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In English, conjunctions are a part of speech that connect words and group words/clauses together. For example: “My phone got wet but it still works.”
The word but is coordinating conjunction and one of the most commonly used conjunctions in the English language. Here are 75 example sentences with but conjunction.
Read also: Types of Conjunctions with Examples
- I walked to the beach but it was foggy, so I didn’t swim.
- I bought her flowers but she forgot to come to work.
- I took her out for dinner, but she didn’t eat it.
- She listened to me, but she didn’t understand it.
- I stayed at home but my wife went to the party.
- We went out for dinner, but the kids were noisy so we came home early.
- A new article came out slamming the popular diet program, but I believe it is more of a writing style choice.
- I was looking forward to it all day long, but when I got home my wife told me we could not go to dinner after all.
- He did not want to try it at first but after seeing everyone eat he had to give in.
- The beginning of the movie is slow but then picks up speed after that.
- The weather was nice but hot.
- The bear attacked us but we ran away.
- I think you should do something but I’m not sure what exactly.
- That was the best game I saw yesterday but it wasn’t very good.
- He said he couldn’t come but my mother told me he just wanted to stay home and watch tv all day.
- It’s a good hotel but my room is too small!
- I wanted to go out but I was too tired.
- I have been studying Chinese for months but still have problems with pronunciation.
- We can help you with your resume but we charge a fee for this service.
- I like dancing, singing and playing the piano but not at the same time.
- You can do it by yourself but it will be difficult and messy to clean up later.
- Life is hard but love is harder.
- We are busy but happy.
- He was old but he was also really sweet.
- The defendant was charged with assault and his lawyer claimed he acted in self defence but he was found guilty.
- ECT is dangerous but the side effects can be worse than the disease.
- In this case I don’t think that it is acceptable that a man without a criminal record isn’t allowed to work as a taxi driver because of this but I think that the law needs to be changed to make it more logical.
- I’ve been here a lot in the past but this time felt really uncomfortable.
- My sister is a doctor but she will never leave her little girl.
- Play it safe, but be as creative as you like as well!
- You can find clothes at great prices but they don’t always look good with other things in your wardrobe.
- Some people like to go on holiday and never come back, but you need to carry on working and paying the bills and everything else.
- Studies suggest that students who study more tend to get better grades, but this does not imply that those who study more will also get better grades.
- You can’t be fearless, but it is good to be brave, which is the opposite of being scared.
- He has a big mouth, but everything he says cannot be true.
- It was better than I thought but I was still disappointed.
- They are good at marketing but not good at production.
- What you see isn’t always what you get but it can be!
- Never try to look for perfection in others, because you will find flaws in everyone but yourself.
- I love my new dress but it’s too expensive.
- I don’t think he likes me, but I will talk with him.
- He is a good boy but he is lazy.
- The book is good but I don’t like the end.
- I like football, but not basketball.
- She was enjoying her meal, but it took too long to arrive.
- I didn’t buy it, but will look for it online.
- You can go home now, but you must be back by midnight.
- She is poor but she is happy.
- He looks smart but he is really bad.
- Tom loves his country but he doesn’t like politics.
- The train was early but I could not catch it.
- They didn’t like it but they bought it anyway.
- She worked hard for the exam but she failed anyway.
- I liked that restaurant, but it was crowded.
- I didn’t like that restaurant, but I did like the desserts.
- I’m not hungry, but he is very hungry .
- I didn’t go to the movies last night, but John did.
- You can go to school today, but you have to work hard.
- She didn’t want to go out tonight, but she doesn’t need to get up early tomorrow.
- The dress was expensive but it had to be replaced.
- The computer is cheap but good value for money.
- It was cheap but it had to be replaced at once.
- The shoes are comfortable but they need new heels.
- I like the furniture but I am not sure if I should keep them.
- The printer is complicated but so efficient.
- The students are studying hard but they are not doing well.
- Jonathan is smart but shy.
- I went with Lee but he didn’t come with me.
- I will go with him but where will you go?
- I am happy because my family came on time, but my friend is late.
- Some university students but not all like to socialize with other students.
- Jeremy Clarkson is married but not happy.
- All of our staff are paid fairly but it’s still difficult to survive on your wage.
- Mark Zuckerberg is an American billionaire but was raised in White Plains, New York.
- The average person should eat meat but I am a vegetarian.
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Read also
- Conjunction Sentences (50 Examples)
- Sentences with Although Conjunction (87 Examples)
- No Sooner Than Sentences (31 Examples)
- Examples with Neither Nor (50 Sentences)
- Sentences With Semicolons (;) 50 Examples
- Sentences with Either – or
- 50 Example Sentences with However
- Do Does Did Sentences (50 Examples)
- Has Have Had use in sentences | 50 Examples
- Was Were Sentences | 50 Examples
- There is – There are Sentences | 50 Examples
- Is am are sentences in English (50 Examples)
Sentences with the word But?
