“And” seems to be surrounded by a lot of English myths that are taught to us in our youths. Luckily, most of these myths are false, and we need not worry about them. One such myth that this article will look into is using “and” more than once in the same sentence.
You can use “and” twice (or more) in a sentence. This mostly works when we are making a list of things, and we want to use “and” to emphasize the different things we are listing. We could also use it when one of the words within the list contains “and.”
Technically speaking, there is no limit to the amount of “and’s” we can use in a sentence.
- I like dogs, and cats, and squirrels, and ducks, and sheep, and fish, and cows.
The above sentence is grammatically correct. There is no reason we shouldn’t use “and” as many times as above. It helps to separate the individual parts of our list, which is better than simply writing:
- I like dogs, cats, squirrels, ducks, sheep, fish, and cows.
And to show you what we mean about a word already containing “and,” think about a food item that is made up of more than one thing. For example:
- I like lemon biscuits, chocolate biscuits, and strawberry and ginger biscuits.
“Strawberry and ginger” is the name of the flavor, so we include it as one entity, repeating the word “and.”
Is It Appropriate To Use “And” Multiple Times In A Sentence
You can use “and” as many times as you would like in most sentences. It is appropriate and grammatically correct. However, you shouldn’t use it to create a sentence that is much longer than a standard sentence would be before placing a comma.
Just because you’re using “and” to continue a point doesn’t mean you should use it every time. You can easily go overboard by using one too many “and’s,” which will make your sentence hard to read (and turn most people away from reading it).
You can see how many “and’s” might be over the top in the following example:
- When writing pronouns, I use him, and her, and me, and she, and we, and they, and I, and our, and his, and hers, and theirs, and yours.
While it might be good to list out everything like above, there are better ways to do it. If you’re going to include that many things in a list, you are better off with commas. Even better still, you should use “etc.” when you think you’ve gone far enough:
- When writing pronouns, I use him, her, me, she, we, etc.
Examples Of How To Use “And” Multiple Times In A Sentence
- I have a mother and a father, and a sister, but I don’t have a brother.
- You have made me an enemy and a friend, and I’m happy to be both.
- I am his girlfriend and his best friend, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
- I like lemon ice cream, strawberry ice cream, and chocolate and hazelnut ice cream.
- You should talk to him and me about this and find out whether we’re comfortable with it.
You don’t always need to make a full list with multiple “and” words. Instead, we can just use it twice or more to add a few extra people or nouns into a sentence. We could also use “and” to connect two nouns and then another to create a second clause if the context allows.
Can I Use “&” And “And” In The Same Sentence?
Certain sentences will also allow you to replace “and” with the “&” sign.
If you combine two objects, you might then want to use “and” to introduce a second clause. When this is the case, it’s sometimes likely to use “&” to combine those objects to help with the sentence structure and flow.
- My mom & dad will be here shortly, and I think it’s time for you to leave.
How Can I Avoid Using “And” Twice In A Sentence?
If you don’t like using “and” more than once in a sentence, you can simply replace “and” with a period if it starts a new clause. If you’ve instead used it to create a long list, replace it with commas, or add an “etc.” to end the list early.
That could turn this:
- I like strawberries, and berries, and cherries, and raspberries.
Into this:
- I like strawberries, berries, cherries, etc.
Or this:
- My mom and dad aren’t happy, and I need to talk to you about it.
Into this:
- My mom and dad aren’t happy. I need to talk to you about it.
You may also like:
8 Better Words To Use Instead Of “And/Or”
10 Best Words to Use Instead of “And” to Start a Sentence
Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.
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#1
Hello,
Is this usage of 2 «ands» appropriate or any better suggestions?
Karnataka, a south-western Indian state, home to ancient rivers and diverse flora and fauna.
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#2
Hello, nidhikapoor. Welcome to the forum.
This usage is correct.
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#3
Flora and fauna is a set phrase (although the two words can be used separately). So the sentence reads …rivers and (diverse flora and fauna) and you can’t omit the first and.
Last edited: Dec 17, 2020
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#4
You can have three ‘and’s in a sentence:
My favourite meals are fish and chips and bacon and eggs.
You can have five consecutive ‘and’s in a sentence.
