Continuing our three-part series, this issue of Grammatically Correct looks at a third class of conjunctions: subordinating conjunctions.

Simply put, subordinating conjunctions are actually adverbs that act as conjunctions, joining an independent clause (or the main clause) to a dependent clause (or the subordinate clause). Below is a list of some of the most common words that serve as subordinating conjunctions:

Common Subordinating Conjunctions

As mentioned above, subordinating conjunctions join the main clause of a sentence to another, dependent, clause in the sentence. The subordinating conjunction signals the beginning of the subordinate clause. Let’s look at a few examples. Italics indicate the subordinate clause, while bold indicates the subordinate conjunction:

Example 1: While on their way to the movies, John and Susan witnessed a three-car
                    wreck.

Example 2: Julie plans to visit eastern Turkey next summer, even though that region has
                    recently become politically unstable.

Example 3: We are going to eat at the Olive Garden before we attend the prom.

The dependent clause cannot stand on its own as a sentence--unlike the independent/main clause. For example, the phrase “Before we attend the prom” does not form a complete sentence, whereas the phrase “We are going to eat at the Olive Garden.” does form a complete sentence.  

In addition to our own website, this week we recommend the ESL Resource Center’s free grammar lessons online. The site contains 10 free in-depth lessons about the parts of speech and provides quizzes to test your understanding. Furthermore, the site has links to other language lessons, such as vocabulary and spelling. Although the website is designed for ESL students and teachers, the lessons provide good introductory knowledge of grammar. Visit the ESL Resource Center’s grammar page at http://eslus.com/LESSONS/GRAMMAR/Gram.htm.

Test your knowledge of subordinating conjunctions by filling in the blanks in the examples below. In some cases, more than one word might be the appropriate choice.

1. (____) La Boehme is my favorite opera, I also enjoy The Magic Flute by Mozart.

2. I feel freer to make commitments (______) the school year is finished.

3. Rachel tends to like country music (_____) Becky likes hardcore metal.

Answers
   1.    Although La Boehme is my favorite opera, I also enjoy The Magic Flute by Mozart.
   2.    I feel freer to make commitments now that/(after) the school year is finished.
   3.    Rachel loves country and western singers while Becky likes hardcore metal bands.

Grammatically Correct is a grammar tip of the week created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas.

Comments about this newsletter should be directed to Summer Leibensperger, leibenspergers@uhv.edu.

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