There is no official English: English is what its speakers make of it. That said, and/or is terrible English. It should be avoided, and people who use it should be made fun of. It exists because there are three ways to use the words and and or:
- Eat your peas and carrots.
- Do you want steak, salad, potatoes, or what?
- You can either look at your cake, or you can eat it.
In the first, you must eat both your peas and your carrots.
In the second, nothing prevents you from choosing steak and potatoes for dinner.
In the third, you can’t have your cake and eat it too.
Some people, especially lawyers, get the second and third senses confused. The argument is that because and and or are entirely different words, they should have entirely different meanings. Overlap is indicated with a slash, since «you can walk on the red and or or the blue squares» would be unacceptable.
Or means exactly the same thing as and/or. Anyone who tells you otherwise isn’t speaking English. The mechanic who says
If your car has a dent or needs an oil change, stop by our shop!
is certainly not excluding those cars that are both dented and need their oil changed. The main difference between or and and is a mild sense of contrast or indifference: «Help yourself to the cakes, the pies, and the tarts» versus «Help yourself to the cakes, the pies, or the tarts.»
Still, there are some cases where or is exclusive:
- Either A or B.
- A or B, but not both.
- A or B (where A and B are obviously mutually exclusive)
Context can serve the role of saying «but not both». If your mom says «you can get the jawbreaker or the bubblegum», you know that she (wisely) won’t let you have both. But if she intends to let you have both, even when context suggests otherwise, she can say:
- A or B, or both if you’d like
Or, and I doubt that many will share my taste, you could try omitting the slash, as in the following:
You can walk on the red and or the blue squares.
In summary, avoid and/or and simply use or, they mean the same thing. Context will suggest the correct interpretation of or without the need to be explicit. And if context is misleading and you must be explicit, say «A or B, or both».
You should never start a sentence with the words “and” or “but”—never.
If that was drilled into your head at some point during your elementary school English lessons, then you’re not alone. Most of us were taught this rule in school—and we followed it with every writing assessment, research paper, and book report we ever wrote.
So, if it’s improper to start a sentence with the words “and” or “but” then why do so many prolific, notable writers do it? As do bloggers, journalists, and copywriters. It might seem like a rebellious move—but the truth is, it’s not really “against the rules” at all.
Telling It Straight
The truth is, it’s okay to start a sentence with the words “and” or “but”—if you do it correctly. After all, there is a time and place for everything, right?
First, let’s take a quick jump down memory lane to those Schoolhouse Rock! tapes you watched when the substitute teacher didn’t know the subject. Ever had the tune to “Conjunction Junction” stuck in your head for no apparent reason? You’re not alone.
However, after so many years, do you remember what the function of a conjunction really is? It might seem obvious—a conjunction connects two thoughts or ideas. “And” and “but” are called coordinating conjunctions and are a part of a much longer list of words.
There are seven coordinating conjunctions:
- and
- but
- or
- nor
- for
- so
- yet
However, the ones we were specifically taught to avoid starting a sentence with are “and” and “but.” The good news is, you can rest easy knowing that there is no true grammar rule that says you can’t ever start a sentence with one of these conjunctions.
“Contrary to what your high school English teacher told you, there’s no reason not to begin a sentence with but or and; in fact, these words often make a sentence more forceful and graceful. They are almost always better than beginning with however or additionally.” — Professor Jack Lynch, Associate Professor of English, Rutgers University, New Jersey
Why Were We All Taught a Rule that Doesn’t Exist?
Realizing now, ten, twenty, or even thirty years or more later that you were lied to might be frustrating—but your teachers really did have your best interests in mind. While there is no definitive answer as to why we were taught this “rule,” the explanation that makes the most sense was that it was meant to prevent kids from writing the way they talk.
Think about it—have you listened to a child or teenager talk for any extended amount of time? If you have, then you can understand exactly what these teachers were trying to avoid.
If you haven’t—well, these two examples will help provide some insight…
“We wanted to go to get burgers and they weren’t open. But we still got burgers. But we had to go somewhere else to get them. But they weren’t as good as the ones we were going to get.”
“My friend and I went to the beach yesterday. And while we were on the beach, we saw lots of seagulls and other birds. And this one seagull stole some guy’s fries while he was trying to eat them! And it scared the guy so much, he jumped nearly ten feet in the air!”
It’s one thing to verbally hear a story told in this fashion. But reading it is an entirely different experience. No matter what the word is, you never want to start too many consecutive sentences with the same word. The overuse of “and” and “but” in spoken English is likely the main reason our teachers forbid us from starting a sentence with them in our writing!
When Is It Okay to Start a Sentence with “And” or “But”?
So, if there is a time and place for everything—where is the proper time and place to use “and” or “but” at the beginning of your sentence?
The first thing you want to remember is that you’re using this word to connect two thoughts—so your phrase should be able to stand on its own. This means it has a clearly defined subject and verb.