The landlord of the Dog and Duck asked a signwriter to make him a new sign for the pub. The signwriter didn’t leave enough space between the words, so the landlord complained «You haven’t left enough space between ‘Dog’ and ‘and’ and ‘and’ and ‘Duck’.»
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#5
I think fish and chips go together and bacon and eggs go together. So we’re really talking about two things and not four. But apologies if I’m sounding dogmatic. I don’t think having more than one and is in itself wrong. But Their names are Caroline, Peter, and Tony sounds more likely, if not more natural, to me than Their names are Caroline and Peter and Tony.
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#6
You can have three ‘and’s in a sentence:
My favourite meals are fish and chips and bacon and eggs.
You can have five consecutive ‘and’s in a sentence.
The landlord of the Dog and Duck asked a signwriter to make him a new sign for the pub. The signwriter didn’t leave enough space between the words, so the landlord complained «You haven’t left enough space between ‘Dog’ and ‘and’ and ‘and’ and ‘Duck’.»
Wow! My head is spinning. Thank you.
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#7
I think fish and chips go together and bacon and eggs go together. So we’re really talking about two things and not four. But apologies if I’m sounding dogmatic. I don’t think having more than one and is in itself wrong. But Their names are Caroline, Peter, and Tony sounds more likely, if not more natural, to me than Their names are Caroline and Peter and Tony.
I would agree. Wonder if there is another more natural way of putting my message across. I can’t seem to move beyond my 2 and.
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#8
Hello, nidhikapoor. Welcome to the forum.
This usage is correct.
Thank you for the prompt response.
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#9
Don’t worry about it, Nidhikapoor. If you have to use more than one and, then use them. In speech, there would be a difference in intonation between My favourite meals are (fish and chips) and (bacon and eggs) and My favourite meals are fish, chips, bacon, and eggs. But this is difficult to bring out in writing. It’s often a stylistic thing anyway.
Last edited: Dec 17, 2020
About using and, I’ve learned it is usually used in lists, between the last two items. For example:
I like movies, traveling and going out with friends.
Please tell me if the use of and twice in this next example is correct. The first and is used between the last two items of the list, and the second is used to combine two things in the second part.
I am a software developer who has permanent residence, Bachelor degree and 4 years experience in .net for developing new software and doing enhancements in existing once.
Answer
Your usage is indeed entirely correct. “And” can be used in such a way.
Just note, that in a list, the second and last element of the list is separated by a comma, which I note in both of your examples, is lacking :
I like movies, traveling and going out with friends./A comma is needed between “traveling” and “and”
So, it should be:
I like movies, traveling, and going out with friends.
That’s one way of preventing confusion from the “and’s”
Attribution
Source : Link , Question Author : user576510 , Answer Author : Bidella
A sentence expresses a complete thought, but what if a complete thought is made by attaching strings of ideas using «and?» It’s a run-on. Beginning writers often have struggle with this abstract concept. Here is a one lesson strategy to eliminate run-ons using «and.»
Initial Lesson: Bridges
1. Teach Vocabulary Word Bridge (2 minutes): Bring pictures of bridges and discuss the purpose of a bridge (i.e. to connect pieces of land or islands). What would happen if there were lots of small islands connected with bridges? How would it feel to go across so many bridges?
2. Teach AND is a Bridge (2 minutes): Show the word «and» inside a bridge shape. Teach the word «and» is a bridge. «And» connects ideas.
3. Teach the General Rules (2 minutes):
- «And» can only be used once in a sentence to connect big ideas
- «And» can be used two times in a sentence when making a list of things
- Just like too many bridges, too many «ands» make a sentence hard to follow
4. Practice Combining Simple Sentences (12 minutes) Provide students with a variety of 2-3 sentences. Have students practice combining the sentences using the word «and.»
For example, look at the sentences below:
- The cake tastes good. I ate the cake
- I went running. I went swimming.
- My friend likes to swim. My friend likes to run. My friends likes to play.
How can students combine these sentences in different ways? At this point, which combined sentence is «better» is not important. The goal is for students to see how «and» can function in a sentence.
Here are some sample ways to combine the sentences from above:
- The cake tastes good, and I ate the cake. The cake tastes good, and I ate it.