But
Examples
- «he has the one but will need a two and three to go with it»; «they had lunch at one»
- «her feelings of affection are dormant but easily awakened»
- «the job is (just) about done»; «the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded»; «we’re almost finished»; «the car all but ran her down»; «he nearly fainted»; «talked for nigh onto 2 hours»; «the recording is well-nigh perfect»; «virtually all the parties signed the contract»; «I was near exhausted by the run»; «most everyone agrees»
- «an absent stare»; «an absentminded professor»; «the scatty glancing quality of a hyperactive but unfocused intelligence»
- «not totally abstinent but abstemious»
- «the absurd predicament of seeming to argue that virtue is highly desirable but intensely unpleasant»- Walter Lippman
- «don’t do it on my account»; «the paper was rejected on account of its length»; «he tried to blame the victim but his success on that score was doubtful»
- «she must have seen him but she gave no sign of acknowledgment»; «the preface contained an acknowledgment of those who had helped her»
- «You should act like an adult»; «Don’t behave like a fool»; «What makes her do this way?»; «The dog acts ferocious, but he is really afraid of people»
- «Gielgud played Hamlet»; «She wants to act Lady Macbeth, but she is too young for the role»; «She played the servant to her husband’s master»
- «the action is no longer in technology stocks but in municipal bonds»; «gawkers always try to get as close to the action as possible»
- «you may actually be doing the right thing by walking out»; «she actually spoke Latin»; «they thought they made the rules but in reality they were only puppets»; «people who seem stand-offish are in reality often simply nervous»
- «to be nominally but not actually independent»; «no one actually saw the shark»; «large meteorites actually come from the asteroid belt»
- «adept in handicrafts»; «an adept juggler»; «an expert job»; «a good mechanic»; «a practiced marksman»; «a proficient engineer»; «a lesser-known but no less skillful composer»; «the effect was achieved by skillful retouching»
- «He alluded to the problem but did not mention it»
- «an affluent banker»; «a speculator flush with cash»; «not merely rich but loaded»; «moneyed aristocrats»; «wealthy corporations»; «a substantial family»
- «he apologized subsequently»; «he’s going to the store but he’ll be back here later»; «it didn’t happen until afterward»; «two hours after that»
- «an all-right movie»; «the passengers were shaken up but are all right»; «is everything all right?»; «everything’s fine»; «things are okay»; «dinner and the movies had been fine»; «another minute I’d have been fine»
- «a very amateurish job»; «inexpert but conscientious efforts»; «an unskilled painting»
- «an amazed audience gave the magician a standing ovation»; «I stood enthralled, astonished by the vastness and majesty of the cathedral»; «astounded viewers wept at the pictures from the Oklahoma City bombing»; «stood in stunned silence»; «stunned scientists found not one but at least three viruses»
- «Leonardo studied the human body»; «he has a strong physique»; «the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak»
- «Anyhow, he is dead now»; «I think they’re asleep; anyhow, they’re quiet»; «I don’t know what happened to it; anyway, it’s gone»; «anyway, there is another factor to consider»; «I don’t know how it started; in any case, there was a brief scuffle»; «in any event, the government faced a serious protest»; «but at any rate he got a knighthood for it»
- «the answer is obviously wrong»; «she was in bed and evidently in great pain»; «he was manifestly too important to leave off the guest list»; «it is all patently nonsense»; «she has apparently been living here for some time»; «I thought he owned the property, but apparently not»; «You are plainly wrong»; «he is plain stubborn»
- «irrigation often produces bumper crops from apparently desert land»; «the child is seemingly healthy but the doctor is concerned»; «had been ostensibly frank as to his purpose while really concealing it»-Thomas Hardy; «on the face of it the problem seems minor»
- «He was found guilty but appealed immediately»
- «with heads close together»; «approximate leaves grow together but are not united»
- «an argumentative discourse»; «argumentative to the point of being cantankerous»; «an intelligent but argumentative child»
- «a technically perfect but arid performance of the sonata»; «a desiccate romance»; «a prissy and emotionless creature…settles into a mold of desiccated snobbery»-C.J.Rolo
- «their military is the largest in the region»; «the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker»
- «he changed the arrangement of the topics»; «the facts were familiar but it was in the organization of them that he was original»; «he tried to understand their system of classification»
- «did not quite turn all the way back but looked askance at me with her dark eyes»
- «a tiny but assured income»; «we can never have completely assured lives»
- «the baby began to cry again»; «she held the baby in her arms»; «it sounds simple, but when you have your own baby it is all so different»
- «He tried to balloon around the earth but storms forced him to land in China»
- «the association should get rid of its elderly members—not by euthanasia, of course, but by Coventry»
- «most churches baptize infants but some insist on adult baptism»
- «it was an excellent kick but the ball hit the bar»
- «the architecture was a kind of bastard suggesting Gothic but not true Gothic»
- «I had known her before»; «as I said before»; «he called me the day before but your call had come even earlier»; «her parents had died four years earlier»; «I mentioned that problem earlier»
- «a fine-looking woman»; «a good-looking man»; «better-looking than her sister»; «very pretty but not so extraordinarily handsome»- Thackeray; «our southern women are well-favored»- Lillian Hellman
- «through the valley and beyond»; «to the eighth grade but not beyond»; «will be influential in the 1990s and beyond»
- «agreed to provide essentials but nothing beyond»
- «I knew his name perfectly well but I had a temporary block»
- «puritanic distaste for alcohol»; «she was anything but puritanical in her behavior»; «blue laws»
- «a bluff but pleasant manner»; «a bluff and rugged natural leader»
- «the second baseman made a bobble but still had time to throw the runner out»
- «She studied hard but failed nevertheless»; «Did I fail the test?»
