Basic Conjunctions in French

Overview

Conjunctions are the connecting words that join ideas, clauses, and sentences together. In French, the conjonctions de coordination are a small but powerful set of words that you will use in virtually every conversation and written text from the very beginning of your learning journey.

At the A1 level, the essential French coordinating conjunctions are et (and), ou (or), mais (but), donc (so/therefore), and car (because). These five words alone will let you build longer, more complex sentences and express relationships between ideas — agreement, alternatives, contrast, consequence, and cause.

French students often learn the coordinating conjunctions with the mnemonic Mais où est donc Ornicar? (But where is Ornicar?), which encodes all seven: mais, ou, et, donc, or, ni, car. While or (now/yet) and ni (neither/nor) are less common in everyday speech, the others will become some of the most frequently used words in your French vocabulary.

How It Works

Conjunction	Meaning	Function	Example
et	and	Adds information	pain et beurre
ou	or	Offers alternative	thé ou café
mais	but	Shows contrast	petit mais fort
donc	so, therefore	Shows consequence	Il pleut, donc je reste.
car	because, for	Shows cause	Je reste car il pleut.
ni...ni	neither...nor	Double negation	ni thé ni café
or	now, yet	Introduces new element	(literary usage)

Key points:

• Et never causes elision or liaison issues — it is always pronounced the same way.
• Ou (or) has no accent. Do not confuse it with où (where), which has a grave accent.
• Mais can start a sentence for emphasis: Mais c'est incroyable! (But that's incredible!)
• Donc is very versatile and appears in the famous Descartes quote: Je pense, donc je suis (I think, therefore I am).
• Car is slightly more formal than parce que (because) but functions similarly. It is more common in writing.
• Ni...ni requires ne before the verb: Je ne bois ni thé ni café.

Examples in Context

French	English	Note
Je parle français et anglais.	I speak French and English.	Adding
Tu veux du thé ou du café?	Do you want tea or coffee?	Alternative
Il fait froid, mais je sors.	It's cold, but I'm going out.	Contrast
Il pleut, donc je reste.	It's raining, so I'm staying.	Consequence
Je reste à la maison car je suis fatigué.	I'm staying home because I'm tired.	Cause
Elle est jeune mais très intelligente.	She is young but very intelligent.	Contrast
Tu viens ou tu restes?	Are you coming or staying?	Choice
Il n'aime ni le poisson ni la viande.	He likes neither fish nor meat.	Double negation
J'ai faim et j'ai soif.	I'm hungry and I'm thirsty.	Linking two states
C'est cher, mais c'est bon.	It's expensive, but it's good.	Concession
Dépêche-toi, ou tu vas être en retard!	Hurry up, or you'll be late!	Warning/alternative

Common Mistakes

Confusing "ou" (or) and "où" (where)

• Wrong: Ou habites-tu?
• Right: Où habites-tu?
• Why: Ou (no accent) means "or." Où (with grave accent) means "where." The accent makes all the difference.

Using "car" at the beginning of a sentence

• Wrong: Car il pleut, je reste.
• Right: Je reste car il pleut. or Parce qu'il pleut, je reste.
• Why: Car introduces a cause after the main clause; it does not start sentences. If you want to begin with "because," use parce que.

Forgetting "ne" with "ni...ni"

• Wrong: Il aime ni le thé ni le café.
• Right: Il n'aime ni le thé ni le café.
• Why: Ni...ni is a negative structure and requires ne before the verb.

Practice Tips

1. Take simple sentences you already know and combine them with conjunctions: J'aime le chocolat. J'aime la glace. becomes J'aime le chocolat et la glace. Then try with mais, ou, donc, and car.
2. Practice distinguishing ou and où in writing. Create sentences using both: Où vas-tu? À Paris ou à Lyon?
3. Build cause-and-effect chains using donc: Il fait beau, donc je sors. Je sors, donc je mets mes chaussures. Je mets mes chaussures, donc je suis prêt.

Related Concepts

• Discourse Connectors — more advanced linking words for structuring longer texts