Page 8 - Lesson Note

Correlative Conjunctions

 You probably know that a conjunction is a part of speech used to join sentences
and phrases. And, or, but, yet, so are some of the most commonly used
conjunctions, used either individually or in pairs.

 Conjunctions that are used in pairs to join sentences or phrases that carry the
same general meaning and tone are called correlative conjunctions. They are
so called because they are always used together and convey the same relative
meaning.

Let’s consider a few examples to understand them better:

 When I get back home, either I’ll watch the new Game of Thrones episode, or I’ll
cook myself a light dinner.

 The new quarterback is neither fast, nor does he have a strong arm.

 Not only is the mayor extremely media-savvy, but he is also a Nobel-prize
winning economist.

In the above three sentences, we’ve joined multiple statements, phrases and clauses
with conjunctions (in bold). Let’s examine these in more detail:

1. When I get back home, either I’ll watch the new Game of Thrones episode, or I’ll
cook myself a light dinner.