An Introduction to

Words are fundamental units in every sentence, so we will begin by looking at these. Consider the words in the following sentence:my brother drives a big carWe can tell almost instinctively thatbrotherandcarare the same type of word, and also thatbrotheranddrivesare different types of words. By this we mean thatbrotherandcarbelong to the same word class. Similarly, when we recognise thatbrotheranddrivesare different types, we mean that they belong to different word classes. We recognise seven MAJOR word classes:Verbbe, drive, grow, sing, think

Nounbrother, car, David, house, London

Determinera, an, my, some, the

Adjectivebig, foolish, happy, talented, tidy

Adverbhappily, recently, soon, then, there

Preposition: at, in, of, over, with

Conjunction: and, because, but, if, or

You may find that other grammars recognise different word classes from the ones listed here. They may also define the boundaries between the classes in different ways. In some grammars, for instance, pronouns are treated as a separate word class, whereas we treat them as a subclass of nouns. A difference like this should not cause confusion. Instead, it highlights an important principle in grammar, known as GRADIENCE. This refers to the fact that the boundaries between the word classes are not absolutely fixed. Many word classes share characteristics with others, and there is considerable overlap between some of the classes. In other words, the boundaries are "fuzzy", so different grammars draw them in different places.We will discuss each of the major word classes in turn. Then we will look briefly at some MINOR word classes. But first, let us consider how we distinguish between word classes in general.

Criteria for Word ClassesWe began by grouping words more or less on the basis of our instincts about English. We somehow "feel" thatbrotherandcarbelong to the same class, and thatbrotheranddrivesbelong to different classes. However, in order to conduct an informed study of grammar, we need a much more reliable and more systematic method than this for distinguishing between word classes.We use a combination of three criteria for determining the word class of a word:1. The meaning of the word2. The form or `shape' of the word3. The position or `environment' of the word in a sentence1. MeaningUsing this criterion, we generalize about the kind of meanings that words convey. For example, we could group together the wordsbrotherandcar,as well asDavid,house, andLondon, on the basis that they all refer to people, places, or things. In fact, this has traditionally been a popular approach to determining members of the class of nouns. It has also been applied to verbs, by saying that they denote some kind of "action", likecook,drive,eat,run,shout,walk.This approach has certain merits, since it allows us to determine word classes by replacing words in a sentence with words of "similar" meaning. For instance, in the sentenceMy son cooks dinner every Sunday, we can replace the verbcookswith other "action" words:My soncooksdinner every SundayMy sonpreparesdinner every SundayMy soneatsdinner every SundayMy sonmissesdinner every SundayOn the basis of this replacement test, we can conclude that all of these words belong to the same class, that of "action" words, or verbs.However, this approach also has some serious limitations. The definition of a noun as a word denoting a person, place, or thing, is wholly inadequate, since it excludes abstract nouns such astime,imagination,repetition,wisdom, andchance. Similarly, to say that verbs are "action" words excludes a verb likebe, as inI want to be happy. What "action" doesberefer to here? So although this criterion has a certain validity when applied to some words, we need other, more stringent criteria as well.2. The form or `shape' of a wordSome words can be assigned to a word class on the basis of their form or `shape'. For example, many nouns have a characteristic-tionending:action,condition,contemplation,demonstration,organization,repetitionSimilarly, many adjectives end in-ableor-ible:acceptable,credible,miserable,responsible,suitable,terribleMany words also take what are called INFLECTIONS, that is, regular changes in their form under certain conditions. For example, nouns can take a plural inflection, usually by adding an-sat the end:car -- carsdinner -- dinnersbook -- booksVerbs also take inflections:walk -- walks-- walked-- walking3. The position or `environment' of a word in a sentenceThis criterion refers to where words typically occur in a sentence, and the kinds of words which typically occur near to them. We can illustrate the use of this criterion using a simple example. Compare the following:[1] Icookdinner every Sunday[2] Thecookis on holidayIn [1],cookis a verb, but in [2], it is a noun. We can see that it is a verb in [1] because it takes the inflections which are typical of verbs:Icookdinner every SundayIcookeddinner last SundayI amcookingdinner todayMy soncooksdinner every SundayAnd we can see thatcookis a noun in [2] because it takes the plural-sinflectionThecooksare on holidayIf we really need to, we can also apply a replacement test, based on our first criterion, replacingcookin each sentence with "similar" words:Top of FormBottom of FormNotice that we can replace verbs with verbs, and nouns with nouns, but we cannot replace verbs with nouns or nouns with verbs:*Ichefdinner every Sunday*Theeatis on holidayIt should be clear from this discussion that there is no one-to-one relation between words and their classes.Cookcan be a verb or a noun -- it all depends on how the word is used. In fact, many words can belong to more than one word class. Here are some more examples:Shelooksvery pale (verb)She's very proud of herlooks(noun)He drives afastcar (adjective)He drives veryfaston the motorway (adverb)Turn on thelight(noun)I'm trying tolightthe fire (verb)I usually have alightlunch (adjective)You will see here that each italicised word can belong to more than one word class. However, they only belong to one word class at a time, depending on how they are used. So it is quite wrong to say, for example, "cookis a verb". Instead, we have to say something like "cookis a verb in the sentenceI cook dinner every Sunday, but it is a noun inThe cook is on holiday".Of the three criteria for word classes that we have discussed here, the Internet Grammar will emphasise the second and third - the form of words, and how they are positioned or how they function in sentences.