- «a boring evening with uninteresting people»; «the deadening effect of some routine tasks»; «a dull play»; «his competent but dull performance»; «a ho-hum speaker who couldn’t capture their attention»; «what an irksome task the writing of long letters is»- Edmund Burke; «tedious days on the train»; «the tiresome chirping of a cricket»- Mark Twain; «other people’s dreams are dreadfully wearisome»
- «Sorry to trouble you, but…»
- «The rubber ball bounced»; «These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide»
- «he’s got plenty of brains but no common sense»
- «Mozart was a child genius»; «he’s smart but he’s no Einstein»
- «Familiarity with danger makes a brave man braver but less daring»- Herman Melville; «a frank courageous heart…triumphed over pain»- William Wordsworth; «set a courageous example by leading them safely into and out of enemy-held territory»
- «The bar keeper threw them out, but they continued to wrangle on down the street»
- «They breasted the mountain»; «Many mountaineers go up Mt. Everest but not all summit»
- «The treatment cured the boy’s acne»; «The quack pretended to heal patients but never managed to»
- «He provides for his large family by working three jobs»; «Women nowadays not only take care of the household but also bring home the bacon»
- «Byron lives on not only in his poetry, but also in his creation of the `Byronic hero’ — the persona of a brooding melancholy young man»
- «his proposal was nothing but a house of cards»; «a real estate bubble»
- «build a defense on nothing but the accused person’s reputation»
- «he swung late on the fastball»; «he showed batters nothing but smoke»
- «I was merely asking»; «it is simply a matter of time»; «just a scratch»; «he was only a child»; «hopes that last but a moment»
- «she reported several anonymous calls»; «he placed a phone call to London»; «he heard the phone ringing but didn’t want to take the call»
- «she cried with pain when the doctor inserted the needle»; «I yelled to her from the window but she couldn’t hear me»
- «I am busy right now—can you call back in an hour?»; «She left a message but the contractor never called back»
- «looking careworn as she bent over her mending»; «her face was drawn and haggard from sleeplessness»; «that raddled but still noble face»; «shocked to see the worn look of his handsome young face»- Charles Dickens
- «She lost the game but carried the match»
- «`I know it’s hard’, he continued, `but there is no choice'»; «carry on—pretend we are not in the room»
- «it was a case of bad judgment»; «another instance occurred yesterday»; «but there is always the famous example of the Smiths»
- «it sounds good but what’s the catch?»
- «She didn’t know what her classmates were plotting but finally caught on»
- «he used sarcasm to upset his opponent»; «irony is wasted on the stupid»; «Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody’s face but their own»—Jonathan Swift
- «injunction were formerly obtained by writ but now by a judicial order»
- «he was certain to fail»; «his fate is certain»; «In this life nothing is certain but death and taxes»- Benjamin Franklin; «he faced certain death»; «sudden but sure regret»; «he is sure to win»
- «it’s all over but the shouting»
- «a female form in marble—a chilly but ideal medium for depicting abstract virtues»-C.W.Cunningham
- «his Utopia is not as chimeric commonwealth but a practical improvement on what already exists»- Douglas Bush
- «his Utopia is not a chimerical commonwealth but a practical improvement on what already exists»- Douglas Bush
- «The team should have won hands down but choked, disappointing the coach and the audience»
- «a scenic but devious route»; «a long and circuitous journey by train and boat»; «a roundabout route avoided rush-hour traffic»
- «the lead climber looked strong still but his partner often slumped in his ropes»
- «he had coarse manners but a first-rate mind»; «behavior that branded him as common»; «an untutored and uncouth human being»; «an uncouth soldier—a real tough guy»; «appealing to the vulgar taste for violence»; «the vulgar display of the newly rich»
- «a very getatable man»; «both oil and coal are there but not in getatable locations»
- «Please state your case as succinctly as possible»; «he wrote compactly but clearly»
- «there was a brief period of conciliation but the fighting soon resumed»
- «he deserved nothing but condemnation»
- «there have been plenty of general declarations about willingness to meet and talk, but conspicuously no mention of time and place»
- «Englishmen like to visit the Continent but they wouldn’t like to live there»
- «we thought Sue was older than Bill but just the reverse was true»
- «disjunctive conjunctions like `but‘, `or’, or `though’ serve a contrastive function»
- «like a wild young colt, very inquisitive but very coy and not to be easily cajoled»
- «the gimmick would convince none but the most credulous»
- «spoken with a straight face but crossed fingers»; «crossed forks»; «seated with arms crossed»
- «the curved tusks of a walrus»; «his curved lips suggested a smile but his eyes were hard»
- «children are customarily expected to be seen but not heard»
- «She dabbles in astronomy»; «He plays around with investments but he never makes any money»
- «he saw the rewards but not the risks of crime»; «there was a danger he would do the wrong thing»
- «She wrote the letter on Monday but she dated it Saturday so as not to reveal that she procrastinated»
- «everyone was aware of the approaching doom but was helpless to avoid it»; «that’s unfortunate but it isn’t the end of the world»
- «adopted a degage pose on the arm of the easy chair»- J.S.Perelman; «she may be detached or even unfeeling but at least she’s not hypocritically effusive»; «an uninvolved bystander»
