THREE

COORDINATION
Aim of this unit: to define coordination in English, to offer a description of
the various instances of coordination
Objectives: to offer students a guide on how to correctly formulate
coordinated sentences in English
Contents:
3.1.Syndetic and Asyndetic Coordination
3.2.Coordination and Subordination
3.3.Sentence and Phrase Coordination
3.4.Coordinating Conjunctions
3.5.Verb Agreement with Compound Sentences
3.6.Key Concepts

3.1 Syndetic vs. Asyndetic Coordination

Before we proceed to discuss the notion of coordination, some comment is in order:
the term coordination is going to be used mainly in relation to what some grammarians
call syndetic coordination, i.e. that type of structure where there are explicit indicators
that there are two more elements linked by coordination. This type is placed in opposition
to asyndetic coordination, where there is no indication other than a comma, that elements
are coordinated. Consider example
(1) He looked at them sadly and reproachfully.
(S-a uitat la ei cu tristete si repros.)
which is an instance of syndetic coordination.

Example (2), on the other hand, is an illustration of the asyndetic type:

(2) He looked at them sadly, reproachfully.
(S-a uitat la ei cu tristete, cu repros.)
Example (1) exhibits coordination by means of and, which is a coordinating conjunction
or a coordinator. The terms linked by the coordinator are called conjuncts.
We will use the term coordination in reference to the first type mentioned above, where a
coordinator is overtly expressed (i.e. present) in the sentence.
3.2.Coordination & Subordination
By definition, coordination (or conjoining) is a syntactic operation that puts
together constituents of the same rank. Conversely, subordination (or Embedding) is a
syntactic operation that involves rank-shifting, namely one constituent is subordinated to
a higher-rank constituent.
Consider the following examples where one can look at the same situation expressed
differently from a syntactic point of view:
(3) Hit my wife and youll die.
(O lovesti pe sotia mea si vei muri.)
(4) If you hit my wife, you will die.
(Daca o lovesti pe sotia mea, vei muri.)
Such examples, that have a lot in common from a semantic point of view, led
grammarians to believe that coordination is the basic structure wherefrom subordination
originated. Example (3) is an instance of coordination where constituents of the same
rank are linked by means of the coordinating conjunction and. In example (4) one can
notice a more complex structure, where the subordinating conjunction if plays a major
part. We will come back to example (3) in a subsequent subsection.
From the previously mentioned examples, we can already make at least two important
remarks:

a) that from a formal point of view, coordination differs from subordination in that it is
realized by means of coordinating conjunctions.
b) that there might be important semantic similarities related to examples exhibiting
coordinated, respectively subordinated constituents.
However, we need to specify that, from a logical & semantic point of view, a major
difference between coordination and subordination is that the information in subordinate
clauses is not asserted, but presupposed.
Compare:
(5) John came back and gave her a piece of his mind.
(John s-a intors si i-a spus vreo doua.)
(6) John gave her a piece of his mind after he came back.
(John i-a zis vreo doua dupa ce s-a intors.)
Unlike in the case of (5) where we are dealing with assertion, the subordinate adverbial
clause of time contains a presupposition: We presuppose that the event of Johns coming
back happened.
c) from a pragmatic point of view it is to be remarked that example (3) will be found
more frequently in instances of dialogue and spoken language as it is obviously
characterized by a rather informal tone.

Activity 1

Coordination and style

The following two passages are straightforward descriptive paragraphs taken from
narrative works. The first is a vivid description of a sequence of actions; the second, a
static description of a small town in nineteenth-century Ireland. The student will notice
the almost complete absence of subordinate clauses from both passages. In the first, this

