Conjunctions are important components in Spanish as they allow the speaker to join sentences and convey useful meanings.
Most Common Conjunctions in Spanish
| Conjunction | Meaning | Example |
| y | and | Me gusta la primavera y el verano. I like spring and summer. |
| o | or | Voy a tomar café o té. I am going to drink tea or coffee. |
| si | if | Si estoy cansado, no voy a salir. If I am tired, I won’t go out. |
| pero mas sino | but | Quiero dormir pero no puedo. I want to sleep, but I can’t. Yo trabajo, mas no tengo dinero. I work, but I have no money. No voy el sábado sino el domingo. I won’t go on Saturday, but rather on Sunday. |
| según | according to | Según los médicos, el café no es malo. According to the doctors, coffee is not bad. |
| excepto salvo | except | Voy al gimnasio todos los días excepto los viernes. I go to the gym every day except Friday. |
| entonces | then | Bueno, entonces te voy a esperar. Okay, then I will wait for you. |
| sin embargo | however | Estoy cansado. Sin embargo, puedo salir contigo. I am tired. However, I can go out with you. |
| no obstante | nevertheless | El clima es seco; no obstante, a veces llueve. The climate is dry. Nevertheless, sometimes it rains. |
| para que a fin de que | so that in order to | Resumiré el libro para que puedas entenderlo. Resumiré el libro a fin de que puedas entenderlo. I will summarize the book so that you can understand it. |
| porque | because | Estudio español porque quiero vivir en México. I study Spanish because I want to live in Mexico. |
| a causa de | because of | No podemos salir a causa de la nieve. We can’t go out because of the snow. |
| en vez de en lugar de | instead | En vez de salir hoy, vamos a ver una película. Instead of going out tonight, we’ll watch a movie. |
| pues puesto que ya que | since because for | Voy al café, pues tengo bastante tiempo libre. Voy al café, puesto que tengo bastante tiempo libre. Voy al café, ya que tengo bastante tiempo libre. I’ll go to the coffee shop since I have enough free time. |
| dado que | given that | Es un momento importante, dado que el ganador se lo lleva todo. This is an important moment, given that winner takes all. |
| por lo tanto | therefore | Era tarde; por lo tanto, no salimos anoche. It was late; therefore, we didn’t go out last night. |
| de lo contrario | otherwise | Espero que no llueva; de lo contrario, no salimos. I hope it doesn’t rain; otherwise, we don’t go out. |
| aunque | although even if | Entiendo lo que dijo, aunque no puedo explicarlo. I understand what he said, although I can’t explain it. |
| a pesar de | in spite of despite | A pesar de ser bajo, es un muy buen jugador. Despite being short, he is a very good player. |
| como | as since | Como hace frío, voy a llevar mi abrigo. As it is cold, I will wear my coat. |
| así que | so | Es difícil decidir, así que hay que pensarlo. It is difficult to decide, so one must think about it. |
| es decir | in other words that is | Hablo inglés y español, es decir, soy bilingüe. I speak English and Spanish, in other words, I’m bilingual. |
| siempre que con tal (de) que | provided that as long as | Te ayudaré siempre que lo necesites. Te ayudaré con tal de que lo necesites. I will help you as long as you need it. |
| mientras (que) | while as long as | Compremos algo mientras estamos aquí. Let’s buy something while we are here. |
| o … o … ya sea … o … | either… or… | Bueno, o nos vamos ahora o más tarde. Bueno,nos vamos ya sea ahora o más tarde. Okay, we either leave now or later. |
| ni … ni … | neither … nor … | Mi italiano no es ni bueno ni malo. My Italian is neither good nor bad. |
| además de | besides | Además de la comida, pediré bebidas también. Besides food, I will order drinks too. |
| aparte de | apart from | Aparte del clima, no me gusta este lugar. Apart from the weather, I don’t like this place. |
| a diferencia de | unlike | A diferencia de usted, no sé alemán. Unlike you, I don’t know German. |
When “y” (and) or “o” (or) is followed by a Vowel
If the word following “y” (and) starts with an “i” or has the “ee” sound, e.g., “hijo”(son) at the beginning of the word, the “y” is replaced with “e,” e.g., “español e inglés” (Spanish and English), “hijos e hijas” (sons and daughters), etc.
An exception to this rule is if the word starts with a diphthong, such as “ie” or “io” sounds, e.g., “agua y hielo” (water and ice).
If the word following “o” (or) starts with an “o” or has the “o” sound (e.g., “hogar”) at the beginning of the word, the “o” is replaced with “u,” e.g., “siete u ocho” (seven or eight), “ayer u hoy” (yesterday or today).
The Conjunctions “Pero,” “Mas,” and “Sino” all meaning “But”
The conjunctions “pero,” “mas,” and “sino” in Spanish can all mean “but.” However, “pero” is the one you will encounter the most in daily life. The word “mas” is considered formal and is used more in written Spanish. Finally, the word “sino” is used to mean “but” or “but rather” when the first part of the sentence is negative, e.g., “No es invierno sino verano” (It is not winter but summer).
“Para que” vs. “A fin de que”
Both “para que” and “a fin de que” mean “so that” or “in order to.”
However, “para que” is more commonly used, while “a fin de que” is considered more formal.
Conjunctions that use the Subjunctive Mood in Spanish
The conjunctions “para que,” “a fin de que,” “siempre que,” “con tal (de) que,” and “mientras que” are usually followed by the subjunctive mood as explained in Level IV, Lesson 7 and Level V, Lesson 5.
The conjunction “aunque” means “although” or “even though” if followed by indicative mood, and means “even if” if followed by subjunctive mood. More on this is covered in Level VI, Lesson 5.
Quiz: Conjunctions in Spanish
Next: Reflexive Pronouns & Verbs
Other lessons in Level IV:
