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Can You Use and to Start a Sentence

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Can And or But Begin a Sentence?

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When most of us were in school, our English teachers made a point of forbidding us to begin a judgement with "and" or "but." It's one of those lessons that stuck, and writers today go to extreme lengths to avert it. Is it really forbidden, though? Or is it only a myth?

Grammar experts universally agree that it's a myth. Co-ordinate to The New Fowler's Modern English Usage, writers have been doing it pretty much since the offset of writing. One theory for the perplexing prohibition is that teachers were trying to encourage their young students to form complex sentences. Past non allowing the use of either conjunction at the beginning of a judgement, students were forced to retrieve about their writing and not but string together a series of simple clauses.

Unfortunately, teachers never assigned an endpoint to the ban, and since old habits dice hard, nosotros still adhere to it today. Thus, if it works for y'all, at that place'due south no reason to avoid it. All the same, in that location are a couple of things to go on in mind as you're considering using "and" or "but" at the commencement of a sentence.

1. Scrutinize the sentence to see if it would work without the conjunction or if it might work amend straight linked to the previous sentence:

Adequate: Lucy is taking the early flight. Only I'm taking the scarlet-heart.

Ameliorate: Lucy is taking the early on flight. I'm taking the ruby-red-eye.

Ameliorate: Lucy is taking the early flight, but I'grand taking the red-eye.

Better: Lucy is taking the early flight because she prefers to fly nonstop. But I'g taking the red-eye because it's cheaper.

two. Practise non employ a comma subsequently an initial "and" or "but" unless it is the offset of a pair of commas that set off a parenthetical phrase.

Wrong: But, I'chiliad taking the crimson-eye.

Right: But, considering of my precarious financial condition, I'm taking the red-eye.

It's difficult to break old habits, but this 1 is worth considering. Only don't tell your teacher.

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Source: https://www.dailywritingtips.com/can-and-or-but-begin-a-sentence/

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