Open and Closed Word ClassesSome word classes are OPEN, that is, new words can be added to the class as the need arises. The class of nouns, for instance, is potentially infinite, since it is continually being expanded as new scientific discoveries are made, new products are developed, and new ideas are explored. In the late twentieth century, for example, developments in computer technology have given rise to many new nouns:Internet,website,URL,CD-ROM,email,newsgroup,bitmap,modem,multimediaNew verbs have also been introduced:download,upload,reboot,right-click,double-clickThe adjective and adverb classes can also be expanded by the addition of new words, though less prolifically.On the other hand, we never invent new prepositions, determiners, or conjunctions. These classes include words likeof,the, andbut. They are called CLOSED word classes because they are made up of finite sets of words which are never expanded (though their members may change their spelling, for example, over long periods of time). The subclass of pronouns, within the open noun class, is also closed.Words in an open class are known asopen-class items. Words in a closed class are known asclosed-class items.In the pages which follow, we will look in detail at each of the seven major word classes.

NounsA noun is a word that identifies: a person (woman, boy, doctor, neighbour) a thing (dog, building, tree, country) an idea, quality, or state (truth, danger, birth, happiness).There are several different types of noun, as follows:Common nounA common noun is a noun that refers to people or things in general, e.g.boy, country, bridge, city, birth, day, happiness.Proper nounA proper noun is a name that identifies a particular person, place, or thing, e.g.Steven, Africa, Tower Bridge, London, Monday. In written English, proper nouns begin with capital letters.Concrete nounA concrete noun is a noun which refers to people and to things that exist physically and can be seen, touched, smelled, heard, or tasted. Examples includedog, building, tree, rain, beach, tune, Tower Bridge.Abstract nounAn abstract noun is a noun which refers to ideas, qualities, and conditions - things that cannot be seen or touched and things which have no physical reality, e.g.truth, danger, happiness, time, friendship, humour.Collective nounsCollective nouns refer to groups of people or things, e.g.audience, family, government, team, jury. Collective nouns can usually be treated as singular or plural, with either a singular or plural verb. Both the following sentences are grammatically correct:The whole familywasat the table.The whole familywereat the table.For more information about this, seematching verbs to collective nouns.A noun may belong to more than one category. For example,happinessis both a common noun and an abstract noun, whileTower Bridgeis both a concrete noun and a proper noun.

VerbsA verb describes what a person or thing does or what happens. For example, verbs describe: an action run, hit, travel an event rain, occur a situation be, seem, have a change become, grow, developThe basic form of a verb is known as theinfinitive. Its often preceded by the word to:Molly decidedto followhim.He beganto runback.

Verb tensesThe tense of a verb tells you when a person did something or when something existed or happened. In English, the main tenses are: thepresent(e.g.I am, she laughs, they love, we begin) thepast(e.g.I was,she laughed,they loved,we began) thefuture(e.g.I will/shall, she will laugh, they will love, we will/shall begin)These main tenses can be further subdivided, as follows: thepresent continuousshe is laughing thepast continuousshe was laughing thefuture continuousshe will be laughing thepresent perfectshe has laughed thepresent perfect continuousshe has been laughing thepast perfectshe had laughed thepast perfect continuousshe had been laughing thefuture perfectshe will have laughed thefuture perfect continuousshe will have been laughingNote that thecontinuousis also called theprogressive.Different tenses are typically formed either by adding -edor -ingto the basic form of the verb (known as the stem), or with the help of other verbs known asauxiliary verbssuch asam, was, have, has, had,andwill.Regular and irregular verbsMany English verbs are regular, which means that they form their different tenses according to an established pattern. Regular verbs work like this:verb3rd person singular present tense3rd person singular past tensepast participlepresent participle

