Conjonctions de coordination
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Coordinating conjunctions are small words that connect two or more grammatically equivalent words or phrases. The connected words might be adjectives, nouns, adverbs, verbs, or even independent clauses; the important thing is that they’re equal and each one serves the same function in the sentence.
Par exemple…
| Il est jeune et beau. | He’s young and handsome | |
 Et connects two adjectives: jeune and beau |
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| Veux-tu un café, un thé ou un chocolat ? | Do you want coffee, tea, or hot chocolate? | |
| Ou is joining three nouns: café, thé, and chocolat |
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| Je l’ai lu, mais je n’ai rien compris. | I read it, but I didn’t understand a thing | |
| Mais is the connection between two equal clauses: je l’ai lu and je n’ai rien compris |
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French coordinating conjunctions
| car | for, because | |
| donc | so | |
| ensuite | next | |
| et | and | |
| mais | but | |
| ni* | nor | |
| or | now, yet | |
| ou | or | |
| ou bien | or else | |
| plus | plus, and | |
| puis | then |
* Ni is a negative coordinating conjunction.
French school kids memorize the seven most common coordinating conjunctions with a mnemonic:
| Mais | où | est | donc | Ornicar ? | ||
| mais | ou | et | donc | or | ni | car |
Emphatic coordinating conjunctions
Some coordinating conjunctions are used in pairs to emphasize the connection.
Coordinating Conjunctions Quizzes
Think you’ve got it? Test yourself on French coordinating conjunctions with these fill-in-the-blanks exercises:
Note: You must be logged into your Progress with Lawless French account to take these tests. If you don’t have one, sign up – it’s free!
Related lessons
- Introduction to conjunctions
- Emphatic coordinating conjunctions
- Negative conjunctions
- Subordinating conjunctions
- Articles
- Parts of speech
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