- «cooking was fine but it was the savoring that he enjoyed most»
- «is dejected but trying to look cheerful»
- «the socialists are further handicapped if they believe that capitalists are not only wicked but also devilishly clever»
- «the buyout negotiation lasted several days»; «they disagreed but kept an open dialogue»; «talks between Israelis and Palestinians»
- «advertising that strives continually to be different»; «this new music is certainly different but I don’t really like it»
- «the action was not offensive to him but proved somewhat disobliging»
- «plants of several distinct types»; «the word `nationalism’ is used in at least two distinct senses»; «gold is distinct from iron»; «a tree related to but quite distinct from the European beech»; «management had interests quite distinct from those of their employees»
- «Originally distress was a landlord’s remedy against a tenant for unpaid rents or property damage but now the landlord is given a landlord’s lien»
- «it was a good drive but the ball ended up in a divot»
- «his evasion of his clear duty was reprehensible»; «that escape from the consequences is possible but unattractive»
- «dogged persistence»; «dour determination»; «the most vocal and pertinacious of all the critics»; «a mind not gifted to discover truth but tenacious to hold it»- T.S.Eliot; «men tenacious of opinion»
- «a dowdy grey outfit»; «a clean and sunny but completely dowdy room»
- «but in so many other areas we still are dragging»
- «he wrote several plays but only one was produced on Broadway»
- «the play was dramatically interesting, but the direction was bad»
- «not openly liberal but that is the trend of the book»; «a broad movement of the electorate to the right»
- «ancient Greek had the dual form but it has merged with the plural form in modern Greek»
- «they admitted the force of my argument but remained dubious»
- «I thought she had just been in a bad mood for thirty years, but the doctor called it dysthymia»
- «it was not the typing but the earphones that she disliked»
- «his contention contains more than an echo of Rousseau»; «Napoleon III was an echo of the mighty Emperor but an infinitely better man»
- «the first seven councils through 787 are considered to be ecumenical councils by both the Roman Catholic church and the Eastern Orthodox church but the next fourteen councils are considered ecumenical only by the Roman Catholic church»
- «The other children egged the boy on, but he did not want to throw the stone through the window»
- «he isn’t stupid, but he isn’t exactly a genius either»; «I don’t know either»; «if you don’t order dessert I won’t either»
- «the ephemeral joys of childhood»; «a passing fancy»; «youth’s transient beauty»; «love is transitory but it is eternal»; «fugacious blossoms»
- «erratic winds are the bane of a sailor»; «a temperamental motor; sometimes it would start and sometimes it wouldn’t»; «that beautiful but temperamental instrument the flute»- Osbert Lancaster
- «her husband seemed to know many of the people who were named, but he replied evasively when asked who they were»
- «after going out of his way to help his friend get the job he felt not appreciated but used»
- «expressions of good will»; «he helped me find verbal expression for my ideas»; «the idea was immediate but the verbalism took hours»
- «it was a mere glance, but the eye contact was enough to tell her that he was desperate to leave»
- «the British call Z zed and the Scots call it ezed but Americans call it zee»; «he doesn’t know A from izzard»
- «too facile a solution for so complex a problem»; «it was a neat plan, but bound to fail»; «a slick advertising campaign»
- «he lost his faith but not his morality»
- «one of them was safe but they were unable to save the faller»; «a faller among thieves»
- «the message was addressed not just to employees but to every member of the company family»; «the church welcomed new members into its fellowship»
- «a little less posh but every bit as stylish as Lord Peter Wimsey»; «the stylish resort of Gstadd»
- «he lost the mate to his shoe»; «one eye was blue but its fellow was brown»
- «in the middle ages feria was used with a prefixed ordinal number to designate the day of the week, so `secunda feria’ meant Monday, but Sunday and Saturday were always called by their names, Dominicus and Sabbatum, and so feria came to mean an ordinary weekday»
- «a fiddling sum of money»; «a footling gesture»; «our worries are lilliputian compared with those of countries that are at war»; «a little (or small) matter»; «a dispute over niggling details»; «limited to petty enterprises»; «piffling efforts»; «giving a police officer a free meal may be against the law, but it seems to be a picayune infraction»
- «These aspects of civilization do not find expression or receive an interpretation»; «His movie received a good review»; «I got nothing but trouble for my good intentions»
- «he had his flaws, but he was great nonetheless»
- «The police had been following him for weeks but they could not prove his involvement in the bombing»
- «the composition presents problems for students of musical form»; «a visual pattern must include not only objects but the spaces between them»
- «Tom and Dick were both heroes but only the former is remembered today»
- «belief in a world filled with…formless but often malevolent beings»
- «the frame enhances but is not itself the subject of attention»; «the frame was much more valuable than the miror it held»
- «God’s grace is manifested in the salvation of sinners»; «there but for the grace of God go I»
- «the function of an auger is to bore holes»; «ballet is beautiful but what use is it?»