laughhe/she laughshe/she laughedlaughedlaughing

lovehe/she loveshe/she lovedlovedloving

boohe/she booshe/she booedbooedbooing

In the present tense, the basic form of the verb only changes in the 3rdperson singular. Most verbs just add -s, but some verbs that end with a vowel other thaneadd -es(e.g.go/goes, veto/vetoes, do/does). If the verb ends in -y, you need to change theyto anibefore adding -es(e.g.hurry/hurries,clarify/clarifies).If the basic form of the verb ends in a consonant or a vowel other thane, then you add the letters -edto make the past tense and thepast participle, as withlaughorboo. If it ends inethen you just add -d, as withlove. If the basic form ends iny, then you change theyto anibefore adding -ed(e.g.hurry/hurried, clarify/clarified).If the basic form of the verb ends in a consonant or a vowel other thane, then you add the letters ing to make thepresent participle, as withlaughorboo. If it ends inethen you drop theebefore adding -ing, as withlove. Note that if the basic form ends inythere is no need to make any spelling changes: you just add -ing(e.g.hurry/hurrying, clarify/clarifying).But there are also many irregular verbs that dont follow the normal rules. Here are some examples:

verb3rdperson singular present tense3rdperson singular past tense

past participle

present participle

takehe/she takeshe/she tooktakentaking

sinkhe/she sinkshe/she sanksunksinking

swinghe/she swingshe/she swungswungswinging

creephe/she creepshe/she creptcreptcreeping

beginhe/she beginshe/she beganbegunbeginning

gohe/she goeshe/she wentgonegoing

flyhe/she flieshe/she flewflownflying

If you arent sure how a verb behaves, its best to look it up. All irregular verb forms will be given in full at the main dictionary entry.Subjects and objectsAll verbs have asubject. The subject is generally the person or thing that the sentence is about. Its often the person or thing that performs the action of the verb in question and it usually (but not always) comes before the verb:CatherineFollowedJonathan.

[subject][object]

Hewas eating asandwich.

[subject][object]

In imperative sentences (i.e. ones that express a command), the subject is usually understood without being explicitly stated:Come here at once!(i.e. You come here at once! the subjectYouis understood.)Some verbs have anobjectas well as a subject. The object is the person or thing affected by the verb:CatherinefollowedJonathan.

[subject][object]

Hewas eating asandwich.

[subject][object]

Direct objects and indirect objectsThere are two different types of object:direct objectsandindirect objects. A direct object is, as its name suggests, directly affected by the action of the main verb. In the following two sentences, a drink and a story are direct objects: a drink was bought and a story was being read.Jonathanboughta drink.

[subject][direct object]

Hewas readinga story.

[subject][object]

An indirect object is usually a person or thing that benefits in some way from the action of the main verb. Take a look at the following sentences:JonathanboughtCatherinea drink.

[subject][indirect object][direct object]

Hewas readinghis daughtera story.

[subject][indirect object][direct object]

Catherine has received a drink, but it is the drink that has been bought. His daughter is hearing the story, but its the story that is being read.Transitive and intransitive verbsA transitive verb is one that is used with anobject. In the following sentences,admireandloveare transitive verbs:Iadmireyour courage.Shelovesanimals.Some transitive verbs can be used with adirect objectand anindirect object:Liz broughthera glass of water.

[indirect object][direct object]

He senthera letter.

[indirect object][direct object]