- I went running, and I went swimming. I went running and swimming.
- My friend likes to swim, run, and play. My friend likes to swim, my friend likes to run, and my friend likes to play.
5. Practice Correcting Sample Sentences (12 minutes)
The next step is for students to correct run-on sentences. The teacher should create a list with some run-on sentences and some correct sentences. The students should go through the list, identify the run-ons, and fix them. At this point, it is not important to focus on whether or not sentences combine redundant information (e.g. I like to run, and I like to read.) Teach this in a follow up lesson.
Follow up Lesson: Find Mistakes in Papers
1. Eliminate Redundant Information
Once students understand the basic idea of combining with «and,» they will often need additional information on eliminating extraneous information. For example, «I like to run, and I like to play» is technically correct. However, since information is repeated twice, it is a wordy sentence. Teachers can cue students to eliminate redundant information by lining up the sentences and underlining the redundant information.
I like to run
and I like to read
Find the words that is the same. Underline them. Make this sentence shorter without the underlined words.
2. Edit Peer Work
Once students can identify run-ons and fix them in structured practice, students can become «editors» for their peers. An entire lesson can be devoted to editing peers work just for run-ons.
Re-Teaching Ideas
For the student who struggles with oral language, these ideas may still be hard to grasp. Here are some multi-sensory re-teaching ideas.
1. Practice Creating Simple Sentences on Notecards
Write a variety of nouns with articles, verbs (with or without infinitives) and prepositional phrases on note cards. Then, have students pick one of each card and create a simple sentence on a new notecard (e.g. the dog likes to run in the park.)
2. Line Up Sentence Cards and Draw Bridges
Have the student pull two simple sentence note cards and practicing combining them. The teacher can also create a notecard with the word bridge «and» and another note card with a comma. This will help the student visualize the function of these parts of speech. It will look like this:
Extension Lesson to Fix Errors in Grammatical Form
Another common mistake with combining information using «and» is that students do not maintain the same grammatical form. For example, «I like to run, read, and playing soccer» is grammatically incorrect because «to run, to read» and «playing soccer» do not match in form. This error can be corrected by having students dissect combined sentences into their individual kernel sentences (or parts), then line up the sentences and look to see if the combined parts look the same.
For example, look at the sentences below:
- I like to run.
- I like to read.
- I like playing soccer.
In order to combine elements, each sentence must be in same grammatical form. This most commonly means that you can not combine parts starting with a preposition with parts that do not start with a preposition.
To troubleshoot specific grammar questions, please feel free to contact us at sl3contact@gmail.com
Like us on facebook for more speech, language, and literacy ideas
References
Saddler, Bruce; Preschern, Jennifer. » Improving Sentence Writing Ability Through Sentence-Combining Practice.» Teaching Exceptional Children, 2007.
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Posted: Saturday, November 11, 2017 3:36:49 PM |
Joined: 2/17/2015
Posts: 894
Neurons: 4,947
I am going to make up two pairs of sentences below.
(1a) There is only 15ml of detergent in the bottle in the kitchen.
(1b) There is only 15ml of detergent in the bottle for the kitchen.
(2a) There is a mistake in question 5 in the physics solution manual.
(2b) There is a mistake for question 5 in the physics solution manual.
I am using «in» twice in the a’s.
Does that sound odd to native English speakers? If it does, should I change «in» to «for» as shown in the b’s?
Please help me. Thanks a lot.
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Posted: Saturday, November 11, 2017 3:51:44 PM |
Joined: 8/7/2017
Posts: 112
Neurons: 573
Both (1a) and (2a) are normal and common.
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Posted: Saturday, November 11, 2017 4:06:34 PM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 2/14/2015
Posts: 5,266
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Location: Corinth, New York, United States
There’s nothing wrong with using «in» twice in the same sentence. In fact, trying to avoid that repetition would effectively spoil the sentences.
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Posted: Saturday, November 11, 2017 4:09:43 PM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 7/8/2010
Posts: 28,119
Neurons: 115,230
Yes, you use it as many times as you need.
The bottle is in the kitchen and the detergent is in the bottle.
‘for’ changes the meaning.