- «the toaster was still functional even after being dropped»; «the lawnmower is a bit rusty but still usable»; «an operational aircraft»; «the dishwasher is now in working order»
- «when hearts were young and gay»; «a poet could not but be gay, in such a jocund company»- Wordsworth; «the jolly crowd at the reunion»; «jolly old Saint Nick»; «a jovial old gentleman»; «have a merry Christmas»; «peals of merry laughter»; «a mirthful laugh»
- «he discussed the general but neglected the particular»
- «a dry climate kind to asthmatics»; «the genial sunshine»; «hot summer pavements are anything but kind to the feet»
- «the city was called Stabroek by the Dutch but was renamed Georgetown by the British in 1812″
- «the gilded and perfumed but inwardly rotten nobility»; «meretricious praise»; «a meretricious argument»
- «global war»; «global monetary policy»; «neither national nor continental but planetary»; «a world crisis»; «of worldwide significance»
- «in the Book of Ezekiel Gog is a ruler from the land of Magog but in the Book of Revelation Gog and Magog are nations under the rule of Satan»
- «The payment had originally been due on April 1 but we had a grace period which expired in June.»
- «the resolute but unbroken Germany, grievously wounded but far from destruction, was able to lay the firm foundations for military revival»
- «he grabbed the hammer by the handle»; «it was an old briefcase but it still had a good grip»
- «gruff voices»; «the dog’s gruff barking»; «hoarse cries»; «makes all the instruments sound powerful but husky»- Virgil Thomson
- «I’m not very good at hacking but I’ll give it my best»
- «he gave a great halloo but no one heard him»
- «on the one hand…, but on the other hand…»
- «the kangaroo’s forearms seem undeveloped but the powerful five-fingered hands are skilled at feinting and clouting»- Springfield (Mass.) Union
- «the Prime Minister was wearing a grey suit and a white shirt with a soft collar, but his neck had become thinner and the collar stood away from it as if it had been bought haphazard»
- «a hardheaded appraisal of our position»; «a hard-nosed labor leader»; «completely practical in his approach to business»; «not ideology but pragmatic politics»
- «the boss hoped the plan would succeed but he wasn’t willing to do the heavy lifting»
- «he’s hot at math but not so hot at history»
- «She hunted for her reading glasses but was unable to locate them»
- «negative identification can only be accomplished through biometric identification»; «if a pin or password is lost or forgotten it can be changed and reissued but a biometric identification cannot»
- «illusive hopes of finding a better job»; «Secret activities offer presidents the alluring but often illusory promise that they can achieve foreign policy goals without the bothersome debate and open decision that are staples of democracy»
- «her impassive remoteness»; «he remained impassive, showing neither interest in nor concern for our plight»- Nordhoff & Hall; «a silent stolid creature who took it all as a matter of course»-Virginia Woolf; «her face showed nothing but stolid indifference»
- «the power of the Secretary of State in London increased gradually but imperceptibly»
- «his importunity left me no alternative but to agree»
- «he listened but resented the imposition»
- «refloating the ship proved impractical because of the expense»; «he is intelligent but too impractical for commercial work»; «an impractical solution»
- «mites are arachnids, but they have a lot in common with insects»; «property held in common»
- «in fact, it was a wonder anyone survived»; «painters who are in fact anything but unsophisticated»; «as a matter of fact, he is several inches taller than his father»
- «the study was criticized for incompleteness of data but it stimulated further research»; «the rawness of his diary made it unpublishable»
- «an earthy but not indecent story»; «an indecent gesture»
- «his indecision was only momentary but the opportunity was lost»
- «an indifferent performance»; «a gifted painter but an indifferent actor»; «her work at the office is passable»; «a so-so golfer»; «feeling only so-so»; «prepared a tolerable dinner»; «a tolerable working knowledge of French»
- «making indirect but legitimate inquiries»; «an indirect insult»; «doubtless they had some indirect purpose in mind»; «though his methods are indirect they are not dishonest»; «known as a shady indirect fellow»
- «the routine but indispensable ceremonies of state»
- «the two specimens are actually different from each other but the differences are almost indistinguishable»; «the twins were indistinguishable»; «a colorless person quite indistinguishable from the colorless mass of humanity»
- «the little boy’s parents think he is spirited, but his teacher finds him unruly»
- «Clinton smoked marijuana but never inhaled»
- «Beethoven’s manuscript looks like a bloody record of a tremendous inner battle»- Leonard Bernstein; «she thinks she has no soul, no interior life, but the truth is that she has no access to it»- David Denby; «an internal sense of rightousness»- A.R.Gurney,Jr.
