Conjunction Errors

Coordinating Conjunctions: "But" or "Yet"?

Coordinating Conjunctions fall into three types: additive ("and"); selective ("or"); or, causal "for").
ach of these has an "anti!"atter" counterpart that distri#utes the coordination in another
direction: the selective "or" #eco"es "nor" to sho$ the re"oval of choice; the causal "for"
#eco"es "so" to sho$ the effect of cause. %he e&ception lies $ith the additive coordinating
conjunctions, $hich have, not one, #ut t$o variations on the $ord "and." %he conjunctions "#ut"
and "yet" are closely related, and for that reason "any $riters treat the" as if they're
interchangea#le!!$hich they are not. Consider the difference in the t$o sentences that follo$:
(e #elieves s)ydiving "a)es an enjoya#le ho##y, #ut it's very e&pensive.
(e #elieves s)ydiving "a)es an enjoya#le ho##y, yet it's very e&pensive.
*n the first sentence, the use of the $ord "#ut" allo$s us to assu"e a great deal a#out $hat the
sentence overall should "ean. +irst, he #elieves that s)ydiving is a fun ho##y, and he has
accepted that it's an e&pensive ho##y. +ro" this, $e "ight infer one of t$o conclusions:
,) he's not going to ta)e up s)ydiving #ecause it's too e&pensive;
-) he's going to ta)e up s)ydiving fully capa#le of acco""odating its e&penses.
%here's no inherent conflict in either of these: one co"pletely rejects the idea, $hile the other
totally accepts the idea.
*n the second sentence, the use of the $ord "yet" injects a degree of conflict into the sentence:
he #elieves s)ydiving is a fun ho##y, #ut he has not reconciled that it's an e&pensive ho##y.
+ro" this, $e can infer one of t$o conclusions:
,) he's not going to ta)e up s)ydiving, upset #y the fact that it's e&pensive;
-) he is going to ta)e up s)ydiving, despite the fact that it's too e&pensive for hi". .n inherent
conflict is at the heart of either of these: in one scenario, he feels #ad that he can't ta)e up the
ho##y; in the other, he feels #ad that he can't afford the ho##y he's already ta)en up.
/hen inherent conflicts li)e this occur in coordination, they create irony. *rony is an une&pected
contrast or outco"e. %he coordinating conjunction "yet" should only ever #e used to indicate this
)ind of irony. *t cannot #e used as a synony" for the $ord "#ut"0
"But" and "yet" have their counterparts as adver#s:
#ut 1 ho$ever; in contrast; dissi"ilarly
yet 1 regardless; in spite of this; une&pectedly
*f you're ever confused a#out $hether to use "#ut" or "yet," so"eti"es su#stituting these
conjunctive adver#s helps to distinguish $hen one is "ore appropriate over the other. Confusing
coordinating conjunctions $ith conjunctive adver#s, ho$ever, leads to another "ore serious error
of gra""ar: sentence #oundary errors.
Coordinating Conjunctions: "But Yet": %o "a)e "atters even "ore confusing, the $ord "yet"
is also an adver# $hen used in another conte&t: (e too) the full course of anti#iotics, #ut yet
again the infection too) hold.
*n this e&a"ple, you could easily #e fooled into thin)ing that "#ut yet" are t$o coordinating
conjunctions used side!#y!side. %hey aren't. %he $ord "yet" is an adver# "odifying another
adver#, "again." You can deter"ine this #y "oving the adver#s further into the sentence:
(e too) the full course of anti#iotics, #ut the infection too) hold yet again.
Because coincidental pairings of coordinating conjunctions and the adver# "yet" confuse people,
so"e ta)e it to "ean that the t$o coordinating conjunctions "#ut" and "yet" can #e paired, as they
coupling the" intensifies the coordination.
(e too) the full course of anti#iotics, #ut yet the infection too) hold again.
%his is not gra""atically correct and should #e avoided.
Conjunctive Adverbs
Coordinating Conjunctions versus Conjunctive .dver#s: *n co"pound sentences, coordinating
conjunction distri#ute!!or, coordinate!!the relationship #et$een or a"ong independent clauses. .
conjunctive adver#, on the other hand, creates a "ood of transition at the start of an independent
clause. You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are. (o$ever, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le. *n fact, "any transitional e&pressions are conjunctive adver#s.
,
%he error occurs $hen $riters treat conjunctive adver#s as though they're coordinating
conjunctions, and use the" $ith co""as to splice together independent clauses. /hen that
happens, a co""a!spliced sentence occurs. %o #orro$ a conjunctive adver# fro" a#ove:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are, ho$ever, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
%he $ord "ho$ever" in this sentence "ay transition to another clause $ith a "ood of contrast, #ut
it isn't a coordinating conjunction, so it shouldn't #e preceded #y a co""a and treated as one. *f
$e $ant a coordinating conjunction here, then the $ord "#ut" $ill do perfectly $ell enough:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are, #ut that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
*f $e $ant to retain the transitional tone of "ho$ever," then $e'll either need to start a ne$
sentence, or $e'll have to change the co""a to a se"i!colon:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are. (o$ever, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are; ho$ever, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
%here re"ains yet one "ore gra""atically correct solution to this pro#le": co"#ining a
coordinating conjunction $ith a conjunctive adver#:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are, #ut, ho$ever, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
%his so"eti"es ris)s redundancy, especially if the conjunctive adver# and the coordinating
conjunction "ean the sa"e thing. 2edundancy can #e "itigated if the conjunctive adver# is
"oved further into the sentence:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are, #ut that does not, ho$ever, "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
Conjunctive Adverbs: "But Still" and "Yet Still": 3ne of the "ost fre4uent e&a"ples of this
sort of redundancy is the conjunctive adver# "still" paired $ith the coordinating conjunctions "#ut"
and "yet," in $hich the pairing, itself, is treated as a single conjunctive adver#, or as a single
coordinating conjunction!!neither of $hich is per"itted:
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are, yet still that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
You can see ho$ closely related these t$o ideas are. But still, that does not "a)e the"
interchangea#le.