adds to the graphic effect of the movement in the passage. In the second, the comparative
looseness of the sentence construction is admirably suited to the evocative informality of
description.
Passage 1:
The black cloud had crossed the sky, a blob of dark against the stars: The night was quiet
again, Tom stopped into the water and felt the bottom drop from under his feet. He
threshed the two strokes across the ditch and pulled himself heavily up the other bank.
His clothes hung to him. He moved and made a slopping noise; his shoes squished. Then
he sat down, took off his shoes and emptied them. He wrung the bottom of his trousers,
took off his coat and emptied them. He wrung the bottoms of his trousers, took off his
coat and squeezed the water from it.
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath
Reconstruct the paragraph, combining as many of the simple sentences as you feel
reasonable into compound sentences with subordinate clauses. How does the effect of
your passage differ from Steinbecks?
Passage 2:
Castlebar had preserved the appearance of a feudal town. Though the castle had vanished,
on its site fortifications still frowned above steep and narrow streets, the houses were
beautiful and ancient, built, with enormous solidity, of cut gray stone, adorned with
cornices, stone-wreathed windows and carved doorways. In the late eighteenth century a
Mall had been added to the town, with formal walks under rows of trees, but the streets
tailed off abruptly into mud cabins, curlews wheeled and cried in the centre of the town,
and the walkers in the Mall had bare feet.
Cecil Woocham Smith, The Reason Why

Compare the previous two passages with the following in point of complexity of structure
and formality of tone. Note that the more intricate construction of the third passage is
correlated by the author to the difficult journey the character in the passage has to make:
Passage 3
The Canon dressed and, waving the remonstrances of his housekeeper aside, left the
house. Before him was a climb that would take at least three hours, over some of the
roughest ground in the country. He walked up to the top of the village street and struck
off up a boreen that went for a bit and then petered out as if discouraged. After that he
had to make do with the narrow rocky footpath when he could see it or stumble a while
over the tangled scrub and sharp stones till he found it again. The unwonted exercise
made his heart pound and his head swim, and his clothes stuck damply to him: darkness
fell before he was half-way up and although he had a torch the way in front was so
strange and featureless he thought he should never arrive at his goal. His feet pained him
from continually stubbing against the bits of rock: in spite of the long dry spell the
mountain was soaking, and as the way is with Irish mountains, the higher he went the
wetter it grew, until he found the water gurgling about his ankles and seeping over the top
of his boots; and more than once he missed his footing and measured his length on the
prickly ground.
Honor Tracy The Straight and Narrow Path

3.3 Sentence vs. Phrase Coordination

Compare the following sentences:
(7) I saw him yesterday and I had seen him the day before yesterday.
(L-am vazut ieri si l-am vazut si alaltaieri.)

(8) I saw him yesterday and the day before yesterday.

(L-am vazut ieri si alaltaieri.)
Example (7) is an instance of sentence coordination, the result of which is a
COMPOUND SENTENCE. A compound sentence is to be placed in opposition to a
COMPLEX SENTENCE, where there is a main clause and one or more subordinate
clauses, as shown in (9).
(9) If the authors and publishers of Dick Deadshot and such remarkable works were
suddenly to make a raid on the educated class, were to take down the name of every
man, however distinguished, who was caught at a University Extension lecture, were
to confiscate all our novels and warn us to correct all our lives, we should be
seriously annoyed.
(G.K. Chesterton A Defence of Penny Dreadfuls )
Example (8) exhibits an instance of Phrasal Coordination, where we are dealing with a
compound constituent, yesterday and the day before yesterday.
As one can easily notice, this constituent can be considered to be the result of
compressing the longer and much less economical compound sentence from example (7).
This phenomenon of compression and reduction is called ellipsis.

Activity 2: Distinguish between sentence coordination and phrasal coordination; argue

that both are basic, but phrasal coordination may also result from reduction of
coordinated sentences:
1.Bob entered the room and immediately the telephone rang. 2. They are living in Italy or
they are spending a vacation there. 3. Jane might sing but I dont think she will. 4. John is
ready and Mary is ready. 5. John and Mary are ready. 6 John sang and Mary danced. 7.
John and Mary are the newly married couple. 8. Her pet kitten is black and white. 9. Our
flag is red, yellow and blue. 10. His speech was coherent and understood by almost
everybody.

Activity 3: Read the following examples and state whether they have undergone ellipsis
or not:
My colleague failed, and I passed, our respective examinations. / Peter and John played
football. / Bob and George are admired by their students. / Peter, but not John, plays
football. / Joan plays many games, and even tennis. / John both composed the music and
wrote the words.