- «a charming but thoroughly insincere woman»; «their praise was extravagant and insincere»
- «I bought this house not because I want to live in it but to sell it later at a good price, so I am speculating»
- «a sidecar is a smooth drink but it has a powerful kick»
- «he was in Paris recently»; «lately the rules have been enforced»; «as late as yesterday she was fine»; «feeling better of late»; «the spelling was first affected, but latterly the meaning also»
- «Tom and Dick were both heroes but only the latter is remembered today»
- «her income was laughably small, but she managed to live well»
- «He thought of a reply but let it go»
- «I’m pretty beat up but I don’t feel licked yet»
- «it is a good plan but it has serious limitations»
- «`let me show you my etchings’ is a rather worn line»; «he has a smooth line but I didn’t fall for it»; «that salesman must have practiced his fast line of talk»
- «live copy is ready to be set in type or already set but not yet proofread»
- «We lost the battle but we won the war»
- «a mischievous but lovable child»
- «He made to speak but said nothing in the end»; «She made as if to say hello to us»
- «psychologically similar but materially different»
- «a meaningless endeavor»; «a meaningless life»; «a verbose but meaningless explanation»
- «compliant and anxious to suit his opinions of those of others»; «a fine fiery blast against meek conformity»- Orville Prescott; «she looked meek but had the heart of a lion»; «was submissive and subservient»
- «The famous professor mentored him during his years in graduate school»; «She is a fine lecturer but she doesn’t like mentoring»
- «the tribe was relatively safe on the mesa but they had to descend into the valley for water»
- «well-meaning but misguided teachers»; «a mistaken belief»; «mistaken identity»
- «misused words are often laughable but one weeps for misused talents»
- «comfortable but modest cottages»; «a simple rectangular brick building»; «a simple man with simple tastes»
- «monetary rewards»; «he received thanks but no pecuniary compensation for his services»
- «it was not dull grey as distance had suggested, but a mottle of khaki and black and olive-green»
- «some call the mujahidin international warriors but others just call them terrorists»
- «sticks and stones may break my bones but names can never hurt me»
- «a brilliant but narrow-minded judge»; «narrow opinions»
- «he recognized her neediness but had no time to respond to it»
- «they now have a new leaders»; «my new car is four years old but has only 15,000 miles on it»; «ready to take a new direction»
- «his bookcases were filled with nothing but novels»; «he burned all the novels»
- «She volunteered to drive the old lady home»; «I offered to help with the dishes but the hostess would not hear of it»
- «one of his cardinal convictions was that Britain was not run as a democracy but as an oligarchy»; «the big cities were notoriously in the hands of the oligarchy of local businessmen»
- «The doctors operated on the patient but failed to save his life»
- «she drove but well but her reckless passing of every car on the road frightened me»
- «had a witty but overweening manner»; «no idea how overweening he would be»- S.V.Benet; «getting a little uppity and needed to be slapped down»- NY Times
- «It has only sprinkled, but the roads are slick»
- «a graceful but not yet fully perfected literary style»
- «a kind of speculation that was permissible in cosmology but inadmissible in medicine»
- «physical exercise»; «physical suffering»; «was sloppy about everything but her physical appearance»
- «they could still receive the sound but the picture was gone»
- «the characters were well drawn but the plot was banal»
- «She poisoned her husband but he did not die»
- «people come and go, but the population of this town has remained approximately constant for the past decade»; «the African-American population of Salt Lake City has been increasing»
- «he wanted his portrait painted but couldn’t spare time for the sitting»
- «practically orientated institutions such as business schools»; «a brilliant man but so practically inept that he needed help to cross the road safely»
- «she gave the trophy but he made the presentation»
- «Theodore Roosevelt said `Speak softly but carry a big stick'» (1858-1919)
- «He professed innocence but later admitted his guilt»; «She pretended not to have known the suicide bomber»; «She pretends to be an expert on wine»
- «he teaches at the medical school but his fortune came from private practice»; «lawyers in private practice are in business and must make a profit to survive»
- «it was a long pull but we made it»
- «Pyongyang is Korea’s oldest city but little of its history has been preserved»
- «this may not insure success but it will represent a quantum leap from last summer»
- «quarks have not been observed directly but theoretical predictions based on their existence have been confirmed experimentally»
- «he surrendered but asked for quarter»
- «speak softly but carry a big stick»; «she spoke quietly to the child»; «the radio was playing softly»
- «he gave the attic a good rummage but couldn’t find his skis»
- «I try to reach out to my daughter but she doesn’t want to have anything to do with me»
- «when the measured speech of the chorus passes over into song the tones are, remotely but unmistakably, those taught by the orthodox liturgy»
- «he ignored their teases»; «his ribbing was gentle but persistent»
