Writing Better English for ESL Learners

The use of the comma is optional when the two parts of the sentence are
related or are linked by meaning:

Alicia is smart, but she hates to study.

Alicia is smart but she hates to study.

Following are some commonly used conjunctions:

and

because

but

for

however

if

since

therefore

Look at the following examples:

There was nothing the doctor could do; thereforehe left.

Anna is a smart girl, butshe just doesn’t like studying.

Becauseshe became ill, Maria couldn’t go to the party.

Interrogative pronouns, which ask a question, can also be used as conjunc-
tions. They are not true conjunctions, but they can still be used to combine two
sentences into one. These are interrogative pronouns:

how

what

when

where

why

Look at these examples:

I don’t know whyyou have to go so early.

Can you tell me howI can find Green Street?

WhenJohn came into the room, she began to blush.

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