Ellipsis can be of two types:

a) the so called forward ellipsis, when it operates on the second conjunct in the
structure:
(10)

a. John writes poetry and Bill writes prose.

(John scrie poezii si Bill scrie proza.)
b. John writes poetry and Bill prose.
(John scrie poezii si Bill proza.)

In (10a) the second conjunct has been wiped out, or deleted, as can be seen in (10b).
A deletion of the first conjunct would have been impossible in this case:
(10)

c. *John poetry and Bill writes prose.

b) backward ellipsis when it operates on the first conjunct in the structure:

(11)

a. John loves cigars and Bill hates cigars.

(Lui John ii plac trabucurile iar Bill le uraste.)
b. John loves and Bill hates cigars.
(Lui John ii plac iar Bill uraste trabucurile.)
c. * John loves cigars and Bill hates.

Example (11b) predicts the correct deletion of the first conjunct, whereas (11c) shows the
ungrammaticality of a deletion of the first conjunct in this case.

Activity 4: Rewrite the following sentences by using ellipsis:

1.The message was ambiguous and was difficult to comprehend. 2. A burglar must have
broken in and he must have stolen the jewels. 3. Why did you give a gold watch to your
secretary and why did you give a pair of gloves to your wife? 4. Bob may have been
listening to music and he may have been humming the tune. 5. Bob seems to be trying
hard to get along with Jane and John seems to be trying to get hard to get along with
Susan. 6. Jane forced John to shave himself and Susan forced John to wash himself. 7.
Father begged Susan to get married and mother begged Jane to get married. 8. Bob
thought of his girlfriend and Tom dreamed of his girlfriend. 9. Yesterday large flags were
flying and this morning small flags were flying. 10. We can demand payment and we will
demand payment.

Besides ellipsis, substitution is another reduction operation that can be applied to

compound sentences.
Consider the following:
(12)

I was advised to buy a pair of shoes and I bought a pair of shoes.

(Am fost sfatuit sa cumpar o pereche de pantofi si am cumparat o pereche de pantofi.)

The common element, i.e. the predication buy a pair of shoes, can be reduced by
substitution, as can be seen in
(13)

I was advised to buy a pair of shoes and I did so/it.

(Am fost sfatuit sa imi cumpar o pereche de pantofi si asta am si facut.)

These two reduction methods can operate within compound sentences due to the fact that
sometimes it is more economical to use a reduced structure, than a longer repetitive one.

So, these syntactical processes, having to do with a change performed in the structure of a
sentence, are in fact motivated by a pragmatic principle, the so-called Principle of
Economy, that favours concision and efficiency in the use of language.

Activity 5: Match the following two columns so as to obtain correct elliptical phrases:
this book

and Johns

her son

and his

your work

and the other

her idea

and those

that method

and others

your proposal

or little

many guests

or few

much satisfaction

and mine

Note that the following idioms are built on the same principle as the phrases above: one
way or another, some reason or another, one or (the) other method.
Activity 6: In certain cases, ellipsis may be a fruitful source of ambiguity, since one may
interpret the compound noun phrase or sentence in question as having undergone
ellipsis or not. Consider the following phrases and find as many possible
interpretations for them as you can:
(a) the old men and women
(b) simple books and magazines for children
(c) George and Jane are separated.
(d) George and Jane went back to their parents.
Activity 7: Translate the following sentences, using reduced structures:
1.S-a rastit la el si l-a palmuit. 2. Prefer propozitiile de mai jos ori de pe pagina
urmatoare. 3. A citit, interpretat si tradus opera contemporanului sau. 4. Ii plac si are grija

