Basic Conjunctions in French

In Brief

Use et for “and,” ou for “or,” mais for “but,” donc for “so,” and car for “because/for.” Ni...ni means “neither...nor” and normally goes with ne before the verb, while or introduces a new or unexpected fact mainly in formal writing. These connectors can join individual words or complete clauses (groups of words containing a subject and a verb).

Overview

A conjunction is a linking word: it shows how two words, groups, or ideas relate to each other. Compare the separate statements Je parle français. Je parle anglais. with Je parle français et anglais. The conjunction makes the relationship explicit and the sentence less repetitive.

At A1, five words do most of the everyday work: et adds, ou offers a choice, mais contrasts, donc introduces a result, and car gives a reason. French traditionally groups these with or, ni, and car as conjonctions de coordination—coordinating conjunctions, meaning connectors that join elements of equal grammatical status. You do not need that label to use them, but it helps distinguish them from later connectors such as parce que, quand, and si, which introduce dependent clauses.

English gives a useful first approximation, but the matches are not exact. In particular, French car is more restricted than everyday English “because,” or does not mean English “or,” and negative ni...ni requires a French sentence pattern of its own.

How It Works

The core connectors

Conjunction	Basic meaning	Relationship	Simple pattern
et	and	addition	A et B
ou	or	choice or alternative	A ou B
mais	but	contrast or correction	A, mais B
donc	so, therefore	result or conclusion	A, donc B
car	because, for	reason or explanation	A, car B
ni...ni	neither...nor	two negative alternatives	ne + verb + ni A ni B
or	now, yet, however	new fact that changes the reasoning	A. Or, B.

The same conjunction can link different kinds of elements:

• nouns: Paul et Léa
• adjectives: simple mais efficace
• verb phrases: lire ou regarder un film
• complete clauses: Il pleut, donc je reste chez moi.

Whenever two elements are joined, keep them structurally parallel when possible. For example, J’aime lire et cuisiner joins two infinitives (the basic “to” forms of verbs), while J’aime la lecture et la cuisine joins two nouns (words naming things or ideas).

Et: adding information

Et joins compatible items or ideas. It does not change form, and unlike English “and,” it is never written with a final d.

• un café et un croissant — a coffee and a croissant
• Elle travaille et elle étudie. — She works and studies.
• Il est petit mais confortable. — It is small but comfortable.

Before a vowel, et is still pronounced separately; there is normally no liaison (the linking of a usually silent final consonant to the next word). In et elle, do not pronounce a /t/ between the words.

Ou: presenting alternatives

Unaccented ou means “or.” It can present an open choice or alternatives that exclude each other, depending on context:

• Tu prends le bus ou le métro ? — Are you taking the bus or the metro?
• On peut venir samedi ou dimanche. — We can come Saturday or Sunday.

Do not confuse it with où, which has a grave accent and means “where” or sometimes “when”: Où habites-tu ? (“Where do you live?”). In speech they sound alike, so the sentence meaning must distinguish them.

To make “either...or” explicit, French can use ou...ou: Ou tu viens avec nous, ou tu restes ici. In many ordinary choices, one ou is enough.

Mais: contrasting or correcting

Mais signals that the second element differs from, limits, or corrects the first:

• Il fait froid, mais je sors. — It is cold, but I am going out.
• Ce n’est pas mardi, mais mercredi. — It is not Tuesday, but Wednesday.

It may also introduce an objection or a surprised reaction in conversation: Mais pourquoi ? (“But why?”). The final s of mais is silent in normal pronunciation.

Donc: giving a result

Donc points forward to a result, consequence, or conclusion. The logic is “A happened; therefore B follows.”

• Il pleut, donc je reste. — It is raining, so I am staying.
• Tu as fini, donc nous pouvons partir. — You have finished, so we can leave.

In careful writing, a comma often separates two full clauses around donc. In speech, intonation can do that work. Donc is also common in transitions and questions, where it can mean something like “then”: Qu’est-ce qu’on fait, donc ? (“So what are we doing, then?”).

Car: giving an explanation

Car introduces the reason for the statement before it:

• Je rentre, car je suis fatigué. — I am going home because I am tired.

It is correct but more characteristic of writing or careful explanation than casual conversation. In everyday speech, parce que is usually the neutral choice for “because”: Je rentre parce que je suis fatigué. Unlike parce que, car does not normally serve as a direct answer by itself to Pourquoi ?

