162 English Grammar Demystifi ed
- We could walk anywhere on the grounds. We couldn’t disturb the workers.
- When you bake, fi rst turn on the oven to the temperature stated. Gather all
the ingredients you’ll need. - She asked her husband to take the trash to the recycling depot. He quickly
left for work. - I had promised to arrive at 1 P.M. Heavy traffi c delayed me.
- Take some sandwiches with you. Stop at a restaurant and spend a great deal
of money. - I’ve spent two weeks’ pay. I’ll be eating very meagerly for a while.
- Lend me $50. I’ll pay you next month.
- I’ve studied and studied for the test. I feel unsure of myself.
USING CONJUNCTIONS TO CONNECT IDEAS THAT ARE
NOT EQUAL
Obviously, good writers use the appropriate words to bring ideas together. However,
the writer also has to make decisions about the relative importance of the ideas in a
sentence. For example, in the following sentence, which of the two clauses seems to
be the less important one?
If we train diligently, our team can win the title.You might begin by reading the fi rst clause (all of the words before the comma). Do
you think that clause can stand alone as a sentence? The answer, of course, is no.
The word If makes the clause dependent, that is, dependent upon the rest of the
sentence to complete the thought.
If we train diligently...