de toate pisicile vagaboande de langa bloc. 5. Intotdeauna am luptat si voi lupta pentru
progres. 6. Daca si cand se hotaraste sa plece in Noua Zeelanda este o problema mai
veche. 7.Psiholingvistica si sociolingvistica sunt materii importante. 8. I-a invitat de ziua
lui pe gineri si pe nurori.
Activity 8: Some idiomatic phrases are in fact compound phrases, like: salt and pepper,
fish and chips, sweet and sour, Marks and Spencers. Fill the gaps in these sentences with
suitable expressions from the list below:
1.I searched .. for my wallet. 2. Can we discuss the .. of your proposals
later on? 3. Can you show me the to support your argument? 4. Shes a
wonderful storyteller: always the of the party. 5. They get on quite well
together, even though they have their little .. 6.You gain some things and you
lose others; its a case of 7. The police are responsible for maintaining
. 8. Ive tidied up my room and now its 9. It was whether
the rescuers would get there in time. 10 Theyve shared a lot of experiences: theyve been
through together. 11. You cant claim on insurance for , only for
damage. 12. I need another 100$ .. the amount Ive already saved up. 13. Nuclear
physicists who are also best-selling writers are .. 14. A pendulum swings
.. 15. He makes a little money out of writing but teaching is his . . 16.
After all their adventures, they reached home.
bread and butter / facts and figures / few and far between / high and low / law and order /
life and soul / over and above / pros and cons / safe and sound / spick and span/ swings
and roundabouts / thick and thin / to and fro / touch and go / ups and downs / wear and
tear.

3.4. Coordinating Conjunctions

We can distinguish between three classes of coordinators:

a) Copulative: and / both and /at once and / neither nor / as well as / no less
than / not only but also, etc. We should also mention here rarer copulative
coordinators, such as: alike and / nor nor / nor or :
(14)

His job is at once judicial and political

(Slujba lui este si juridica si politica.)

(15)

She went to sleep alike thankless and remorseless.

(A plecat la culcare si nerecunoscatoare si lipsita de remuscari.)

(16)

Nor sun, nor wind will strike to kiss thee.

(Nici soare si nici vint nu te-or atinge cu vreun sarut.)

There are, of course, semantic restrictions on the types of clauses that can be coordinated.
For instance, one cannot couple two sentences with completely different semantic
content, as in:
(17)

a. *Lions are mammals and Tom bought a car.

b. *I hate plumbers and you learn syntax.

In fact, the expressive function of coordination is, more often than not, to emphasize
(semantic) parallelism or contrast, which is the case with
b) adversative coordinators: but, and
(18)

I gave her the money but I didnt feel happy about it.

(I-am dat banii, dar nu am fost multumit de asta.)

c) disjunctive coordinators: or, either or
(19)

She can either have the money or she can have the clothes.

(Poate primi ori banii ori hainele.)

Some of the aforementioned coordinating conjunctions have correlatives (either or,

both and , etc); some of them allow ellipsis of the subject (and, or ; sometimes but,
too):
(20)

a. I may see you tomorrow or (I) may phone later in the day.
(S-ar putea sa te vad miine sau sa iti telefonez mai incolo.)
b. He went to the safe and (he) took out the money.
(S-a dus la seif si a scos banii.)
c. I gave her the money but (I) didnt feel happy about it.
(I-am dat banii dar nu mi-a convenit de loc.)

In certain cases, the ellipsis of the subject is even required (see e.g. 20 (b)). If the
coordinating conjunction links two subordinate clauses, where the subordinator is
repeated, ellipsis of the subject is no longer accepted:
(21)* I didnt object to his proposal since it was very apropiate and since apealed to me.
Another property some of the coordinators above share is the fact that they can link more
than two clauses:
(22)

They both liked Susan and respected her, and cherished her.

(Ei o placeau pe Susan, o respectau si o indrageau.)

An important property shared by coordinating conjunctions has to do with the fact
that sometimes, these coordinators can impose a subordinating shade of meaning upon
the conjunctions, like in the example we discussed at the beginning of this section:
(3) Hit my wife, and youll die.
(O lovesti pe sotia mea si ai sa mori.)

In example three one can read a conditional meaning behind the lines. In this case, if
we were to rewrite the example , we could not say something like:
(23)

*Youll die, and hit my wife.

Whenever the coordinating conjunction adds a subordinating tinge of meaning to the

conjuncts, the order of these conjuncts is fixed.
From this point of view, one can differentiate between
a) a symmetric use of coordinators where the order of the conjuncts is reversible:
(24)

a. I like and admire her.