Ni...ni: linking negative alternatives

Ni...ni means “neither...nor.” When it follows a verb, standard French normally places ne before that verb and does not add pas:

• Je ne bois ni thé ni café. — I drink neither tea nor coffee.
• Elle n’est ni triste ni en colère. — She is neither sad nor angry.

When the linked items are subjects (the people or things doing or experiencing the action), ni comes before each one and ne still precedes the verb:

• Ni Marc ni Julie ne vient ce soir. — Neither Marc nor Julie is coming tonight.

Agreement after two ni subjects can vary according to whether the writer treats them separately or together. At beginner level, avoid making this your model for producing complex sentences; the verb-followed pattern Je ne veux ni A ni B is much easier and very common.

Or: introducing a decisive new fact

French or is pronounced roughly like the French word or meaning “gold,” but as a conjunction it means “now,” “yet,” or “however” in a line of reasoning. It introduces a fact that changes what can be concluded:

• Il avait promis de venir. Or, il n’est jamais arrivé. — He had promised to come. Yet he never arrived.

This or is mostly written, formal, argumentative, or literary. It is not the ordinary translation of English “or”; that is ou. Beginners mainly need to recognize or, not force it into everyday conversation.

Examples in Context

French	English	Note
Je parle français et anglais.	I speak French and English.	Et joins two nouns.
Nina ouvre la fenêtre et regarde dehors.	Nina opens the window and looks outside.	Et joins two actions with the same subject.
Tu veux du thé ou du café ?	Do you want tea or coffee?	Ou presents a choice.
Nous pouvons marcher ou prendre le bus.	We can walk or take the bus.	Two infinitive phrases are linked.
Le restaurant est petit, mais très agréable.	The restaurant is small but very pleasant.	Mais contrasts two descriptions.
Il fait froid, mais je sors.	It is cold, but I am going out.	Two complete clauses are contrasted.
Il pleut, donc je reste à la maison.	It is raining, so I am staying home.	The second clause is the result.
Le magasin est fermé, donc nous reviendrons demain.	The shop is closed, so we will come back tomorrow.	Donc introduces a practical conclusion.
Je ferme la fenêtre, car il fait froid.	I am closing the window because it is cold.	Car explains the preceding decision.
Elle prend un taxi, car son train part bientôt.	She is taking a taxi because her train leaves soon.	A reason in careful or written style.
Je ne mange ni viande ni poisson.	I eat neither meat nor fish.	Use ne, but not pas, with ni...ni.
Cette chambre n’est ni grande ni lumineuse.	This room is neither large nor bright.	Ni...ni joins adjectives.
Ce n’est pas à Paris, mais à Lyon.	It is not in Paris, but in Lyon.	Mais corrects the first idea.
Il disait connaître l’adresse. Or, il s’est perdu.	He said he knew the address. Yet he got lost.	Formal written contrast with or.

Common Mistakes

Confusing ou and où

• Wrong: Ou est la gare ?
• Right: Où est la gare ?
• Why: Ou means “or”; où with an accent means “where.” Write thé ou café, but où habites-tu ?

Using et when the meaning is a contrast

• Wrong: Il est fatigué, et il continue à travailler. (if the surprising contrast is intended)
• Right: Il est fatigué, mais il continue à travailler.
• Why: Et merely adds the second fact. Mais makes the “despite that” relationship clear.

Reversing reason and result

• Wrong: Il pleut, car je prends un parapluie.
• Right: Il pleut, donc je prends un parapluie.
• Why: Rain is the reason; taking an umbrella is the result. Use donc before a consequence and car before an explanation: Je prends un parapluie, car il pleut.

Keeping pas with ni...ni

• Wrong: Je ne veux pas ni thé ni café.
• Right: Je ne veux ni thé ni café.
• Why: In the standard ne...ni...ni construction, ni replaces pas. In informal spoken French, ne is often dropped, but the careful written form remains Je ne veux ni...ni...

Treating French or as English “or”

• Wrong: Tu veux du thé or du café ?
• Right: Tu veux du thé ou du café ?
• Why: The choice word is ou. French or is a formal connector introducing a new, often contrary fact.

Answering Pourquoi ? with car

• Unnatural: Pourquoi tu pars ? — Car je suis fatigué.
• Natural: Pourquoi tu pars ? — Parce que je suis fatigué.
• Why: Car normally connects an explanation to a preceding statement. Parce que works naturally as an answer to “why?”

