What is a conjunction?
Conjunctions are words which help link ideas in a sentence.
They can join together words, parts of sentences and even whole sentences. They help to make writing flow.
Jackie ate an ice cream. She licked her lips.
You can join these two sentences using a conjunction.
Jackie ate an ice cream and licked her lips.
What are conjunctions?
Discover how to use conjunctions by joining Maya on her epic space journey!
How to use conjunctions
Conjunctions link clauses together. A clause is a group of words with a verb.
A main clause can stand alone as a sentence.
The ground shook.
Other clauses cannot be a complete sentence on their own.
when the rocket launched
The clause 'when the rocket launched’ includes the conjunction ‘when’.
However, it does not make sense as a complete sentence by itself because it leaves the reader waiting for more information about what happened when the rocket launched.
The ground shook when the rocket launched.
What are the different ways to use conjunctions?
Conjunctions link main clauses together.
I want to go to space. I need a rocket.
Becomes:
I want to go to space but I need a rocket.
The conjunction 'but' has been used like a bridge to link the two clauses together.
Examples of conjunctions you can use to link main clauses are:
for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
Conjunctions can also link parts of a sentence that don’t make sense on their own to a main clause.
Maya started to feel nervous.The engine roared to life.
Becomes:
Maya started to feel nervous as the engine roared to life.
The conjunction 'as' has been used to link the main clause 'Maya started to feel nervous' to 'as the engine roared to life'.
There are many conjunctions you can use to link parts of a sentence that don't make sense on their own.
Some common ones include:
when, as, if, because, although, while, before, after
These conjunctions can also appear at the start of a sentence.
As the engine roared to life, Maya started to feel nervous.
Example 1
Which part of the sentence is the conjunction in?
When Maya’s mum has a free day, they use her underwater craft to explore the deepest reaches of the ocean together.
✓ The conjunction is in the first part of the sentence.
When Maya’s mum has a free day, they use her underwater craft to explore the deepest reaches of the ocean together.
The first part of the sentence contains the conjunction ‘when’.
It's used because 'when Maya's mum has a free day' is the part of the sentence that doesn't make sense on its own.
Example 2
Sometimes sentences can have more than one conjunction in them.
Can you spot all the conjunctions that have been included in the sentence below?
While she is at work, Maya’s mum sometimes collects supplies from her secret laboratory to bring home because she likes to help Maya with her inventions.
✓ Here are the conjunctions.
While she is at work, Maya’s mum sometimes collects supplies from her secret laboratory to bring home because she likes to help Maya with her inventions.
Task
Power up your space story
Your turn to write your own adventure space story.
It could be about discovering a forgotten planet or meeting a new species.
When you’ve finished, count how many conjunctions you’ve used.
Play our fun English game Crystal Explorers! game
Use grammar, punctuation and spelling skills to explore jungles, caves and tombs on your mission.
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