(Imi place si o admir.)
b. I admire and like her.
(O admir si imi place.)

b) an asymmetric use of coordinators where the order of the conjuncts is irreversible:

(25)

a. I washed and ironed my pants.

(Mi-am spalat si calcat pantalonii.)
b.* I ironed and washed my pants.

Lets cast a swift glance at the asymmetric uses some conjunctions may have:
1. assymetric AND can impose different shades of subordinative meaning within the
compound sentence:
-

chronological sequence (temporal implications)

(26)

He sliced and fried the potatoes. (First he sliced them and then he fried them)

(A taiat cartofii si i-a prajit.)

-

cause-effect relation

(27)

He heard an explosion and (therefore) phoned the police.

(A auzit o explozie si a sunat la politie.)

(28)

He didnt pay the rent and he was evicted from their apartment. (<Because he

didnt pay, he was evicted)

(N-a platit chiria si a fost dat afara din apartament.)
-

if-then relation (supported by proper intonation)

(29)

Give me the money and youll walk away safely. (If you do that, you will be safe)

(Da-mi banii si poti pleca nevatamat.)

-

concessive meaning (plus suitable intonation)

(30)

John worked hard for the exam and he failed (Although he worked hard, he

failed).
(John a muncit din greu pentru examen si l-a picat.)
-

while/whereas interpretation

(31)

Dr. Smith experiments with guinea pigs and Dr. Brown experiments with humans.

(Doctorul Smith face experiente pe cobai iar doctorul Brown face experiente pe
oameni.)
(While Dr. Smith performs his experiments with guinea pigs, Dr. Brown does it with
humans)
2. Assymetric BUT implies a contrastive effect like in the case of symmetric BUT
but this effect results from an unexpected consequence. Compare
(32)

a. Jim is brave but John is a coward.

(symmetric use)

(Jim e viteaz dar John e un las.)

b. Jim likes computers but John hates them.
(Lui Jim ii plac computerele dar John nu le suporta.)
to
(33)

Jim is jobless but he is happy.

(Jim n-are serviciu dar e fericit.)

3. Asymmetric OR implies again an if-then relationship:

(asymmetric use)

(34)

a. You leave my daughter alone, or Ill break your neck.

(Ori imi lasi fata in pace, ori iti rup gitul.)

b. Stop that noise, or youll be punished.

(Incetezi cu zgomotul, ori vei fi pedepsit.)
This use is to be contrasted with the symmetric use of OR, which is in its turn of two
types

exclusive OR

(35)

You can eat lobster, or you can eat caviar.

(Poti sa mananci homar sau poti sa mananci caviar.)

inclusive OR

(36)

If you have enough money you can eat lobster, or you can have caviar or both.

(Daca ai destui bani poti sa mananci homar sau poti sa comanzi caviar sau din
amindoua.)

Activity 9: Distinguish between symmetric and asymmetric uses of conjunctions:

1.John smoked cigarettes and Bill smoked a pipe. 2. John lit a cigar and Mary left the
room. 3. John went to the cinema and saw a movie. 4. John cooked the steak and he ate it.
/ John ate the steak and he cooked it, too. 5. I am a professional man of letters and a
typewriter is essential to my work. 6. That dog is very aggressive and he has never bitten
me so far. 7. Lay a hand on me and youll scream. 8. Love me and Ill marry you. 9. John
likes opera but Jim hates it. 10. John is good-looking but Kim is unattractive. 11. We slept
late but we caught the train. 12. We want to buy a car but we have not enough money. 13.
They killed him but he came back as a ghost. 14 (Either) we are visiting Aunt Susan or
were staying home. 15. John might take them by car, (or) Mary might go with them by
bus, or I might order a taxi for them. 16. People envy me for having a cellular phone, or
they regard me as eccentric. 17. You must be kidding or else youre out of your mind. 18.
Mary was sound asleep or (at least) she pretended to be. 19. Let go off me or Ill scream.
20. This is an early Rembrandt or it is an excellent Rubens. 21. It must be a Rubens or it

would be in a museum. 22. I overslept and I arrived late at my office, and John was no
longer there and (so) I had to deal with Mr. Brown alone.