If you remove your conjunction and you suddenly have a sentence fragment that doesn’t seem to make sense, then you need to rework your wording. Perhaps this means making your two sentences one—using “and” or “but” with a comma, rather than a period.
You should also take into consideration what you are writing. Different types of writing call for different approaches. The use of “and” or “but” at the start of a sentence sometimes brings a sense of informality. It might be right for your blog posts, whereas more formal coordinating conjunctions like “additionally” or “however” might read better in a white paper.
The bottom line is though, it’s never truly off limits. Sometimes it’s more impactful to be so precise and direct.
When Should You Follow the Old “English Class Rule”?
In most business writing—especially digital marketing copy like blog posts, emails, and social media posts—you shouldn’t stress using “and” or “but” to start your sentence. No one is going to point it out. No one is going to laugh at you. In fact, someone else who doesn’t already know the truth might think you’re the rebel for being so daring in the first place!
But there are times when you’ll want to follow this mock rule. Data-driven content—case studies, statistic focused white papers, text book content, these are places where you might not only see less opportunity to start a sentence with a conjunction, but also where it could be beneficial to avoid doing so.
If you’ve already got years of practice avoiding starting your sentence with one of these words, then it might take some retraining to find yourself starting a sentence this way. On the other hand, following this rule helps you to expand your vocabulary and use other words and phrases to get your points across. (I could have used “but” to start that last sentence; «on the other hand» adds variety while also giving a stronger sense of weighing up options.)
Breathe Easy Knowing You’re Not the Only Misled Student
It’s been years now since teachers started drumming into students that they should never—ever—start their sentence with the words “and” or “but.” If you’re one of likely millions who was taught this lie during your schooldays, don’t feel bad. This is just another case of a few people creating a problem for the rest of us.
Since teachers didn’t think they could trust some students to be more creative in telling their stories, they restricted everyone. Sure, it worked—you’ll hardly come across something written on the internet with repetitive starts, especially not “and” or “but”—but at what cost? Many of us were following a grammar rule that doesn’t exist—and probably got irrationally mad that editors missed such a common mistake again and again.
Can you already feel the weight lifted? If you’re one of many who has been avoiding using “and” or “but” to start a sentence, don’t hold back! It’s the freedom that comes with finding out a constraint you’ve worked around for years is no longer an issue.
Try using this new technique in your writing to create more direct and powerful statements.
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In American English usage, many writers and editors feel that a comma should precede and with three or more items in a series.
Example: I would like to order a salad, a sandwich, and dessert.
Newspapers and magazines do not generally use this rule as print space is too valuable to use on what might be considered extraneous punctuation. However, print publications will use the final comma before and if it is needed to avoid confusion.
Example: Her $10 million estate was split among her husband, daughter, son, and nephew.
Omitting the comma after son would have led the reader to believe that the son and nephew had to split one-third of the estate (each receiving one-sixth) rather than understanding that each relative received one-fourth of the estate.
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And is a coordinating conjunction. We use and to connect two words, phrases, clauses or prefixes together:
Televisions and computers are dominating our daily life. (noun + noun)
I have to shower and change. (verb + verb)
The photos are black and white. (adjective + adjective)
My best friend and my father’s father both come from Wales. (phrase + phrase)
She got to the door and put the key in the latch. (clause + clause)
The houses were a mix of pre- and post-war build. (prefix + prefix)
Go and, come and
Spoken English:
In informal speaking we often use and after go and come before verbs like ask, buy, check, collect, do, find, get:
Why don’t you go and ask her?
I need to go and buy myself some running shoes.
Can you come and do the washing up?
She should go and find another job.
In informal American English speaking, we often leave out and:
Dad will come collect you on the way back from work.
I was expecting him to go get the keys.
Fixed expressions with and
We often use and in common fixed expressions. The order of the words cannot change: peace and quiet, pick and choose, come and go, knife and fork, black and white.
And + adjective
Spoken English:
In informal speaking, when we want to emphasise something positive, we often use and after nice or lovely with another adjective:
The kitchen’s looking nice and clean.
You’re lovely and tanned.
And in numbers
When we speak or write numbers, we use and to separate hundred, thousand, million from numbers smaller than a hundred:
625: six hundred and twenty-five
1,000,410: one million, four hundred and ten
6,492: six thousand, four hundred and ninety-two
101: one hundred and one
We also use and between whole numbers and fractions:
23½: twenty three and a half
Neither & nor, either & or, both & and, not only & but. These are correlative conjunctions. You’ve probably learned to memorize these pairs, but I’m going to teach you to UNDERSTAND when and how to use them. Instead of focusing heavily on grammar rules, join me and we’ll talk about the situations where these correlative conjunctions are used in English. You’ll learn how these pairs can be used to express choice, surprise, inclusion, or negation. It may sound difficult, but trust me, you’ll understand it in no time.
Quiz
Test your understanding of this English lesson
Test your understanding of the English lesson by answering these questions. You will get the answers and your score at the end of the quiz.
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