Usage Notes

Punctuation and sentence flow

A comma is usually unnecessary when et or ou joins short words or phrases: Paul et Marie, lundi ou mardi. When mais, donc, or car links two complete clauses, a comma often helps the reader see the relationship: Je voudrais venir, mais je travaille. This is a readability convention, not a requirement to insert a comma mechanically every time.

French does not normally use a comma before the final et in a simple list: du pain, du fromage et des fruits. The “Oxford comma” familiar to some English writers is uncommon in an ordinary French list, though a comma may appear when needed to avoid ambiguity or mark a deliberate pause.

Speech and writing

Et, ou, and mais are equally at home in speech and writing. Donc is also extremely common in both, and speakers often use it to organize what they say: Donc, on commence ? Car sounds more explanatory and written than everyday parce que. Or is much more strongly associated with structured writing, argument, narration, and formal speech.

In casual speech, speakers often omit ne: Je veux ni l’un ni l’autre. Learners should recognize this, but Je ne veux ni l’un ni l’autre is the safe form in writing and careful speech.

Repeating a preposition or article

When joined elements each need the same small grammatical word, French often repeats it for clarity: Je vais à Paris et à Lyon; Il parle du travail et de la famille. With articles (words equivalent to “the,” “a,” or “some”), repetition is normally required: le café et le thé, not le café et thé. This is not caused by the conjunction itself; each noun phrase still needs its own correct article or preposition.

Beyond the Basics: Advanced Use

You do not need to master these points at A1, but they explain forms you will encounter later.

Et and ou can express more than simple addition or choice

Context can make et suggest a sequence or consequence: Encore un pas et tu tombes (“One more step and you’ll fall”). Similarly, ou can introduce a warning: Dépêche-toi ou tu vas rater le train (“Hurry up or you’ll miss the train”). The core meanings remain addition and alternative, but the relationship between the clauses adds the stronger interpretation.

Mais has several corrective patterns

More advanced French uses combinations such as non seulement...mais aussi (“not only...but also”): Elle parle non seulement français, mais aussi italien. Mais can also reinforce an affirmative correction after a negative idea: Ce n’est pas difficile, mais très simple. In speech, mais may show emotion rather than a strict logical contrast: Mais c’est incroyable !

Donc can move within the clause

Although beginners can safely place it between two clauses, donc is mobile: Vous avez donc accepté ? means “So you accepted?” or “You accepted, then?” Its exact force depends on position and intonation. In formal reasoning, alternatives such as par conséquent and ainsi may express “therefore” with a more formal tone.

Ni can coordinate more than two elements

The pattern can continue: Il ne boit ni café, ni thé, ni jus de fruit. Punctuation varies with the rhythm and length of the list. Ni l’un ni l’autre means “neither one nor the other,” while ni moi non plus can mean “neither do I” in conversation. Agreement with compound subjects introduced by ni...ni is nuanced: plural is frequent when both possible subjects are considered together, but singular can occur when neither can individually perform the action. Follow edited examples rather than relying on a single universal formula.

Or structures an argument

In formal logic and exposition, or often introduces a second premise before a conclusion with donc:

Tous les billets sont vendus. Or, nous n’avons pas de réservation. Nous ne pouvons donc pas entrer.

“All the tickets are sold. Now, we do not have a reservation. Therefore, we cannot go in.”

This sequence shows why translating or with one fixed English word is unreliable. Its job is to add a decisive fact; English may use “now,” “yet,” “however,” or no explicit connector at all.

Practice Tips

1. Build connector chains. Start with two short facts, then choose the relationship: Il est tard. Je rentre. becomes Il est tard, donc je rentre. Reverse the logic with Je rentre, car il est tard. This directly trains the difference between result and reason.
2. Practice choices and negatives in pairs. Say Je veux du thé ou du café, then reject both: Je ne veux ni thé ni café. Changing the same vocabulary makes the new structure easier to notice.
3. Listen for register. In conversations, count parce que and donc; in a newspaper or essay, look for car and or. Record the full sentence, not only the connector, so you learn what normally appears before and after it.

Related Concepts

• Next step: Discourse Connectors — expands these basic links into advanced ways to structure arguments, signal contrast, and guide a reader through longer texts.