3.5 Verb Agreement with Compound Subjects

We shall discuss verb-agreement with compound subjects depending on the
conjunction that is used:
AND the compound subjects correlated by and are generally used with plural verbs:
(37)

a. Semantics and syntax are interrelated.

(Semantica este strins legata de sintaxa.)
b. Both your fairness and your kind nature have been appreciated.
(Au fost apreciate atit corectitudinea ta cit si bunatatea ta.)

When the verb appears before the subject, both plural and singular forms are
generally accepted. The singular form is however restricted to informal speech:
(38)

There was/were a man and a woman in the room.

(In camera erau un barbat si o femeie.)

There are cases when the compound subject is not made up of the two semantically
distinct conjunctions any more:
(39)

a. The hammer and the sickle was flying from the flagpole.
(Secera si ciocanul fluturau sus pe steag.)
b. Fish and chips is my favorite food.
(Pestele cu cartofi prajiti este felul meu de mincare preferat.)

In (39) the subject contains two conjuncts that are perceived as one semantic unit, hence
the singular form of the verb.

OR, EITHER OR, NOT (ONLY) BUT ALSO compound subjects are subject to the
rule of agreement by proximity: the verb agrees with the nearmost conjunct:
(40)

a. Not John, but his two brothers are to blame.

(Nu John este de vina, ci cei doi frati ai lui.)

b. Not Johns brother but he is to blame.

(Nu fratele lui John, ci el este de vina.)
NEITHER NOR compound subjects accept both the singular and the plural form of
the verb since from a syntactical point of view Neither nor resembles either or, but
semantically it is the negative counterpart of both and:
(41)

Neither he nor his wife have/has arrived.

(N-au ajuns nici el si nici sotia lui.)

Activity 10: Insert the appropriate verb form:

a.1. Cathy and David (have arrived. 2. The bread and the butter (be) both more expensive
this year. 3. The bread and butter (be) scattered on the floor. 4. The green and blue
blanket (be) also to be washed. 5. The red and the blue shirts (be) washed yesterday. 6.
My aim and object (be) to make the theory clear for all. 7. A carriage and a pair (be)
standing at the door. 8. His friend and legal adviser (be) present at the funeral. 9. My son
and heir (be) safe. 10. My son and daughter (be) twins.
b. 1.There (be) a table and some chairs in the room. 2. There (be) some chairs and a table
in the room. 3. Both the houses and the garden (be) damaged by the fire. 4. Not only the
houses but also the garden (be) damaged by the fire. 5. Not John but his two sons (be) to
blame. 6. A traffic warden or a policeman (be) always on the watch in this street. 7. Either
Peter or John (have) had breakfast already. 8. Either the child or the parents (be) to
blame. 9. Neither he nor his wife (be) here. 10. Neither Isabel nor I (be) timid people.

3.6. Key Concepts

Coordination is defined in opposition to subordination, as being a syntactic
process where elements of the same rank are conjoined. This section also attempts to
draw attention upon certain points of similarity between coordination and subordination,
especially those related to the asymmetric uses of coordinating conjunctions.
As shown, certain compound sentences can be reformulated as complex ones,
namely as a main clause plus a subordinate one.
Emphasis is also laid on the reductive methods that can be applied to compound
sentences or to compound phrases: ellipsis (or deletion) and substitution.

Activity 11*: Translate the following, making use of the theoretical framework offered
above:
(1)1. Sunt doctori i doctori pe lumea asta. 2. Frate nefrate, tot am s-i cer bani pentru
medicamente. 3. O s stm mpreun, la bine i la ru. 4. Nu-i nici cal, nici mgar. 5. Sper
c scrisoarea mea te gasete bine, sntos. 6. Cum o mai duci? N-am murit nc,
mulumesc de ntrebare. 7. Soul ei e de mult mort i-ngropat. 8. Au venit la mine cu
cel i cu purcel. 9. Interzis consumul de alcool la volan. 10 S-a dus la culcare cu tot cu
haine pe el. 11. Tr, grpi, tot am s termin lucrarea.
(2)1. Nu era nchipuit i nu se credea frumos, dar un instinct de conservare fizic l fcea
s-i umfle bicepii i coul pieptului i s fandeze plastic cu piciorul drept inainte, pentru
a obine maximul de volum al pulpei.
2. Vru s-i ncerce puterea braelor rezemndu-se cu toat greutatea trupului pe speteaza
unui scaun, dar acesta trosni aa de tare, nct spre a evita un accident, Jim renun i se
mulumi s boxeze arcurile desfundate ale canapelei i pernele din pat.
3. Bunica i bunicul au trit fr baie-n cas i a fost bine! Ai venit dvs. mai cu mo!
4.