*n the first e&a"ple, "yet" and "still" "ean precisely the sa"e thing, so they are redundant. *n the
second e&a"ple, a sentence frag"ent is the result, #ecause the co"pound sentence has #een
#ro)en at the conjunction. ither $ay you loo) at it, it's #ad $riting.
Semi-Colons: 5e"i!colons are a for" of punctuation, not a part of speech. (o$ever, they do
serve as a )ind of i"plicit coordinating conjunction, since they join together three or "ore ite"s in
a series. "5eries" in this case can #e anything fro" clauses, to phrases, to individual $ords.
3rdinarily, though, $hen phrases and $ords are joined together in a series, that series follo$s a
colon 6:7. /hen se"i!colons join together t$o or "ore independent clauses, they create
co"pound sentences. %his is $here the errors #egin, #ecause the se"i!colon can #e used only
#et$een independent clauses. 5u#ordinate clauses, on the other hand, "ust #e joined to their
"ain clauses #y a co""a, never a se"i!colon. /riters $ho have difficulty distinguishing
#et$een independent and dependent clauses $ill invaria#ly stu"#le into this pitfall. +or e&a"ple:
* $on't set the ta#le until the guests arrive; $henever that happens to #e.
*n the e&a"ple a#ove, "$henever" is a su#ordinating conjunction and #egins a su#ordinate
clause. 5ince the se"i!colon should join together only independent clauses, the result is a
frag"ented co"pound sentence. .nd a frag"ent is a "ajor sentence #oundary error. ither the
se"i!colon "ust #e s$itched to a co""a, or the su#ordinate clause "ust #e #uilt up into an
independent one:
* $on't set the ta#le until the guests arrive, $henever that happens to #e.
* $on't set the ta#le until the guests arrive; $henever that happens to #e is anyone's guess.
-
+urther"ore, se"i!colons should #e used sparingly, $hen the coordinated relationship #et$een
t$o clauses is i"plicitly understood to the reader. %his is as "uch a rhetorical effect as it is a
se"antic one, so overused se"i!colons are as "uch an a#use of punctuation and rhetorical
effect as the overuse of the e&cla"ation point. /hen too "any se"i!colons are used to connect
together different "ain ideas, the sentence #eco"es ra"#ling:
* $on't set the ta#le until the guests arrive; $henever that happens to #e is anyone's guess;
they've #een late so "any ti"es #efore; ho$ever, $ho's counting?
Correlative Conjunctions and Parallelism: Correlative Conjunctions al$ays travel in pairs of
phrases or clauses in parallel structures: structures that correlate, or ""irror," each other $ith
e4uivalent parts of speech and $ord order. %herefore, #oth halves of a correlative conjunction
"ust #e #alanced #y the use of identical parts of speech in general $ord order. /hen they aren't
#alanced, $e refer to that as "faulty parallelis"."
8either did he )no$ a#out the announce"ent, nor care a#out it.
%he sentence a#ove does not distri#ute e4uivalent parts of speech across the t$o halves of the
correlative conjunction. *f you re"oved the conjunction and let the t$o o#jects of it stand on their
o$n, they are "(e did )no$ a#out the announce"ent" and "care a#out it," respectively. %he first
is a clause co"plete $ith su#ject and predicate, $hile the second is just a ver# and its "odifier.
%hey don't "irror each other, then, in parts of speech and $ord order!!#y definition, faulty
parallelis". %he faulty parallelis" can #e fi&ed in several $ays, depending on ho$ you $ant to
distri#ute the o#jects of the conjunction into e4uivalent parts:
..
(e neither )ne$, nor cared, a#out the announce"ent.
past tense ver#s only, separated #y co""as: neither ")ne$" 9 nor "cared"
B.
(e neither )ne$ a#out the announce"ent nor cared a#out it.
predicates only: neither ")ne$ a#out 6it7" 9 nor "cared a#out it"
C.
8either did he )no$ a#out the announce"ent, nor did he care a#out it.
full clauses co"prised of su#ject : ver# : adver# prepositional phrase: neither "he 6did7 )no$
a#out 6it7" 9 nor "he 6did7 care a#out it"
;.
(e neither )ne$ a#out, nor cared a#out, the announce"ent.
ver#s only : prepositions, separated #y co""as: neither ")ne$ a#out" 9 nor "cared a#out"
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