Saturday 26 December 2009

Connectives/Conjunctions

This is a short post to complement my youtube video on the word class 'conjunctions'; also known as connectives.


So why should one be aware of these and utilise them?


Connectives are important because they allow you to make longer and more complex sentences. It helps the readers/listener understand how your two points connect together. They are also particularly important in professional environments because they show you are well-read and have more knowledge.


So in a nutshell conjunctions the help you elongate a sentence by adding clauses and phrases. However, this is done four different ways hence there are four different types of connectives.
  1. Additive- This is in essence the most simplest type. This adds details to your sentence which are not necessary for the reader/listener to know even though you may want them to know it. Examples of this include 'and'  'also'.
  2. Temporal - This is another way to prolong your sentence but is done by adding details which are time-related. Examples of these include 'after' 'then'
  3. Adversative - This is extremely important when balancing points and relating two opposing points. So for example if you are describing impacts of a heatwave you cannot just say it was good because it brought plenty of tourists in. People died. You need a word to replace that full stop to show how they connect. Examples include 'however' 'but'
  4. Casual- This is another way in which we relate two sentences. However, this time it is done through explanation. Examples include 'because' 'therefore'


Watch my youtube video for more help on it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dye6mYy88K4




No comments:

Post a Comment