Connectives

French connectives
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Connecteurs logiques

French connectives are links: they combine words, phrases, or sentences. Connectives do not constitute a single part of speech, but rather a category of terms including all conjunctions and prepositions as well as certain types of adverbs and pronouns used in this way.

Conjunctions

All conjunctions – both coordinating and subordinating – are, by definition, connectives.

Je veux un chien et un chat. I want a dog and a cat.
Il a dit qu‘il serait en retard. He said (that) he’d be late.

Prepositions

All prepositions and prepositional phrases are connectives.

J’habite en France. I live in France.
Il a réussi grâce à sa femme. He succeeded thanks to his wife.

Relative Pronouns

Relative pronouns are connectives between main and relative clauses.

C’est lui qui a menti. He’s the one who lied.
Voici le livre dont je t’ai parlé. Here’s the book I told you about.

Adverbs

Many adverbs of frequency, place, and time are connectives.

Je suis arrivé avant David. I arrived before David.
C’est ici que nous nous sommes mariés. It’s here that we got married.

Types of Connectives

Rather than being sorted by grammatical function as above, connectives are typically grouped by how they are used, what purpose they serve.

Usage / Purpose Par exemple …
Addition et, de surcroît, en outre
Addition and, in addition, furthermore
Alternative ou, soit … soit, ne …. ni … ni
Alternative or, either … or, neither … nor
But pour, afin que, de peur que
Purpose for, so that, for fear that
Cause / Justification parce que, par conséquent, grâce à
Cause / Justification because, as a result, thanks to
Classification d’abord, deuxièmement, ensuite
Ranking first of all, secondly, next
Comparaison comme, de même, plus que
Comparison like, similarly, more than
Concession malgré, bien que, même si
Concession despite, even though, even if
Conclusion donc, pour conclure, finalement
Conclusion so, to conclude, in the end
Condition si, au cas où, pourvu que
Condition if, in case, provided that
Conséquence en conséquence, c’est pourquoi, de façon que
Outcome as a result, that’s why, so that
Explication à savoir, c’est-à-dire, autrement dit
Explanation namely, that is, in other words
Illustration par exemple, notamment, tel que
Example for example, notably, such as
Liaison en fait, en effet, justement
Link in fact, indeed, exactly
Lieu ici, devant, au nord
Location here, in front of, to the north
Opposition / Restriction mais, cependant, sauf
Opposition / Restriction but, however, unless
Résumé bref, enfin, en somme
Summary in short, finally, all in all
Supposition à supposer que, dans le cas où, probablement
Supposition supposing that, in case, probably
Temps avant que, depuis que, quand
Time before, since, when

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French connectives

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