Conjunctions & Compounds

This course taught you all the small, individual pieces that make up a language. You’ve also seen ways to combine and modify them: using prepositions, adverbs, pronouns.

But still … almost all example sentences are short statements that say only one thing. All examples I gave of adjectives and adverbs are equally short and simple.

That’s because we’re still missing two big ways to combine pieces in English:

Compound words: stitching multiple words into one
Conjunctions: stitching multiple sentences (or clauses) into one

Compound words

At the start, you learned how to make very small sentences. Then I explained how you can combine them, like LEGO blocks, to build longer and more advanced sentences.

Now you know a whole lot of words. And you’re ready for the good news: the same can be done with words!

When you combine multiple words into one, it’s called a compound word.

Three types exist …

Closed: stitch the words together like one word. (Police + man = policeman)
Open: keep a space between them. (Living + room = living room)
Hyphenated: place a hyphen between them. (Long + term = long-term)

Closed

These evolve over time. As people start putting two words together, more and more, they eventually become a new single word.

They are almost always made from two words, never more. They usually have the form adjective + noun.

Example

Book + store = bookstore. (What kind of store? One that sells books.)

Example

Boy + friend = boyfriend. (Wat kind of friend? One that’s a boy.)

These don’t work for for two words that are hard to read or pronounce when combined. Bookstore is fine. But a store that sells shirts? A shirtsstore isn’t great, and shirtstore reads almost like a different type of store … 💩

Open

These are also usually adjective + noun. But they can also be an adverb (ending in -ly) + noun.

Example

Water + tank = water tank
Washing + machine = washing machine
Website + builder = website builder
Newly + formed = newly formed

Even though the words are seperate, we still call it a compound word. Because the combination of the words points to a single meaning. You want to convey them as a single concept, not the separate meanings of the two words. So it’s regarded as one compound word.

Hyphenated

The rules, here, are complex and not exact. Consult a dictionary if you’re not sure.

In general, you hyphenate when the two rules above don’t apply. For example, for the combination noun + verb. Or when the compound word is supposed to be an adjective for another noun.

Example

Train + spotting = train-spotting; noun + verb
Off + campus = off-campus; preposition + noun
Long + term = long-term; can be placed before something (“a long-term solution”)
Oft + debated = oft-debated

Conjunctions

Conjunctions are short words connecting (parts of) sentences.

Why not just keep the sentences separate? For two reasons:

It allows variety and flow, instead of your writing feeling stiff and basic.
It shows a relationship between the sentences.

Example

It was a snowy day, so I stayed inside.

Example

We wanted to buy fries, but we had no money.

Note, in all the examples, how the words combine two separate sentences.

“We wanted to buy fries” can stand on its own. (It has a subject and verb.)
“We had no money” is also fine on its own. (It has a subject and verb.)

The conjunction merely allows the two to be combined. And it gives extra information: we can’t buy the fries, because we have no money.

Four types exist, which I will discuss seperately.

Coordinating Conjunctions

Used to join …

Individual words or short phrases
Independent clauses ( = a clause that could be a sentence on its own).

Usually placed in the middle of a sentence, and with a comma before it.

They are: And, but, or, nor, yet, so, for

Example

Should Me and Mike go fishing or go swimming?
She was sad, for her cat just died.

Subordinating Conjunctions

Introduce dependant clauses. These but “depend on” the main sentence to mean something.

Example

I want to sing, before I lose my voice.
They will sing with you, assuming they know the words.
We can’t come, because we have a birthday to attend.
As long as you don’t touch anything, we should be fine.

Note the dependancy. “I lose my voice” is incorrect on its own and doesn’t mean anything. (You could say “I’m losing my voice”) But combined with “I want to sing” + conjunction, it gets meaning and is valid.

We identify many types …

Condition	Time	Relative Adjective	Relative Pronoun
lest	after	that	who
in case (that)	as long as	what	whoever
even if	as soon as	whatever	whom
assuming that	before	which	whomever
if	by the time	whichever	whose
only if	till
unless	now that
until	until
provided that	once
	when
	since
	whenever
	while

Comparison	Reason	Manner	Place	Concession
than	because	how	where	though
rather than	since	as though	wherever	although
whether	so that	as if		even
as much as	in order (that)			while
whereas	why

Correlative Conjunctions

These come in pairs. They compare two ideas expressed in different parts of the sentence.

They are very similar to comparative nouns. (“He was as tall as a tree.”)


as … as	either … or	what with … and
just as … so	neither … or	whether … or
both … and	if … then	not only … but also
hardly … when	not … but	no sooner … than
scarcely … when		rather … than

Example

You can either come with me, or stay at home

Example

It was scarcely winter, when the first snow started to fall.

Example

Not only is a holiday into the jungle dangerous, but also expensive!

Conjunctive Adverbs

These also link two ideas. But with two differences …

They stand on their own
They don’t necessarily compare; they can also just expand or give more options

They are basically variations on and, but and so.

Similar to And	Similar to But	Similar to So
also	however	accordingly
besides	nevertheless	consequently
furthermore	nonetheless	hence
likewise	still	meanwhile
moreover	conversely	then
	instead	therefore
	otherwise	thus
	rather

Because they stand on their own, you can start a sentence with them. You know I like short sentences, which is why I recommend this. Nevertheless, they can also be a conjunction to combine two phrases into one.

Example

We were friends, therefore we went everywhere together.

Example

I don’t like apples. Furthermore, I think bananas are weird.

Example

I hate mathematics, but can do arithmetic easily nonetheless.

Example

They were ill-prepared. Consequently, their holiday was an utter disaster.

Or as one sentence: They were ill-prepared and, consequently, their holiday was an utter disaster.

Continue with this course