An intransitive verb is not followed by an object. In the following sentences,cryandtalkare intransitive verbs:The babywas crying.Wetalkedfor hours.Some verbs can be transitive or intransitive. For example:The choirsangcarols.[transitive]SheleftLondon on June 6.[transitive]I want toleaveearly.[intransitive]ParticiplesA participle is a word formed from a verb, usually by adding -d, -ed, or -ing.There are two kinds of participle in English, as follows:The present participleThe present participle ends with -ing, e.g.:We aregoingto Italy.The company isbuildingnew headquarters in the UK.The past participleThe past participle ends with -dor -edfor regular verbs, e.g.:She haddecidedto go to Italy.Fans hadcampedoutside the studio.and with -tor -enor some other form for irregular ones, e.g.:New houses are still beingbuilt.The glass isbroken.Using participlesParticiples are used: withauxiliary verbsto make verb tenses such as thepresent continuousand thepast perfect:We aregoingto Italy.[present continuous]She haddecidedto go to Italy.[past perfect] as adjectives, e.g.:The pavement was covered withbrokenglass.He stared at me withbulgingeyes. as nouns, e.g.:She was a woman of goodbreeding.Len was ordered to cut down on hisdrinking.When a present participle is used as a noun, as in the last two examples above, its known as averbal nounor agerund. Here are two more examples of verbal nouns:Smokingis strictly forbidden.Campingattracts people of all ages.See alsoDangling participles.Active and passiveDepending on the way in which you word a sentence, a verb can be eitheractiveorpassive.When the verb is active, thesubjectof the verb is doing the action, as in this sentence:FrancebeatBrazil in the final.

[subject][active verb]

When the verb is passive, the subject undergoes the action rather than doing it:Brazilwere beatenin the final.

[subject][passive verb]

Here, the sentences point of view has changed, andBrazilhas become the subject of the passive verbwere beaten.The passive is formed with theauxiliary verbbe and thepast participleof the main verb.These two different ways of using verbs are known asvoices. In everyday writing, the active voice is much more common than the passive, which tends to be used in formal documents such as official reports or scientific papers.The subjunctiveThe usual form of a verb is known as theindicative. Thesubjunctiveis a special form that expresses a wish or possibility instead of a fact (the technical term for forms like this ismood). The subjunctive has a limited role in English compared to other languages such as French or Italian, but it's important to use it properly in formal writing.Take a look at these two sentences:It was suggested hewaittill the next morning.They demanded that the prime ministerexplainwho authorized the action.In these sentences, the verbswaitandexplainare in the subjunctive. The ordinary, indicative forms would bewaitsandexplainsand it would be grammatically incorrect to use them in these sentences:It was suggested he waits till the next morning.They demanded that the prime minister explains who authorized the action.Here are other typical uses of the subjunctive: afterif, as if, as though, andunless, in sentences that state a hypothetical condition:If Iweretaller, I would have been a model. beandwereare used at the beginning of sentences or clauses when the subject follows:WereI to make a list of my favourite films, this would be in second place.All books,bethey fiction or non-fiction, should provide entertainment in some form or other. in certain fixed expressions, for example bethat as it may, comewhat may, and sobeit.Phrasal verbsA phrasal verb is a verb that is made up of a main verb together with an adverb or a preposition, or both. Typically, their meaning is not obvious from the meanings of the individual words themselves. For example:His carbroke downon the motorwayShe has alwayslooked down on meIllsee tothe animals.Dontputmeoff, Im trying to concentrate.The reportspelled outthe need for more staff.Auxiliary verbsAuxiliary verbs are used to form the varioustenses,moods, andvoicesof other verbs. The principal ones arebe,do, andhave:Sheisreading a magazine.The judgehadasked her to speak up.Hedidlook tired.There is also a further set of auxiliary verbs known asmodal verbs. These combine with other verbs to express necessity, possibility, or ability. The modal auxiliary verbs aremust, shall, will, should, would, ought (to), can, could, may,andmight. For example:Youmustact promptly.Canyou speak French?Iwouldgo if Icouldafford it.He said hemightreconsider his decision.

AdjectivesAn adjective is a word that describes a noun, giving extra information about it. For example: asweettaste aredapple atechnicalproblem anItalianwomanAttributive and predicativeMost adjectives can be used in two positions. When they are used before the noun they describe, they are calledattributive: ablackcat agloomyoutlook aslowjourney alargesuitcaseWhen they are used after a verb such asbe, become, grow,look,or seem, theyre calledpredicative: The cat wasblack. The future looksgloomy. The journey seemedslow. They were growingtired.There are some adjectives that can only be used in one position or the other. For example, these two sentences are grammatically correct: She wasalonethat evening. [alone = predicative ] It was amerescratch. [mere = attributive]These sentences, on the other hand, are not correct:X I saw analonewoman. [alone cannot be used in the attributive position]X The scratch wasmere. [mere cannot be used in the predicative position]Comparing adjectivesMost adjectives have three different forms, theabsolute(also known as thepositive), thecomparative, and thesuperlative:absolutecomparativesuperlative

