by Jennie Ruby
Yes, you can start a sentence with and. You can also start a sentence with but, or, nor, yet, or so. The idea that you cannot start a sentence with a conjunction is one of those bogus rules that teachers somehow latch onto and scare us with. I know that for years I felt queasy whenever I started a sentence with and or but. But I did it anyway. Then I read over the section in the Chicago Manual of Style that confirms that it is not now, nor was it ever, impermissible to start a sentence with a conjunction. What a relief! It's ok!
Teachers probably spread this alleged rule in an effort to prevent students from creating sentence fragments like this one:
- And Tom.
Now that we know we can start a sentence with a conjunction, the next question is do we need a comma after it? In short, no. Do not put a comma after the conjunction. The only time you would have a comma after the conjunction is when the conjunction is coincidentally followed by a parenthetical element. Here are some examples:
- I knew the ghost busters had declared the building free of haunts. Yet I still heard mysterious sounds emanating from the basement. [no comma]
- The ghosts were gone. But, as we all agreed, the place was still spooky. [As we all agreed is a parenthetical element surrounded by two commas.]
- The lake was surrounded by trees. And when it was calm, you could see the leaves clearly reflected in the water. [When it was calm is not parenthetical, because if it were not calm, you could not see the reflected leaves. It has a comma after it because it is an introductory clause followed by a main clause.]
- The candied apples had all been eaten. Yet the smell of warm fruit still hung in the air.
- The corn maze was shut down for the evening. But, I noticed with a chill, there were still voices echoing through the dry leaves.
- There are several pumpkins left. But when the last one is gone, we will close the fruit stand for the year.
So start sentences with these conjunctions whenever you like. But don't use a comma unless there is a truly parenthetical element after the conjunction.
About the Author:
Jennie Ruby is a veteran IconLogic trainer and author with titles such as "Essentials of Access 2000" and "Editing with MS Word 2003 and Adobe Acrobat 7" to her credit. Jennie specializes in electronic editing. At the American Psychological Association, she was manager of electronic publishing and manager of technical editing and journal production. Jennie has an M.A. from George Washington University and is a Certified Technical Trainer (Chauncey Group). She is a publishing professional with 20 years of experience in writing, editing and desktop publishing.
Please give me your thoughts on my following assertion.
The purpose of a conjunction is to connect two clauses into a seamless concept. A writer would not fragment a single idea into two sentences. If a sentence starts with a conjunction, one of two things is occurring; the writer is fragmenting a single idea, or he/she is including an unnecessary word (the conjunction).
For example, your sentences “The ghosts were gone.” and “But, as we all agreed, the place was still spooky.” make up the single idea that even though the ghosts were gone, you were still scared. Separately, the sentences express two unrelated ideas: the ghosts are gone; the place continues to be spooky. Additionally, in that two sentences express two separate ideas, the word “but” there is an incorrect, superfluous addition. To express the single idea correctly, the sentences must be combined with a comma. Excluding the comma is an error of separating clauses that depend on each other.
As an alternative example, your sentences “There are several pumpkins left.” and “But when the last one is gone, we will close the fruit stand for the year.” are two separate ideas and do not depend on one another. Therefore, the conjunction “but” is an incorrect and superfluous addition. The first sentence relates to a quantity of pumpkins while the second relates to the stand’s status. The fact that the stand closes once the pumpkins are gone does not challenge that the stand is currently open. If the first sentences related to the same topic as the second, the conjunction would be necessary, but as stated before, single ideas should be expressed in single sentences. For example, the following sentence is a correct expression of the stand’s tentative status; “The stand is open now, but when the last pumpkin is gone, we will close it for the year.”
Please give me your thoughts on my following assertion.
The purpose of a conjunction is to connect two clauses into a seamless concept. A writer would not fragment a single idea into two sentences. If a sentence starts with a conjunction, one of two things is occurring; the writer is fragmenting a single idea, or he/she is including an unnecessary word (the conjunction).
For example, your sentences “The ghosts were gone.” and “But, as we all agreed, the place was still spooky.” make up the single idea that even though the ghosts were gone, you were still scared. Separately, the sentences express two unrelated ideas: the ghosts are gone; the place continues to be spooky. Additionally, in that two sentences express two separate ideas, the word “but” there is an incorrect, superfluous addition. To express the single idea correctly, the sentences must be combined with a comma. Excluding the comma is an error of separating clauses that depend on each other.
As an alternative example, your sentences “There are several pumpkins left.” and “But when the last one is gone, we will close the fruit stand for the year.” are two separate ideas and do not depend on one another. Therefore, the conjunction “but” is an incorrect and superfluous addition. The first sentence relates to a quantity of pumpkins while the second relates to the stand’s status. The fact that the stand closes once the pumpkins are gone does not challenge that the stand is currently open. If the first sentences related to the same topic as the second, the conjunction would be necessary, but as stated before, single ideas should be expressed in single sentences. For example, the following sentence is a correct expression of the stand’s tentative status; “The stand is open now, but when the last pumpkin is gone, we will close it for the year.”
Please give me your thoughts on my following assertion.
The purpose of a conjunction is to connect two clauses into a seamless concept. A writer would not fragment a single idea into two sentences. If a sentence starts with a conjunction, one of two things is occurring; the writer is fragmenting a single idea, or he/she is including an unnecessary word (the conjunction).
For example, your sentences “The ghosts were gone.” and “But, as we all agreed, the place was still spooky.” make up the single idea that even though the ghosts were gone, you were still scared. Separately, the sentences express two unrelated ideas: the ghosts are gone; the place continues to be spooky. Additionally, in that two sentences express two separate ideas, the word “but” there is an incorrect, superfluous addition. To express the single idea correctly, the sentences must be combined with a comma. Excluding the comma is an error of separating clauses that depend on each other.
As an alternative example, your sentences “There are several pumpkins left.” and “But when the last one is gone, we will close the fruit stand for the year.” are two separate ideas and do not depend on one another. Therefore, the conjunction “but” is an incorrect and superfluous addition. The first sentence relates to a quantity of pumpkins while the second relates to the stand’s status. The fact that the stand closes once the pumpkins are gone does not challenge that the stand is currently open. If the first sentences related to the same topic as the second, the conjunction would be necessary, but as stated before, single ideas should be expressed in single sentences. For example, the following sentence is a correct expression of the stand’s tentative status; “The stand is open now, but when the last pumpkin is gone, we will close it for the year.”