Conjunctions tie two or more expressions together in linguistics. Coordinating conjunctions like “and” and “or” are common, as are adverbs and adverbial phrases. Adverbs can connect sentences and clarify relationships, while other conjunctions establish different relationships. Conjuncts can start a sentence and require tense or verb ending changes in some languages.
Conjunct derives from the Latin prefix con- for “with” and from the root -junct for “to unite”. In linguistics, or the study of language, a conjunction is a word or phrase that ties two or more expressions together. The most common are referred to as coordinating conjunctions, such as the words “and” and “or.” Also common are adverbs and adverbial phrases that link a sentence’s verb or action to its preceding or following sentence. These can be classified according to the relationship between the two verbs.
As an element of grammar, some simple words with a connecting function are more simply called conjunctions; examples include the words “and,” “or,” and “so.” They are normally used to tie two contrasting but otherwise equally weighted things or expressions together. They can also be used as a speech connective, a conjunction that ties two sentences together. An example, although uncommon and considered inappropriate by many people is: “My son’s answer filled me with pride. And he broke my heart”.
Similar in function are adverbs that connect sentences. An example is: “I would never say that. Secondly, I can’t even pronounce it.” This type of conjunction is also more widely referred to as an addition, by the prefix ad- for “near”. It is typically a superfluous word whose absence may not change the meaning of a sentence, but whose addition clarifies a relationship. In this case, “second” provides an enumerative, sequential, or hierarchical contrast between two ideas rooted in the verbs “say” and “pronounce.”
There are other relationships established by a joint. The adverb “in addition” is an additive to the speech, while the prepositional phrase “in conclusion” is summative and “in other words” is an appositive, or a restatement of the previous expression. Other reports have more precise directives. The inferential conjunction “so” is inevitable, while the concessive subjunctive “however” is exceptional and the antithetical phrase “on the contrary” is a negation of the previous expression.
Some adverbs express the temporal relationship between two sentences. Examples are “in the meantime” and “still”. They often have a quality that is disconnected from any preceding utterance and instead connects the following utterance to the discourse. An example of this is: “I apologized profusely. However, she felt angry ”.
There’s a reason many conjuncts start a sentence and are separated by a comma. By tying two expressions together, they are free-standing words within the syntax of a sentence to be inserted between expressions. Some languages, such as remnants of Old German and Irish, require that the verbs in a sentence qualified by a conjoined adverb have to change their tense or verb ending. The written and spoken change is called the subjunctive of the verb, or subjunctive, mood.
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