sadSaddersaddest

happyHappierhappiest

unusualmore unusualmost unusual

Thecomparativeform is used for comparing two people or things, while thesuperlativeis used for comparing one person or thing with every other member of their group:He istallerthan me. [comparative]He was thetallestboy in the class. [superlative]The book wasmore interestingthan the film. [comparative]Its themost interestingbook Ive ever read. [superlative]As you can see, some adjectives change their spelling when forming their comparative and superlative forms. For more information about this, seeSpelling rules and tips.Youll find that most dictionaries will show you the spellings of adjectives that change their form. For example, if you look up 'happy' in theOxford Dictionaries Online, youll see that the comparative and superlative forms are given in brackets directly after the part of speech:happyadjective(happier,happiest)Always look up an adjective if you are unsure about how to spell its comparative or superlative form.Grading adjectivesMost adjectives are gradable. This means that their meaning can be modified by placing one or more adverbsin front of them. For example: an expensive car averyexpensive car afairlyexpensive car anextremelyexpensive carThe adverbsvery, fairly, andextremelyare telling us where this particular car belongs on the scale of expensiveness. By using them, we can make a significant difference to the meaning of an adjective.Qualitative and classifying adjectivesNot all adjectives have a comparative and superlative form nor can they all be graded. This is because there are two types of adjective, known asqualitativeandclassifying.Qualitativeadjectives describe the qualities of a person or thing whether they are large or small, happy or sad, etc. This type of adjective can be graded. For example: a fairlytallman a veryboringfilm a reallylongholiday an extremelyexpensivecarClassifyingadjectives place people and things into categories or classes. Do you read adaily newspaper or aweeklyone? Does your house have anelectricoven or agasoven? Here are some more examples of classifying adjectives: thewesternhemisphere anannualevent theexternalwalls anuclearweaponClassifying adjectives don't generally have comparative and superlative forms. It would sound strange to describe one event as more annual than another, for example, or one weapon as the most nuclear. In general, classifying adjectives cannot be graded either. An event cannot be very annual nor an oven fairly electric.

AdverbsAn adverb is a word thats used to give information about a verb, adjective, or other adverb.When used with a verb, adverbs can give information about: how something happens or is done:She stretchedlazily.He walkedslowly.The town iseasilyaccessible by road. where something happens:I livehere.Shes travellingabroad.The children tiptoedupstairs. when something happens:They visited usyesterday.I have to leavesoon.Hestilllives in London.Adverbs can make the meaning of a verb, adjective, or other adverb stronger or weaker: with a verb:Ialmostfell asleep.Hereallymeans it. with an adjective:These schemes areveryclever.This is aslightlybetter result. with another adverb:Theynearlyalways get home late.The answer to both questions isreallyrather simple.Adverbs are often found between the subject and its verb:Shecarefullyavoided my eye.Theycan alsocome between anauxiliary verb(such asbeorhave) and a main verb:The concert wassuddenlycancelled.Sentence adverbsSome adverbs refer to a whole statement and not just a part of it. They are called 'sentence adverbs' and they act as a sort of comment, showing the attitude or opinion of the speaker or writer to a particular situation.Sentence adverbs often stand at the beginning of the sentence. Here are some examplesClearly, there have been unacceptable delays.(= It is clear that there have been unacceptable delays)Sadly, the forests are now under threat.(= It is sad that the forests are now under threat)Curiously, he never visited America.(= It's curious that he never visted America)The sentence adverbs are used to convey the writer or speaker's opinion that it is clear/sad/curious that something happened or is the case. If you compare the wayclearly,sadly, andcuriouslyare used in the next three sentences, you can easily see the difference between the meaning of the sentence adverbs and the 'ordinary' adverbs:He spokeclearlyand with conviction.(= He spoke in a clear way and with conviction)She smiledsadly. [adverb](= She smiled in a sad way)He looked at hercuriously.(= He looked at her in a curious/inquisitive way)

