Connectives

EnglishExamNepal

Connectives

What are Connectives?

Simply put, connectives are words that connect words, phrases, clauses, or sentences. They are also known as conjunctions or transitional words which help to establish connections and relationships between different parts of a sentence, clause, or larger text.

Connectives can be used to show contrast, addition, cause and effect, comparison, time sequence, and more.

For grades 8 (BLE), 9 and 10 (SEE), we’ll focus on these three types:

Coordinating Conjunctions:

These connect words, phrases, or clauses that are equal in importance. Common coordinating conjunctions include (FANBOYS) “for,” “and,” “nor,” “but,” “or,” “yet,” and “so.”

Examples:

She loves to swim, and she’s also a talented dancer.
He studied diligently for the exam, but he still didn’t score as well as he hoped.
You can choose the blue shirt or the red one for the party.

Subordinating Conjunctions:

These introduce dependent clauses , which cannot stand alone as complete sentences. They indicate a subordinated relationship between the main clause and the dependent clause.

Example:

Because it was raining, we decided to stay indoors.
While I enjoy reading, my brother prefers watching movies.
Although the weather was bad, we decided to go for a hike.

Transitional Words and Phrases:

These are used to smoothly transition between ideas or paragraphs and provide coherence to the text. Examples include “however,” “therefore,” “meanwhile,” “in addition,” “consequently,” and “on the other hand.”

*These words and phrases are useful in essay and paragraph writing.

Example:

The research has shown promising results. Furthermore, the implications for future studies are substantial.
The first theory suggests one approach, while the second theory, in contrast, proposes a completely different perspective.
To sum up, this experiment confirms our initial predictions.