If you have just bought two cans of air freshener, and they are still in your shopping bag, you can say where they are supposed to go (what their
purpose
is). WHere they are destined for.
One is for the bathroom and one is for the kitchen. But once you take them out of the bag and put them in the bathroom or in the kitchen, they are in that room — in the kitchen.
The detergent is in a bottle in a box in a cupboard in the kitchen.
‘for’ often implies purpose. It doesn’t work for contents of a question.
If something exists within or inside something, it is
in
it.
The mistake is in the question.
The question is in the book.
There is mistake in a sentence in a question in one of the tests in the physics book.
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 5:29:27 AM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/12/2011
Posts: 37,601
Neurons: 272,677
Location: Livingston, Scotland, United Kingdom
You can even have two words like ‘in’, in a row. . . 
Is there a cupboard to put the detergent in, in the kitchen?
When you speak such a sentence, the individual phrases are separated by changing tone of voice, pauses and so on.
It does not sound so bad at all — though one might
try
to re-phrase the sentence.
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 5:52:46 AM |
Joined: 6/14/2009
Posts: 18,351
Neurons: 59,731
Location: Brighton, England, United Kingdom
Robjen — there seem to have been a number of posts lately about whether one can use the same word twice in a sentence.
There is no grammatical rule which says one can’t. It’s purely a stylistic matter.
However, even if there were a rule, it would be almost impossible to abide by. The most commonly used words in English are prepositions, pronouns….all the «little» words which are like the nuts and bolts which hold a car together: — they are small but important. We HAVE to use them more than once in many sentences because they are performing different functions and are necessary to our understanding.
The thing about using the same word twice is *mainly* about adjective and adverbs, e.g.
«My parents took us to a lovely restaurant, where we had a lovely meal.» There are so many positive adjectives in English, a person appears not to understand this if they can’t think of any word other than «lovely», so we advise them to get rid of one.Besides which, it sounds boring to repeat the same one.
But it pertains to nouns as well: «We set out for the beach. When we got to the beach we parked the car. Then we walked from the car to the beach. Once on the beach we laid down our beach-towels for a nap.» That sort of thing comes into the «don’t use the same word» thing. As you can see, it makes it childish and boring to read.
Whereas Drago’s sentence «Is there a cupboard to put the detergent in, in the kitchen?» with two words exactly the same next to each other, could never be called boring!
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 6:40:39 AM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 12/29/2009
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Don’t go in inn in which there is no food.
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 7:25:32 AM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/12/2011
Posts: 37,601
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Location: Livingston, Scotland, United Kingdom
Or a pub with no beer!
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 7:41:35 AM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/21/2009
Posts: 47,927
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Location: Helsinki, Southern Finland Province, Finland
Of dear! I have a fear there’s no beer in here.
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 1:28:28 PM |
Joined: 6/14/2009
Posts: 18,351
Neurons: 59,731
Location: Brighton, England, United Kingdom
Ah Drago,
«Old Billy the blacksmith, first time in his life
Has gone home cold sober, to his darling wife
He walks in the kitchen, she says you’re early my dear?
Then he breaks down and tells her, the pubs got no beer.»
(My favourite verse)
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 1:39:47 PM |
Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/12/2011
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Location: Livingston, Scotland, United Kingdom
It’s funny — it is so obviously Australian in phrasing and sentiment — but it is stated to be ‘traditional Irish’ or ‘Country & Western’.
I guess it’s because the most popular versions were by Slim Dusty and The Dubliners.
Apparently it was true. There was a shortage and the composer rode twenty miles from his farm to the pub, and found that they had no beer — so he went home and wrote the original poem.
[image not available]
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Posted: Monday, November 13, 2017 7:04:33 PM |
Joined: 6/14/2009
Posts: 18,351
Neurons: 59,731
Location: Brighton, England, United Kingdom
Geez, Drago — fancy knowing about Slim Dusty? The memories that name — and that song — bring crowding back of outback Queensland!
Not that I’m a C & W fan; but hell’s teeth — the distances of flat, featureless scrub, or desert where you could drive for an entire day without seeing another vehicle on the road!
And the only music you could pick up for mile after sweaty mile was Slim Dusty and Slim Dusty wannabees on all the very few «local» radio stations you picked up.