-Ce stai de vorbeti? Se scandaliza baba. Cum s-aduc eu stropitoarea n cas?

-S mi-o aduci, altfel nu e de trai cu mine!

5. Jim sttu puin s se gndeasc, fiindc nu vedea nc modul de ntrebuinare. S atrne

stropitoarea de cuiul din tavan i apoi s-i dea nclinare deasupra capului, n-avea nici cu
ce-o lega i i era team s nu se surpe cumva tavanul. S toarne apa n lighean, ligheanul
era prea mic.
6. Silivestru rmase i scrbit de platitudinea cugetrilor, dar i mirat de o precocitate pe
care el n-o cunoscuse.
7. Doamn, iu s v declar c n-am venit dect s v cer nvoirea de a ne cstori i de
a pleca apoi unde vom crede de cuviin. Nu numai c nu trebuie s v ngrijorai, dar v
cer permisiunea de a m ocupa eu n chip exclusiv de acest eveniment i favoarea de a nu
se mai vorbi de chestiuni materiale.

(G. Clinescu Cartea Nunii )

(3) 1. Dat dracului fusese madam Ioaniu la viaa ei, i pe ce punea mna-I ieea, odat ea
era-n zor mare s termine o rochie a Ivonei, i-ntr-o doar I-a dat i lu madam Ioaniu s-I
surfileze. i ce s vezi ? De cum a pus mna pe ac, foarte frumos i ngrijit surfila ; datunci I-a tot dat, surfila madam Ioaniu n fotoliu ei i-I tot povestea, e-hei, cte trise !
Doi brbai avusese la viaa ei, i p-amndoi i ngropase ! i brbatu dinti fusese
ditamai Profesoru, i cnd venise nemii-l bgase la zdup, ei tia unde-l bgase. Nu-l
inuse mult, da el se-ntorsese neom, vezi c era mai btrior, i ce boal o mai fi avut, c
repede-repede p-urm dduse ortu-popii.
2. l va asculta deci, ca de fiecare dat, cu un sentiment de triumf, a reuit, n fine, s-l
aduc pe acest teren bine cunoscut, care este doar al lor. Pe acesta este convins nu-l
mai mparte cu nici una dintre cele care I-au otrvit existena. La fel ca i acum treizeci
de ani, el i deschide ochii asupra vieii, iar ea l ascult, cu expresie de atenie ncordat
pe fa. Uneori chiar se gndete n alt parte ns l aprob din ochi, la intervale de
timp egale. Din cnd n cnd i mai arunc o ntrebare ajuttoare, aa cum celandrul
care se gudura pe lng Tudor venea de fiecare dat cu mingea n gur. Aducea mingea
anume ca biatul s o arunce din nou, el s alerge spre ea n salturi mari, s se opreasc la
jumtate de metru, o clip s stea nemicat i s miroas asfaltul, pe urm s ia din nou
mingea, s-o duc, supus, la picioarele lui Tudor, iar la cel mai mic gest de mngiere al
lui, s sar nalt, ncordat ca un arc.

(Gabriela Adameteanu Diminea pierdut)

Activity 12: Read the following and comment on the conjunctions that link the phrases
below; try to rewrite those phrases:
A pleasant if talkative child / a shabby though comfortable armchair / a simple yet devout
prayer / He looked at me kindly if somewhat skeptically / He drove quickly yet safe / an
intelligent albeit rash leader (albeit rare, formal conjunction) / He spoke firmly albeit
pleasantly.