That way, you avoid the pattern of I as the first word of every sentence. How much power is consumed by a 12-V incandescent lamp if it draws 150mA of current when lit? Hold to your guns and start with your subject. if so should start a new sentence.... far away from the city center. Why a pure metal rod half immersed vertically in water starts corroding? No, you cannot start a sentence with "no" unless you need to do so. As we mentioned, it helps to join thoughts together, so it is useful in science when trying to make cohesive links between sections. What is another word that you can use instead of using the word you in a sentence? The problem with beginning a sentence with a coordinating conjunction is that doing so often leads writers to produce a sentence fragment. So why do people feel compelled to start every sentence with ‘so’? Professor Geoffrey Raymond explores the sentence-initial s o in his paper “Prompting Action: The Stand-Alone ‘So’ in Ordinary Conversation.” And then, we come to using so at the start of a sentence. 4. But when one or both of the independent clauses are long, we may opt to use a period between them instead of a comma, starting the second sentence with the coordinating conjunction. Theresa BellManager, Blended Learning Success. What we want to see is action instead of lip service, 3 Instead , he gets a job monitoring security cameras, which pays $10 an hour—until, of course, he loses that job to Chang. We can use instead at the beginning or the end of a clause, although in spoken English it is more common at the end. Holidays in Italy are too expensive so we're going to Greece instead. It is acceptable to begin a sentence with also. The rule for the use of the word “so” is to decide if the sentence would have the same meaning if the word “so” was not used in the sentence. We have not received a letter from him so far. Is there a way to search all eBay sites for different countries at once? However, that can become monotonous and that is why I suggest that you try using some of these sentence starters, or "ing" words (called gerunds) or other types of phrases which come before the subject. 3. And so, today, we are going to examine one of the sillier rules of grammar: whether you can or cannot start a sentence with “because”. peter maushart on March 28, 2020 12:09 pm The word “look” has become another annoying GO TO word as a first word in a sentence when replying to a statement or question, especially by political figures. Like a 100-meter sprinter, your sentences should start strong and finish even stronger. In defence of starting sentences with conjunctions like So, I prefer to cite my favourite style guide, one from the mid 20th century. 5. I would argue that most of the time, starting a sentence with a conjunction is usually weakening your sentence from making a strong point. What was the Standard and Poors 500 index on December 31 2007? Often so is used in a similar way as the last example, as a conjunction, but placed at the start of a sentence; The puppy was cute. Some 10 to 30 percent of the sentences will begin with adverbial phrases. Instead of keeping still, so I could eat him comfortably, he trembled so with fear that he fell off the table into a big vase that was standing on the floor. So, you murder, kill, and butcher, she thought cruelly, so what are you doing here in an office full of paperwork? Instead of starting your sentence with I, just push it somewhere down in some sentences. No reason exists not to start a sentence with that word, as you can see. Please contact the Writing Centre. The Kings will play six games instead of the usual eight. How long will the footprints on the moon last? It's difficult to see instead of in a sentence . What is the conflict of the story sinigang by marby villaceran? You have to have "might" instead of "will". What is another word you can use instead of the word 'so' in a sentence? You’ll find it a widespread occurrence, even in scientific writing. Looking at your group's wide range of research, I must confess a certain attraction for your recent groundbreaking work on the correlation between beer-drinking and publication rate . So, I research and write about it. Hearing people start a sentence with “so” drives me nuts. What is another word you can use instead of the word 'so' in a sentence. Instead, we're going to Greece. We have been breaking this rule all the way from the 9th century Old English Chronicle through the current day. When speaking with students about the reasons not to use coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, but, for, nor, or, so, yet) to begin sentences, I often hear a plaintive response: “But I see other writers do it!”. In that sentence, so is a conjunctive adverb. Why you are interested in this job in Hawkins company? The Elements of Style is a classic in use of the English language by university professor William Strunk Jr and E.B. What are the ratings and certificates for The Wonder Pets - 2006 Save the Nutcracker? Variety tends to keep readers' interest longer than assembly-line thoughts. So far as i know, he is not lazy. For more information on coordinating conjunctions and transitions, please see "Commas, Semicolons, and Colons". Dot Wordsworth commented on it in these pages recently, though was lost for an explanation. How to Use ‘Although’, ‘Whereas’ and ‘Despite’ Three tricky words for students who speak English as a second language are ‘although’, ‘despite’ and ‘whereas’. What are the disadvantages of primary group? All Rights Reserved. A lot of people will say that you can’t start a sentence with “because” and be using “proper” grammar. Questions? For some reason, to many language sticklers, starting a sentence with "hopefully" has become a mark of ignorance. Begin a sentence with