Topics

Intermediate

Coordination

How Spanish, English and Chinese join words, phrases, and clauses with conjunctions.

Compare languages

Coordination joins elements of equal syntactic status. All three languages use and, or, but. Spanish y changes to e before i-/hi-, and o changes to u before o-/ho-.

Overview

Coordination joins syntactically equal elements: words, phrases, or clauses.

Spanish: Uses y, o, pero. Y → e before i-/hi-; o → u before o-/ho-. Correlative pairs: ni…ni, no solo…sino también, tanto…como.
English: Uses and, or, but. Correlative pairs: both…and, either…or, neither…nor, not only…but also.
Chinese: Uses 和hé/跟gēn/与yǔ for nouns; 而ér/而ér且qiě for clauses; 或huò/或huò者zhě for alternatives; 不bù但dàn…而ér且qiě for emphasis. Commas separate coordinated clauses.

Spanish

Coordinating conjunctions

Conjunction	Function	Example
y	addition	Juan y María
e	addition (before i-/hi-)	padre e hijo
o	alternative	té o café
u	alternative (before o-/ho-)	siete u ocho
pero	contrast	quiero, pero no puedo
sino	correction (after negative)	no español, sino francés
así que	result	llovió, así que me quedé

Correlative coordination

Ni…ni (neither…nor):

Ni Juan ni María vinieron.

No solo…sino también (not only…but also):

No solo Juan, sino también María.

Tanto…como (both…and):

Tanto Juan como María.

O…o (either…or):

O vienes o te vas.

Clause coordination

Juan vino y María se fue.
Quiero ir, pero no puedo.
No es español, sino francés.

Comma usage

Spanish is more flexible with commas before y than English:

Juan vino y María se fue. (no comma required)
Juan vino, y María se fue. (comma for emphasis)

English

Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS)

Conjunction	Function	Example
For	reason	I stayed, for I was tired.
And	addition	John and Mary
Nor	negative addition	neither John nor Mary
But	contrast	John but not Mary
Or	alternative	John or Mary
Yet	contrast	small yet powerful
So	result	It rained, so I stayed.

Correlative coordination

Both…and:

Both John and Mary came.

Either…or:

Either John or Mary will come.

Neither…nor:

Neither John nor Mary came.

Not only…but also:

Not only John but also Mary came.

Whether…or:

Whether John or Mary comes…

Comma before and/but/or in independent clauses

John came*, and** Mary left.* (comma required)
John came* and** left.* (no comma — single subject)

Oxford comma

a, b*, and** c* (with — formal US)
a, b and c (without — UK/common)

Chinese

Noun coordination

Conjunction	Usage	Example
和hé	general (neutral/formal)	约Yuē翰hàn和hé玛Mǎ丽lì
跟gēn	colloquial	我wǒ跟gēn他tā
与yǔ	formal/written	父fù与yǔ子zǐ
及jí	formal listing	A、B及jíC
同tóng	dialectal/colloquial	我wǒ同tóng你nǐ

Clause coordination

约Yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛Mǎ丽lì也yě来lái了le。(John came, and Mary came too.)
他tā来lái了le，而ér我wǒ走zǒu了le。(He came, but I left.)

Correlatives

不bù但dàn…而ér且qiě (not only…but also):

不bù但dàn约Yuē翰hàn来lái了le，而ér且qiě玛Mǎ丽lì也yě来lái了le。

要yào么mó…要yào么mó (either…or):

要yào么me来lái，要yào么me走zǒu。(Either come or go.)

既jì不bù…也yě不bù (neither…nor):

既jì不bù…也yě不bù…

都dū for universal quantification

约Yuē翰hàn和hé玛Mǎ丽lì都dōu来lái了le。(Both John and Mary came.)

