Connectors and their meaning:

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Jodie Stone
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Saint Gaspar College Misio nero s de la Precio sa Sangre F o r m a n d o P e r s o n a s Í n t e g r a s LIST OF CONNECTORS AND TRANSITIONAL WORDS - 2017 Student s name: Grade: 7º If you want to

A person who speaks Spanish generally deletes pronouns, just because Spanish verb conjugation is different, so the "person" we are referring to as the subject of the sentence can be easily identified.

b) Sentences must sound logical in context, content and time. This means that they have to be expressed with pertinent changes in tenses.

1 Saint Gaspar College Misio nero s de la Precio sa Sangre F o r m a n d o P e r s o n a s Í n t e g r a s LIST OF CONNECTORS AND TRANSITIONAL WORDS Student s name: Grade: 7º If you want to express complete ideas in English, it is convenient to take into consideration some aspects concerning grammar. a) The subject (or personal pronoun) must be present in the sentence. A person who speaks Spanish generally deletes pronouns, just because Spanish verb conjugation is different, so the "person" we are referring to as the subject of the sentence can be easily identified. In English, the same verb conjugation is used for more than one subject, that's why it is so important to establish clearly about who we are talking about. b) Sentences must sound logical in context, content and time. This means that they have to be expressed with pertinent changes in tenses. We can't start an idea in past and suddenly change it to present tense or future without any logic. Grammar elements as auxiliary verbs, time expressions, singular and plural forms, must agree within the sentence. The position of the different elements must be the correct one: frequency adverbs generally go before the main verb, except to be; adjectives are placed before nouns; time expressions generally go at the end of the sentence, etc. COMPLETE IDEA STRUCTURE Sentence # 1 Sentence # 2 Sentence # 3 Subject- verb compl. Subject - verb compl. Subject- verb compl. I couldn t study English because my sister was so sick that we had to take her to the doctor. Connector Connector Connectors and their meaning: ADDITION CAUSE AND REASON CONTRAST And, besides, moreover. Because, because of, as, perhaps, that. But, although, however, in spite of the fact that, in spite of, despite. RESULT COMPARISON SUMMARY OR CONCLUSION CONDITION TIME AND SEQUENCE EXAMPLES INTERRUPTION Then, so, therefore On the contrary, while In fact, in brief, in summary, in conclusion. Otherwise, unless As, while, then, first, second... finally. For example, for instance. By the way 1

2 I. ADDING IDEAS (THEY PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION) AND : Y... (to join two sentences) - She went to the university and I went to the museum. BESIDES : ADEMÁS (TO ADD INFORMATION) - I don't like so much the new dictionary, besides it's too expensive. MOREOVER : MÁS AUN, ADEMÁS QUE. TO GIVE FURTHER INFORMATION - I don t want to go, moreover, I don t have the money to go. 2. CAUSE AND REASON (THEY EXPLAIN THE CAUSE OR GIVE REASONS) BECAUSE OF : DEBIDO A (FOLLOWED BY A NOUN PHRASE : SOMETHING) - We couldn't go because of the rain. - Henry was accepted immediately because of his knowledge. AS : DADO QUE, VIENDO QUE (CAUSE) - As he wasn t ready in time, we went without him. - As he felt tired he went to bed early. 2

3 BECAUSE : PORQUE, YA QUE FOLLOWED BY A COMPLETE SENTENCE - He couldn't go to the cinema because he had to prepare a test. - I'm good at English because I like it. PERHAPS : QUIZÁS, TAL VEZ (TO EXPRESS PROBABILITY) - Susan didn't call me up last night, perhaps she was very busy. THAT : QUE (IT CAN BE OMMITTED) - Everybody knew (that) she would be here soon. - He told me (that) he had just got married. 3. CONTRAST (THEY CONTAIN NEGATIVE IDEAS, IN OPPOSITION) BUT : PERO - I went to the mall but I didn t buy anything. ALTHOUGH : AUNQUE (IT CONTAINS A NEGATIVE IDEA, IN OPPOSITION) - She made it, although she didn't like it. - Although we knew (that) the test could be difficult, we didn't prepare it. 3

