Essay: Conjunction in English

Grammatical conjunction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

In grammar, a conjunction is a part of speech that connects two words, phrases, or clauses together. This definition may overlap with that of other parts of speech, so what constitutes a "conjunction" should be defined for each language. In general, a conjunction is an invariable grammatical particle, and it may or may not stand between the items it conjoins.

The definition can also be extended to idiomatic phrases that behave as a unit with the same function as a single-word conjunction (as well as, provided that, etc.).

Types of conjunctions:
1. Conjunctions, also called coordinators, are conjunctions that join two items of equal syntactic importance. For example, for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. These form the mnemonic fanboys. When used to join two independent clauses, a comma or semicolon is placed before the conjunction.

2. Correlative conjunctions are pairs of conjunctions which work together to coordinate two items. For example, both... and, either... or, not only... but, whether... or.

3. Subordinate conjunctions, also called subordinators, are conjunctions that join a dependent clause and an independent clause. In English, a subordinate conjunction appears at the beginning of, and establishes the nature of, a subordinate clause. For example, after, although, if, unless, because.

Clause
A clause is a group of words consisting of a subject and a predicate, although, in non-finite clauses, the subject is often not explicitly given. A clause is either a whole sentence or in effect a sentence-within-a-sentence.

Clauses are often contrasted with phrases, which do not express complete thoughts through combinations of subjects and predicates. Phrases generally do not contain verbs except as verbals (gerunds, participles, and infinitives).

Example:

1. I didn't know that the dog ran through the yard.
Through the yard is not a clause, but a phrase, since it has no subject or verb.
the dog ran through the yard is a clause; it is a whole sentence contained within a larger sentence.

Independent and dependent clauses
There are two basic categories of clauses: independent clauses and dependent clauses.

Independent clauses
An independent clause (or main clause, or coordinate clause) can stand by itself as a grammatically viable simple sentence. Multiple independent clauses can be joined (usually with a comma and a coordinating conjunction) to form a compound sentence.

Examples:

1. I am a bus driver and I drive a bus. (simple sentence)
2. I want to be an astronaut but I haven't gotten my diploma. (simple sentence)
3. I am a bus driver, but I want to be an astronaut. (compound sentence)
4. Go to the store and get me a copy of Counter-Strike: Source. (simple sentence) (Though a subject is not visible, in English the subject of an imperative is considered to be the pronoun 'you')

Dependent clauses
A dependent clause (or subordinate clause) cannot stand alone as a sentence. It usually begins with a subordinating conjunction or, in the case of an adverb or adjective clause (see below), a relative pronoun. A sentence with an independent clause and any number of dependent clauses is referred to as a complex sentence. One with two or more independent clauses and any number of dependent clauses is referred to as a compound-complex sentence.

Examples:

1. My sister cried because she scraped her knee. (complex sentence)
Subjects: My sister, she
Predicates: cried, scraped her knee
Subordinating conjunction: because

2. When they told me I won the contest, I cried, but I didn't faint. **(compound-complex sentence)
Subjects: they, I, I, I
Predicates: told me, won the contest, cried, didn't faint
Subordinating conjunctions: When, that (understood)
Coordinating conjunction: but

The above sentence actually contains two dependent clauses. "When they told me" is one; the other is "(that) I won the contest." The "that" is understood to precede the "I won" and functions as a subordinating conjunction.

Types of dependent clauses
Dependent clauses are often classified by their part of speech: a noun clause functions as a noun, an adjective clause functions as an adjective, and an adverb clause functions as an adverb.

Examples:

1. That the kid was making so much money bothered me. (A noun clause is the subject of bothered.)
2. Her eyes were a shade of blue that reminded me of the sea. (An adjective clause is modifying a shade of blue.)
3. I have a tendency to hyperventilate when I'm upset. (An adverb clause is modifying the entire main clause.)