Comparison at a glance

Function	Spanish	English	Chinese
And (nouns)	y / e	and	和hé/跟gēn/与yǔ
And (clauses)	y	and / comma	comma / 而ér且qiě
Or	o / u	or	或huò/或huò者zhě
But	pero / sino	but	但dàn/但dàn是shì/而ér
Neither…nor	ni…ni	neither…nor	既jì不bù…也yě不bù
Both…and	tanto…como	both…and	都dū
Not only…but also	no solo…sino	not only…but also	不bù但dàn…而ér且qiě
Either…or	o…o	either…or	要yào么mó…要yào么mó

Examples

In Context

Spanish	English	Chinese
Juan y María	John and Mary	约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì
Ni Juan ni María.	Neither John nor Mary.	既jì不bù是shì约yuē翰hàn也yě不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì。
No solo Juan sino también María.	Not only John but also Mary.	不bù但dàn约yuē翰hàn，而ér且qiě玛mǎ丽lì也yě来lái了le。

Common mistakes

English speakers learning Spanish: padre y hijo → padre e hijo (y → e before hi)
Spanish speakers learning English: Juan y María vinieron → John and Mary came (no comma needed with single subject)
English speakers learning Chinese: 约yuē翰hàn来lái了le和hé玛mǎ丽lì走zǒu了le → 约yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛mǎ丽lì也yě走zǒu了le (和hé not for clauses)
Chinese speakers learning English: Not only John but Mary too → Not only John but also Mary

Conjunctions: How conjunctions work
Subordination: How subordinate clauses work
Discourse Connectors: How discourse linking works
Correlatives: How correlative pairs work

Examples

John and Mary

Juan y María (y = and)

John or Mary

Juan o María (o = or)

John but not Mary

Juan pero no María (pero = but)

Both John and Mary

Tanto Juan como María

Neither John nor Mary

Ni Juan ni María (ni...ni)

John came and Mary left (clauses)

Juan vino y María se fue

Not only John but also Mary

No solo Juan sino también María

Either John or Mary

O Juan o María / Juan o María

Examples

John and Mary

John or Mary

John but not Mary

Both John and Mary

Neither John nor Mary

John came and Mary left (clauses)

John came and Mary left

Not only John but also Mary

Either John or Mary

Examples

John and Mary

约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì (和hé = and)

John or Mary

约yuē翰hàn或huò玛mǎ丽lì (或huò = or / 或huò者zhě)

John but not Mary

约yuē翰hàn但dàn不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (但dàn/但dàn是shì = but)

Both John and Mary

约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì都dū (都dū = both/all)

Neither John nor Mary

既jì不bù是shì约yuē翰hàn也yě不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (既jì不bù...也yě不bù...)

John came and Mary left (clauses)

约yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛mǎ丽lì走zǒu了le (comma or 而ér/而ér且qiě)

Not only John but also Mary

不bù但dàn约yuē翰hàn，而ér且qiě玛mǎ丽lì也yě (不bù但dàn...而ér且qiě...)

Either John or Mary

要yào么mó约yuē翰hàn要yào么mó玛mǎ丽lì (要yào么mó...要yào么mó...)

Comparison at a glance

Grammar concepts	Spanish	English	Chinese
John and Mary	Juan y María (y = and)	John and Mary	约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì (和hé = and)
John or Mary	Juan o María (o = or)	John or Mary	约yuē翰hàn或huò玛mǎ丽lì (或huò = or / 或huò者zhě)
John but not Mary	Juan pero no María (pero = but)	John but not Mary	约yuē翰hàn但dàn不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (但dàn/但dàn是shì = but)
Both John and Mary	Tanto Juan como María	Both John and Mary	约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì都dū (都dū = both/all)
Neither John nor Mary	Ni Juan ni María (ni...ni)	Neither John nor Mary	既jì不bù是shì约yuē翰hàn也yě不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (既jì不bù...也yě不bù...)
John came and Mary left (clauses)	Juan vino y María se fue	John came and Mary left	约yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛mǎ丽lì走zǒu了le (comma or 而ér/而ér且qiě)
Not only John but also Mary	No solo Juan sino también María	Not only John but also Mary	不bù但dàn约yuē翰hàn，而ér且qiě玛mǎ丽lì也yě (不bù但dàn...而ér且qiě...)
Either John or Mary	O Juan o María / Juan o María	Either John or Mary	要yào么mó约yuē翰hàn要yào么mó玛mǎ丽lì (要yào么mó...要yào么mó...)