4 HOWEVER : SIN EMBARGO (IT CONTAINS A NEGATIVE OR OPPOSITE IDEA) - They knew the problems (that) we had; however, they didn't help us. - He promised me to be there on time; however, he didn't do it. IN SPITE OF DESPITE A PESAR DE (FOLLOWED BY A NOUN PHRASE- SOMETHING) - Robert went to the stadium in spite of the rain. - We went to the mountains despite the cold wind. IN SPITE OF THE FACT THAT : A PESAR DE QUE ( FOLLOWED BY A COMPLETE SENTENCE) - In spite of the fact that it was raining, we went to the stadium. - Alice chose a very expensive dress for the party, in spite of the fact that she knew (that) her father didn t have enough money to pay for it. 4. RESULT (THEY EXPRESS CONSEQUENCES OR EFFECT) THEN : ENTONCES - Pablo didn't study enough for the exam, then he got a bad mark. SO : ASI ES QUE, POR LO TANTO - We didn t have more classes, so we went home. 4

5 THEREFORE : POR LO TANTO (AS A RESULT) - We ll have many tests next week, therefore we must begin to study right now. 5. COMPARISON (THEY ESTABLISH SIMILITUDES OR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TWO SITUATIONS) ON THE CONTRARY : POR EL CONTRARIO - I'm not saying that you don't need help with your problems, on the contrary, I think that we have to work together to find out a solution. WHILE: MIENTRAS - While my sister went to the cinema with her friends, I decided to stay home and study. - Some students prefer to study alone, while others prefer to study with friends. 6. SUMMARY OR CONCLUSION. (THEY CLOSE A DESCRIPTION IDENTIFYING CENTRAL ELEMENTS) IN FACT : EN REALIDAD, DE HECHO - They brought many of the things we need for the project. In fact, they brought almost everything - I think she is qualified for the job, but she got nervous in her first interview. In fact, she needs another opportunity. 5

6 IN BRIEF : EN RESUMEN, EN DEFINITIVA (TO MAKE A SUMMARY) - All students must show responsibility, punctuality and creativity. In brief, the whole group must adapt to the new rules. - You can t just take something which is not your own, or be disrespectful or plagiarize academic material. In brief, you re expected to behave according to the rules. IN SUMMARY: EN RESUMEN - We didn t have a guitarist, the drummer left the city, our vocalist quitted. In summary, the band didn t exist any longer! IN CONCLUSION: EN CONCLUSIÓN - To become an Air Force pilot, you have to demonstrate good general and technical knowledge, be ready to practice a lot and count on good mental and physical health. In conclusion, it is a demanding career. 7. CONDITION (THEY SET A WARNING OR A CONDITION) OTHERWISE : SI NO, DE OTRA MANERA (TO WARN SOMEBODY) - You have to learn all the new verbs and expressions, otherwise you won't obtain a good mark in the test. 6

7 UNLESS : A MENOS QUE - Daniela won't go to the party unless you go with her. - I won't be able to buy the book unless you give me the money. 8. TIME AND SEQUENCE. (THEY PROVIDE ORDER OF TIME AND SEQUENCE TO A NARRATIVE TEXT OR DISCOURSE) AS : MIENTRAS, CUANDO (TIME) - I saw her as she was getting off the bus. - They saw the thieves as they ran away. - As he grew older he became less active. THEN : LUEGO, DESPUÉS - Catalina went to the cinema, then she went home. WHILE: MIENTRAS - While we were walking by the seashore, we found an old bottle with a message inside. FIRST: AL INICIO, PRIMERO ( SECOND, THIRD) - First, he tried to remember where he was. Second, he lit a match to see something around. Finally, he remembered he had been attacked in the alley. 7

8 FINALLY: FINALMENTE, AL FINAL - At the beginning, she felt alone in town. Few days later, she met some new friends and started going out to parties. Finally, she discovered she belonged to that place. 9. EXAMPLES AND ILLUSTRATIONS FOR EXAMPLE: POR EJEMPLO - There are many things (that) you can do to improve your English. For example, you can watch films on TV without subtitles, play video games with indications in English, read novels or magazines in English, etc. FOR INSTANCE: POR EJEMPLO - If you want to avoid gaining weight, you can do many things. For instance, establish clearly the meals you ll eat during the day, do physical exercise, drink much water, avoid unhealthy food, etc. 10. INTERRUPTION BY THE WAY : A PROPÓSITO (IDIOM USED TO INTERRUPT AN IDEA) - I can t understand why Pamela gets so bad marks in math, because she is so responsible... by the way, have you seen her? 8

LIST OF CONNECTORS AND TRANSITIONAL WORDS

Saint Gaspar College Misio nero s de la Precio sa Sangre F o r m a n d o P e r s o n a s Í n t e g r a s ENGLISH DEPARTEMENT LIST OF CONNECTORS AND TRANSITIONAL WORDS - 2017 Student s name: Grade: 8º How