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COORDINATING

CONJUNCTIONS

It’s how we link words, phrases and sentences.

• They are special words that are used to link two words, phrases or sentences.

– Mary and Peter went to Florida.

– She stood up and left the room.

– This movie was really long but I liked it.

– She will call or she will write a letter.

– I had a cold so I stayed home.

WHAT ARE

COORDINATING

CONJUNCTIONS?

• The most common conjunctions are:

– AND

– BUT

– SO

– YET

– OR

Let’s explore how they are used.

WHAT ARE SOME

CONJUNCTIONS IN

ENGLISH?

As long as the two things you are linking belong to the same grammatical group, you may use a conjunction.

For example:

MaryandPeter are getting married.

“Mary” and “Peter” are both nouns, so you may put them together with a conjunction.

BUT…

CAN I USE A

CONJUNCTION

TO LINK

ANYTHING?

PART I

Do you think this is ok?

Peter left and Mary.

CAN I USE A

CONJUNCTION TO

LINK ANYTHING?

PART II

If you said “no,” you are correct.

Peter leftandMary.

This sentence does not work because “left” is a verb, and “Mary” is a noun.

Let’s practice that concept.

CAN I USE A

CONJUNCTION TO

LINK ANYTHING?

PART II ½

Are these sentences good? Answer YES or NO. Analyze your response.

1. Paul and Julia went to the movies.

2. My sister saw Luis or in the backyard.

3. She has good grades, so she will go to college.

4. She can run fast but my brother.

5. We decided we would go to the park but she cried.

CAN I USE A

CONJUNCTION

TO LINK

ANYTHING?

PART III

The conjunction AND is used to link two words, phrases or sentences that are to be taken together:

I love tea and chocolate.

She saw me and laughed.

Jorge and Lisa are moving to Chicago.

AND

The conjunction OR is used to link things that are to be taken separately:

Do you want tea or coffee?

I will go to the party or I will read a book.

She asked Bill or John to the prom.

OR

The conjunction BUT is used to introduce a contrast between the two elements that are linked. Note: this cannot be used to link two nouns together.

She loves him but he is mean.

(Is someone mean expected to be lovable?)

This book was very long but interesting.

(Are long books expected to be interesting?)

BUT

Similar to BUT, the conjunction YET is used to express a contrast in the relationship between one element and another.

She told my secret to everyone, yet I chose to be her friend.

(It would be logical for me to decide not to be her friend.)

Her date was a idiot, yet Lydia had a good time.

(It would be logical to think Lydia had a bad time if her date was an idiot.)

YET

The conjunction SO is used to express a consequence or effect of one element on another.

They were in love, so they got married.

(They got married as a consequence of being in love.)

Carol was annoyed, so she left the party.

(She left as a consequence of being annoyed.)

SO

One simple rule: if you are linking TWO SENTENCES with a conjunction, use a comma BEFORE the conjunction.

I laughed, and I cried.

I went to the party, and I danced all night.

This rule applies ONLY if you are linking sentences.

I laughed, and cried.

CONJUNCTIONS

AND PUNCTUATION

Only two more:

The words NOR and FOR can be conjunctions as well.

I do not like oysters, nor do I like calamari.

(This means that I don’t like calamari either.)

She called him, for she wanted to apologize.

(This means “because she wanted to apologize.”)

ARE THERE

OTHER

CONJUNCTIONS?

Yes! Just remember the word FANBOYS.

For

And

Nor

But

Yet

Or

So

Easy, right?

IS THERE AN

EASY WAY TO

REMEMBER

WHAT THE

COORDINATING

CONJUNCTIONS

ARE IN

ENGLISH?

Using AND or OR, link the two sentences below to create just one sentence.

Example: I went to Florida. Jim went to Brazil. I went to Florida, and Jim went to Brazil.

1. We ate pizza. We went to the movies.

2. Pia wrote a book. Liz made a movie.

3. I will work today. I will rest tomorrow.

PRACTICE I

Choose the coordinating conjunction that works best in these sentences:

1. Olivia saw me, (BUT, SO) she didn’t say hello.

2. Melanie had a good time, (AND, YET) she told me all about it.

3. The teacher had a headache, (OR, BUT) he came to school anyway.

4. You will do your homework, (OR, SO) you will go out instead.

5. Both my mother (AND, BUT) my father are 50 years old.

PRACTICE II

Now, choose the conjunction that you think fits best.

1. I told him to be quiet, ___________ he would not listen.

2. We needed a vacation, ________ we bought tickets to go to Paris.

3. Nora was tired, __________ she made dinner for everyone last night.

4. Terry __________ Max bought a new house in March.

5. Stop talking, _______ you will get detention.

PRACTICE III

Make your own sentences. Write 5sentences that use the coordinating conjunctions we studied today. Use:

AND

OR

YET

BUT

SO

This is due TOMORROW.

PRACTICE IV

HOMEWORK