Comparative Grammar 3.5. Conjunctions in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French

In this comparative grammar lesson of Romance languages, we study conjunctions in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French. Conjunctions are important components of any language as they allow the speaker to join sentences and convey useful meanings.

The most common conjunctions in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French are:

In Spanish, 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).

Similarly, 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).

In Italian, if the word following “e” (and) starts with an “e,” the “e” is replaced with “ed” to avoid the double “e” sound. This is called euphonic “d,” e.g., “corretto ed esatto” (correct and exact), “alberi ed erba” (trees and grass), etc.

Historically, the euphonic “d” was used after “e” or “a” when followed by any vowel. Today, it is generally more accepted to use it only when the “e” or “a” is followed by the same vowel, e.g., “Manderò un messaggio ad Andrea” (I will send a message to Andrea).

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