Conjunctions are used to join words, phrases, and clauses together.
There are three types of conjunctions:
Coordinating Conjunctions
Coordinating conjunctions can be used to join verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, phrases, and clauses.
For – She drank water, for she was thirsty.
And – Kate’s favorite colors are red and blue.
Nor – She does not need to follow the English course, nor she does want to do a job.
But – He studied well for the exam, but he failed the exam.
Or – Can I have tea or coffee?
Yet – She woke up early in the morning, yet, she got late.
So – I was so hungry, so I prepared the dinner quickly.
Coordinative conjunctions can be used:
To join two or more verbs;
- She danced and sang well.
- My mother swept and cleaned the room.
To join two or more nouns;
- I like the colours red and blue.
- Kate always eats apples and oranges.
To join two adverbs;
- She wrote the letter nicely and accurately.
- The little boy cried loudly and angrily.
To join two phrases;
- Do you prefer to read novels or to watch TV series?
- My sister ran around the playground and along the road.
To join two clauses;
- She was ill, yet she went to school.
- Today is Tuesday, and tomorrow is his birthday.
Subordinating Conjunctions
The subordinating conjunction is a word that connects an independent clause to a dependent clause.
After
Although
As,
As if
As long as
As much as
Because
Before
Even
Even if
Even though
If
If only
If when
Except
In case
Rather than
If then
Just as
Now
Once
Since
So that
Than
That
Though
Till
Unless
Until
When
Whenever
How
Where
Whereas
Where if
Wherever
Whether
Which
While
Who
Whoever
Why
As far as
As soon as
Examples:
- After John woke up, he quickly got ready to go to the office.
- She did not go to school because she was not well.
- If I were the president of the country, I would develop it.
- Since I was ill, I didn’t go to school yesterday.
- Though she knew the truth, she pretended like she didn’t know anything.
Correlative Conjunctions
Correlative conjunctions work in pairs to join words or phrases together. When each item in a pair has an equal importance within a sentence, correlative conjunctions such as “either/or”, “such/that” and “not only/but also” can be used to put the pairs together.
Hardly……when
Such….that
Neither…nor
Either..or
Whether…or
As….as
Rather….than
Both….and
Not only…but also
So….as
No sooner….than
The more…the more
So….that
Scarcely…when
If…then
Examples:
- You can either go or stay with me.
- Neither Alexandra nor her husband helps people.
- Not only reading books but also reading newspapers helps you to improve your vocabulary.
- I do not know whether he likes tea or coffee.
- He helps her not for money, but for his own happiness.