Hopefully and thankfully as sentence adverbsSentence adverbs are well established in English, but there are two hopefullyandthankfully which have caused a lot of controversy. Here are two sentences in whichhopefullyandthankfullyare being used as sentence adverbs:Hopefully, the work will be finished within the next two or three weeks.Thankfully, we didnt have to wait long.Many people are convinced that its wrong to usehopefullyorthankfullyin this way. Whats the problem? It lies in the fact that you can't rewrite this type of sentence using the wording 'it is hopeful that' or 'it is thankful that'. If you wanted to rewrite the two previous sentences, you couldnt say:X It is hopeful that the work will be finished within the next two or three weeks.X It is thankful that we didnt have to wait long.Youd need to choose a different wording, for example:It is to be hoped that the work will be finished within the next two or three weeks.As luck would have it, we didnt have to wait long.This leads people to the conclusion thathopefullyandthankfullyshould not be used as sentence adverbs. In fact, there are no very strong grammatical grounds for criticizing the use ofhopefullyand thankfullyas sentence adverbs: there aren't any rules that ban this sort of development of meaning. And there are other adverbs which behave in the same way but which havent attracted the same level of condemnation, e.g.franklyorbriefly:Frankly, I was pleased to leave.(i.e. to be frank, I was pleased to leave)Briefly, the plot is as follows.(i.e. to be brief, the plot is as follows)Nevertheless, you should be aware that some people strongly object to the use ofhopefullyand thankfullyas sentence adverbs. In view of this, its a good idea to be cautious about using them in formal writing such as job applications just in case your reader happens to be one of those people.PronounsPronouns are used in place of a noun that has already been mentioned or that is already known, often to avoid repeating the noun. For example:Kate was tired soshewent to bed.Michael took the children withhim.Kierans face was close tomine.Thatis a good idea.Anythingmight happen.Personal pronounsPersonal pronouns are used in place of nouns referring to specific people or things, for exampleIme,mine,you,yours,his,her,hers,we, they, orthem. They can be divided into various different categories according to their role in a sentence, as follows: subjective pronouns objective pronouns possessive pronouns reflexive pronounsSubjective pronounsThe personal pronounsI,you,we,he,she,it, we, andtheyare known as subjective pronouns because they act as the subjects of verbs:Shesaw Catherine.Wedrove Nick home.Iwaved at her.Objective pronounsThe personal pronounsme,you,us,him,her,it, andthemare called objective pronouns because they act as the objects of verbs and prepositions:Catherine sawher.Nick droveushome.She waved atme.

Heres a table setting out the different forms:SINGULARPLURAL

subjectiveobjectivesubjectiveobjective

first personImeweus

second personyouyouyouyou

third personhe/she/ithim/her/ittheythem

Notice that the personal pronounsyouanditstay the same, whether they are being used in the subjective or objective roles.Possessive pronounsThe personal pronounsmine,yours,hers,his,ours, andtheirsare known as possessive pronouns: they refer to something owned by the speaker or by someone or something previously mentioned. For example:That book ismine.Johns eyes methers.Oursis a family farm.Reflexive pronounsReflexive personal pronouns includemyself,himself,herself,itself, ourselves,yourselves, and themselves. These are used to refer back to the subject of theclausein which they are used:Ifell and hurtmyself.Daisypreparedherselffor the journey.The childrenhad to look afterthemselves.

PrepositionsA preposition is a word such asafter, in, to, on,andwith. Prepositions are usually used in front of nouns or pronouns and they show the relationship between the noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence. They describe, for example: the position of something:Her bag wasunderthe chair.The dog crawledbetweenus and lay down at our feet.His flat wasoverthe shop. the time when something happens:They arrivedonSunday.The class startsat9 a.m.Shortlyaftertheir marriage they moved to Colorado. the way in which something is done:We wentbytrain.They stared at each otherwithoutspeaking.Some prepositions are made up of more than one word, for example:They moved herebecause ofthe baby.We satnext toeach other.The hotel is perchedon topof a cliff.

ConjunctionsA conjunction (also called aconnective) is a word such asand,because,but,for,if,or,andwhen. Conjunctions are used to connectphrases,clauses, andsentences.There are two main kinds of conjunction.Coordinating conjunctionsCoordinating conjunctions join items that are of equal importance in a sentence:You can have ice creamorstrawberries.He plays footballandcricket.The weather was coldbutclear.Subordinating conjunctionsSubordinating conjunctions connectsubordinate clausesto themain clauseof a sentence:I waited at homeuntilshe arrived.He went to bedbecausehe was tired.Starting a sentence with a conjunctionYou might have been taught that its not good English to start a sentence with a conjunction such asandorbut.Its not grammatically incorrect to do so, however, and many respected writers use conjunctions at the start of a sentence to create a dramatic or forceful effect. For example:What are the governments chances of winning in court?Andwhat are the consequences?Beginning a sentence with a conjunction can also be a useful way of conveying surprise:Andare you really going?Butdidnt she tell you?Its best not to overdo it, but there is no reason for completely avoiding the use of conjunctions at the start of sentences.