- «they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights»; «Certain rights can never be granted to the government but must be kept in the hands of the people»- Eleanor Roosevelt; «a right is not something that somebody gives you; it is something that nobody can take away»
- «he writes with his right hand but pitches with his left»; «hit him with quick rights to the body»
- «the rooms were very small but they had a nice view»
- «a roomy but sparsely furnished apartment»; «a spacious ballroom»
- «the error in the calculation was attributable to rounding»; «taxes are rounded off to the nearest dollar but the rounding error is surprisingly small»
- «he gave us the results in round numbers, but their roundness didn’t affect the point he was making»
- «want nothing from you but to get away from your uncivil tongue»- Willa Cather
- «wealthy by inheritance but saving by constitution»- Ellen Glasgow
- «a score were sent out but only one returned»
- «the golfer hit the ball well but his putting was spotty»
- «a hard but seasonable frost»; «seasonable clothes»
- «hardly more than a boy but firm-knit and self-confident»
- «separate but equal»; «girls and boys in separate classes»
- «cheerfully bearing reproaches but shamefaced at praise»- H.O.Taylor
- «his shooting was slow but accurate»
- «upon the hill stood a single tower»; «had but a single thought which was to escape»; «a single survivor»; «a single serving»; «a single lens»; «a single thickness»
- «yogurt made with skim milk»; «she can drink skimmed milk but should avoid butter»
- «a slow walker»; «the slow lane of traffic»; «her steps were slow»; «he was slow in reacting to the news»; «slow but steady growth»
- «curled his lip in a supercilious smile»; «spoke in a sneering jeering manner»; «makes many a sharp comparison but never a mean or snide one»
- «the amount of energy falling on the earth is given by the solar constant, but very little use has been made of solar energy»
- «It doesn’t seem fair somehow»; «he had me dead to rights but somehow I got away with it»
- «it looked like a sphere but on closer examination I saw it was really a spheroid»
- «he uses other people’s ideas as a springboard for his own»; «reality provides the jumping-off point for his illusions»; «the point of departure of international comparison cannot be an institution but must be the function it carries out»
- «the police are now back at square one after having arrested and released 27 men»; «she has tried to diet but always ends up back at square one»
- «war was declared in November but actual fighting did not begin until the following spring»
- «The old man was stooping but he could walk around without a cane»
- «he was supremely confident»; «He seemed irritated at Edouard’s questions but, apart from that, sublimely unconcerned»; «she remained sublimely oblivious to the possible havoc she might have caused»
- «a tame Christmas party»; «she was one of the tamest and most abject creatures imaginable with no will or power to act but as directed»
- «temporal matters of but fleeting moment»- F.D.Roosevelt
- «they used to do the threshing by hand but now there are machines to do it»
- «on the geological time scale mankind has existed but for a brief moment»
- «the Pennsylvania Dutch tole watering can might be a reproduction but it looks convincing»
- «he enjoyed selling but he hated the travel»
- «a person struck by a log as it was thrown onto a road could maintain trespass against the thrower but one who was hurt by stumbling over it could maintain and action on the case»
- «his worry over the prospect of being fired»; «it is not work but worry that kills»; «he wanted to die and end his troubles»
- «he told the truth»; «he thought of answering with the truth but he knew they wouldn’t believe it»
- «but there is still a twilight zone, the tantalizing occurrences that are probably noise but might possibly be a signal»; «in the twilight zone between humor and vulgarity»; «in that no man’s land between negotiation and aggression»
- «war was breaking out in Europe, but she unconcernedly planned for a holiday»
- «continued seeing him but on an unengaged basis»
- «the unexpressed terms of the agreement»; «things left unsaid»; «some kind of unspoken agreement»; «his action is clear but his reason remains unstated»
- «the production was professional but uninspired»
- «unskilled in the art of rhetoric»; «an enthusiastic but unskillful mountain climber»; «unskilled labor»; «workers in unskilled occupations are finding fewer and fewer job opportunities»; «unskilled workmanship»
- «an unspectacular but necessary task»
- «a styleless way of dressing»; «expensive but styleless country tweeds»; «wearing unstylish clothes»
- «She used to call her mother every week but now she calls only occasionally»; «I used to get sick when I ate in that dining hall»; «They used to vacation in the Bahamas»; «she used to be his best friend and now they are enemies»
- «`in venter’ is legal terminology for `conceived but not yet born'»
- «a large but wieldy book»
- «they trembled before the wrathful queen»; «but wroth as he was, a short struggle ended in reconciliation»
- «he looked at her, not wrathfully now, but quizzically»
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Examples of how to use the word “but” in a sentence. How to connect “but” with other words to make correct English sentences. (High-quality Audio!)
but (conj): used to introduce an added statement, usually something that is different from what you have said before
Use “but” in a sentence
| He was sick but still walked to school. |
| I liked that movie but he didn’t. |
| I will pay the fine, but not today.
