Conjunct

In linguistics, the term conjunct has three distinct uses:

  • A conjunct is an adverbial that adds information to the sentence that is not considered part of the propositional content (or at least not essential) but which connects the sentence with previous parts of the discourse. Rare as it may be, conjuncts may also connect to the following parts of the discourse.
    • It was raining. Therefore, we didn’t go swimming.
    • It was sunny. However, we stayed inside.
    • You are such a dork. Still, I love you from the bottom of my heart.
  • A conjunct is one of the terms that are conjoined in a conjoining construction. Conjuncts are conjoined by means of a conjunction, which can be coordinating, subordinating or correlative. Conjuncts can be words, phrases, clauses, or full sentences.
    • [Gretchen and her daughter] bought [motor oil, spark plugs, and dynamite].
    • Take two of these and call me in the morning.
  • A verb form, for example the conjunct verb endings of Old Irish or the conjunct mood (sometimes called the subjunctive mood) of Algonquian languages.

This article discusses the first kind of conjunct.