''but,''<ref name="MWDEU but">{{Cite book| page = [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877796336/page/151 151]| title = Merriam-Webster's Concise Dictionary of English Usage| date = 2002| publisher = Penguin| isbn = 9780877796336| url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877796336/page/151}}</ref> or ''yet''.<ref>{{Cite book|page=979 |last1=Garner |first1=Bryan A. |author-link1= Bryan A. Garner|title=Garner's Modern English Usage |date=2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-049148-2}}</ref> While some people consider this usage improper, ''[[Follett's Modern American Usage]]'' labels its prohibition a "supposed rule without foundation" and a "prejudice [that] lingers from a bygone time."<ref name="Garner 2016"/>

Some associate this belief with their early school days. One conjecture is that it results from young children's being taught to avoid simple sentences starting with ''and'' and are encouraged to use more complex structures with subordinating conjunctions.<ref name="MWDEU and" /> In the words of [[Bryan A. Garner]], the "widespread belief ... that it is an error to begin a sentence with a conjunction such as ''and'', ''but'', or ''so'' has no historical or grammatical foundation",<ref>{{cite book |first=Bryan A.|last=Garner |chapter= Grammar and Usage | title=The Chicago Manual of Style |edition=16th |year= 2010 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location= Chicago |isbn=978-0-226-10420-1|page=257}}</ref> and good writers have frequently started sentences with conjunctions.<ref name="Garner 2016">{{Cite book|page=204 |last1=Garner |first1=Bryan A. |author-link1= Bryan A. Garner|title=Garner's Modern English Usage |date=2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-049148-2}}</ref>

There is also a misleading guideline that a sentence should never begin with ''because''. ''Because'' is a subordinating conjunction and introduces a dependent clause. It may start a sentence when the main clause follows the dependent clause.<ref>{{Cite book|page=101 |last1=Garner |first1=Bryan A. |author-link1= Bryan A. Garner|title=Garner's Modern English Usage |date=2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-049148-2}}</ref>

===Examples===
* "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."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/01/an-optimists-guide-to-political-correctness/384927/ |title=An Optimist's Guide to Political Correctness |magazine=The Atlantic |access-date=2015-11-26}}</ref>
* "So any modern editor who is not paranoid is a fool".<ref name="economist2006">{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21641204-john-micklethwait-who-has-edited-newspaper-2006-leaves-today-these-are-his-parting |title=The case for liberal optimism |newspaper=The Economist |date=2015-01-31 |access-date=2015-11-26}}</ref>
* "And strikes are protected globally, existing in many of the countries with labour laws outside the Wagner Act model."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/14610/index.do |title=Saskatchewan Federation of Labour v. Saskatchewan - SCC Cases (Lexum) |date=January 2001 |publisher=Scc-csc.lexum.com |access-date=2015-11-26}}</ref>

==See also==
{{wiktionary|Category:Conjunctions by language}}
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
*[[Asyndeton]]
*[[Cohesion (linguistics)]]
*[[Conjunctive adverb]]
*[[Conjunctive mood]], sometimes used with conjunctions
*[[Genitive connector]]
*[[Logical conjunction]]
*[[Logical disjunction]]
*[[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 (word)]]
*[[Syndeton]]
{{Div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

{{lexical categories}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Grammar]]
[[Category:Parts of speech]]
[[Category:English usage controversies]]
[[Category:Conjunctions]]