Back to “3000 Most Common Words in English” |
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Can you start a sentence with but? English teachers love to tell us it’s against the rules. But there is nothing wrong with starting a sentence with but.
As you grow as a writer, you learn that many of the rules you were taught in school aren’t really rules at all. Can you start a sentence with but? Your third-grade teacher probably told you this was absolutely verboten. However, this is an example of a common rule that is misleading. There is nothing wrong with starting a sentence with but or any other coordinating conjunction. In fact, authorities as lofty as The Elements of Style, The Chicago Style Manual, and William Shakespeare all begin sentences with the word “but.” In the case of the former two examples for analyzing a sentence, they also overtly say that it is permissible.
Contents
- Why It Is OK to Start a Sentence with But?
- What Are Coordinating Conjunctions?
- What Are Independent Clauses?
- How Do You Avoid Sentence Fragments?
- Can But Go at the Beginning of a Sentence in Good Writing?
- Is It OK in Business Writing?
- Where Did the Rule Against Starting a Sentence with But Come From?
- The Final Word on Can You Start a Sentence with But
- FAQ About Starting a Sentence with But
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Why It Is OK to Start a Sentence with But?
“But” is conjunction. According to sources including Merriam-Webster, conjunction is used to join words, phrases, clauses, and sentences. Because of this, it is perfectly proper to use “but” to begin a sentence that continues an idea expressed in the previous one.
What Are Coordinating Conjunctions?
We use coordinating conjunctions to connect words and phrases together. The seven coordinating conjunctions in the English language are:
- And
- But
- For
- Nor
- Or
- So
- Yet
It is perfectly allowable to start a sentence with any of these, as long as you are connecting two independent clauses.
What Are Independent Clauses?
An independent clause is one that forms a complete sentence on its own. Examples of independent clauses that are joined by coordinating conjunctions include:
- I got to the station early. But I still missed my train.
- She won’t eat at Italian restaurants. Nor will she try sushi.
- We could go to Paris. Or we could take a flight to Madrid.
How Do You Avoid Sentence Fragments?
As long as the sentence you started with “but” includes both a noun and a verb, the chances that you’ve created a fragment are very low. A sentence fragment lacks one or the other (usually the verb). As long as the first phrase ends in a full stop and the second phrase uses “but” in a logical way, you can’t go wrong.
Examples include:
- I got the promotion. But I still won’t make as much as I need.
- He arrived with seven bags of groceries. But he still forgot the bread.
There are few logical statements in sentences of those forms that would take the form of fragments. If you were to write “He arrived with seven bags of groceries. But the bread.” the reader would be excused for wondering “but the bread what?”
Can But Go at the Beginning of a Sentence in Good Writing?
Yes, absolutely. Good writing, in fact, is made up of sentences that vary in length and word use. Bad writing often suffers from an excess of uniformity rather than a sprinkling of grammar that, although correct, would not be accepted in a beginning language class.
Is It OK in Business Writing?
It’s accepted that business writing is more formal than some other forms. Because of this, there is a reluctance to use grammar that might be seen as overly casual.
However, in actual practice, the choice comes down to the setting and the tone. If other people in your company seem to hew to more stiff and formal language, it might be good to do so, as well. But if they tend to write with less formality, you are free to do so, too.
Where Did the Rule Against Starting a Sentence with But Come From?
According to linguist David Crystal, the rule started with schoolteachers in the 19th century. Many noticed young students habitually starting sentences with conjunctions and attempted to stop this in the interest of creating themes and essays with standalone, independent thoughts and clauses.
But instead of encouraging students to limit the use of these sentence starters, over time, they fell into a habit of banning the words altogether. Because of this, generations of children were taught never to start a sentence with conjunction when no such English grammar rule exists.
The Final Word on Can You Start a Sentence with But
Yes, you absolutely can start a sentence with but. But you need to make sure that the following sentence is not a fragment.
When it comes to using it in a business setting, that is a question of style rather than grammar. Follow the lead of the people in your office and your industry. And if there’s a style guide, that’s even better.
FAQ About Starting a Sentence with But
When can you start a sentence with but?
Any time you are joining a sentence with the one that proceeds it.
Are there times it’s wrong to start a sentence with but?
It’s wrong if your sentence is not a complete sentence. If it is a dependent clause, you should use a piece of punctuation other than a period.
Is it OK to use but at the start of a sentence according to AP Style or Chicago Manual of Style?
Both allow you to use but at the beginning of a sentence.
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