a prepositional phrase and end it with the subject: From … And 10 to 20 percent will begin with conjunctions—either subordinating (If, Because, Although, etc.) Avoid Conflict by Avoiding Hopefully. Begin a sentence with an infinitive phrase used as an adjective: To get a head start, he arrived 20 minutes early. Not only do you eliminate an I, but the sentence doesn't start with I and instead of using the basic verb play stuck to the in a band phrase, the second example has playing in a band as all one phrase. It’s a way for a savvy conversationalist to avoid awkward silences. We live in the Age of So. As a matter of fact – this English phrase is a substitute for the word “actually”, and considering that you can use “actually” in almost any sentence, it only stands to reason that “as a matter of fact” can also be used to start any sentence: “I don’t know where Bjorg is today, he never showed up at work!” – “AS A MATTER OF FACT, I hadn’t even noticed he’s not in, thanks for telling me!” When you break that weekly figure down, it only comes to one sentence beginning with "so" every eight or 10 minutes. i've read some hundred books so far. The puppy was cute, so I picked it up. ‘Although’ and ‘whereas’ are conjunctions, which means they’re used to join two ideas together; ‘despite’ is typically a preposition, so it indicates the relationship between words in a sentence. Starting a sentence with also. Instead: Instead is an adverb and means ‘as an alternative’. May 12, 2014, 11:57 AM So everyone is starting their sentences with the word "so" these days. I was for workfare instead of welfare as early as 1975. Time to spit it out, cleanse your palate, and start over with a clean plate. A typical way of starting a sentence in English is with the subject. Copyright © 2020 Multiply Media, LLC. So as with the other conjunctions, the rule applies to “so” at the start of a sentence. So people are going to their closets instead of department stores. 13, 2020 Don't undermine your message, or your relationships, with these instant conversation-killers. It is also common to see so used for the same purpose but at the beginning of a sentence, meaning that the comma from our last example is replaced with a period like this: (3) I love grammar. He is, so far as i know, a good guy. Firstly, has it ever been wrong to begin a sentence with and or but? The Giants were in Super Bowl XXV instead of the 49ers. No, it has not. Who is the longest reigning WWE Champion of all time? Even I was having a hard time believing it so what hope did that hold for anyone else? It aids you to come up with more nuanced and richer ideas, instead of the regular habit of creating simple subject-verb sentence structure. When did organ music become associated with baseball? Why don't libraries smell like bookstores? If so, the owners ... Also, as mentioned above, if you say "will", there is no doubt or question about it, so "If so" is not appropriate. White, author of, among many other works, Charlotte’s Web. So, I picked it up. Use an infinitive phrase as a subject: To get a head start was his goal. What is the conflict of the short story sinigang by marby villaceran? Why You Shouldn’t Start a Sentence with Any of These 10 Phrases Catherine Holecko Updated: Jul. Starting with So is OK. Starting with so. Before Starting Sentences with And or But, Consider Your Audience and Tone No one will care if you do start a sentence with it. Now, let’s get on to also and where it can be put in a sentence. So far as i am concerned, i am not against his plan. Holidays in Italy are too expensive. The grammatical function of a coordinating conjuction is to connect words, phrases, and clauses. Answer: There are many good ways of starting a sentence. You make a fair point that it isn’t a “rule.” It is a question of style. It depends on the sentence. If you need help with finding another way to start the sentence, consider a transitional device instead. The material on this site can not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with prior written permission of Multiply. Whether they are sentence starters for essays or other academic papers, let’s start by outlining the reasons for using special words or phrases to start sentences:. He is seeking to ban the word ‘so’ from being used at the beginning of a sentence, branding it ‘irritating’, ‘absurd’ and a ‘noxious weed’ that has invaded everyday speech. So now that I've made the strongest argument I can for starting a sentence with hopefully, I still have to say, don't do it. Strictly speaking, it's acceptable to start a sentence with a coordinating conjunction; however, I usually advise people to stay away from doing so in formal writing because the construction often adds an informal narrative tone that may not fit in with the expected tone of the document. My advice is that when you’re tempted to begin a sentence with a coordinating conjunction, consider the following: a) remember that the word should join words, phrases, and clauses; b) make sure that you won’t create a sentence fragment by beginning the sentence with the coordinating conjunction; and c) ensure that the sentence maintains the tone that is appropriate for the document. : All the performers can dance, so what I was really observing was their personalities. use "so far" in a sentence You will learn your lessons only in so far as you are willing to keep studying them. Additionally so is sometimes used to change the subject altogether; a person might start a non-sequitur with the word so. Why Use Sentence Starters? When did Elizabeth Berkley get a gap between her front teeth? I'm too tired to play football today. … Instead of having a strong point, it allows you to run on from your last thought. 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