Side-by-side comparison

Grammar concepts	Spanish	English	Chinese
John and Mary	Juan y María (y = and)	John and Mary	约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì (和hé = and)
John or Mary	Juan o María (o = or)	John or Mary	约yuē翰hàn或huò玛mǎ丽lì (或huò = or / 或huò者zhě)
John but not Mary	Juan pero no María (pero = but)	John but not Mary	约yuē翰hàn但dàn不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (但dàn/但dàn是shì = but)
Both John and Mary	Tanto Juan como María	Both John and Mary	约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì都dū (都dū = both/all)
Neither John nor Mary	Ni Juan ni María (ni...ni)	Neither John nor Mary	既jì不bù是shì约yuē翰hàn也yě不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (既jì不bù...也yě不bù...)
John came and Mary left (clauses)	Juan vino y María se fue	John came and Mary left	约yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛mǎ丽lì走zǒu了le (comma or 而ér/而ér且qiě)
Not only John but also Mary	No solo Juan sino también María	Not only John but also Mary	不bù但dàn约yuē翰hàn，而ér且qiě玛mǎ丽lì也yě (不bù但dàn...而ér且qiě...)
Either John or Mary	O Juan o María / Juan o María	Either John or Mary	要yào么mó约yuē翰hàn要yào么mó玛mǎ丽lì (要yào么mó...要yào么mó...)

Examples in context

John and Mary

Spanish

Juan y María (y = and)

English

John and Mary

Chinese

约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì (和hé = and)

John or Mary

Spanish

Juan o María (o = or)

English

John or Mary

Chinese

约yuē翰hàn或huò玛mǎ丽lì (或huò = or / 或huò者zhě)

John but not Mary

Spanish

Juan pero no María (pero = but)

English

John but not Mary

Chinese

约yuē翰hàn但dàn不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (但dàn/但dàn是shì = but)

Both John and Mary

Spanish

Tanto Juan como María

English

Both John and Mary

Chinese

约yuē翰hàn和hé玛mǎ丽lì都dū (都dū = both/all)

Neither John nor Mary

Spanish

Ni Juan ni María (ni...ni)

English

Neither John nor Mary

Chinese

既jì不bù是shì约yuē翰hàn也yě不bù是shì玛mǎ丽lì (既jì不bù...也yě不bù...)

John came and Mary left (clauses)

Spanish

Juan vino y María se fue

English

John came and Mary left

Chinese

约yuē翰hàn来lái了le，玛mǎ丽lì走zǒu了le (comma or 而ér/而ér且qiě)

Not only John but also Mary

Spanish

No solo Juan sino también María

English

Not only John but also Mary

Chinese

不bù但dàn约yuē翰hàn，而ér且qiě玛mǎ丽lì也yě (不bù但dàn...而ér且qiě...)

Either John or Mary

Spanish

O Juan o María / Juan o María

English

Either John or Mary

Chinese

要yào么mó约yuē翰hàn要yào么mó玛mǎ丽lì (要yào么mó...要yào么mó...)

Key Takeaways

Spanish: Uses y, o, pero. Y → e before i-/hi-; o → u before o-/ho-. Correlative pairs: ni...ni, no solo...sino también, tanto...como.

English: Uses and, or, but. Correlative pairs: both...and, either...or, neither...nor, not only...but also.

Chinese: Uses 和hé/跟gēn/与yǔ for nouns; 而ér/而ér且qiě for clauses; 或huò/或huò者zhě for alternatives; 不bù但dàn...而ér且qiě for emphasis. Commas separate coordi

Key concepts compared: John and Mary, John or Mary, John but not Mary.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Chinese use different words for 'and' depending on what is being joined?

Chinese <ruby>和<rt>hé</rt></ruby> joins nouns: '<ruby>约<rt>yuē</rt></ruby><ruby>翰<rt>hàn</rt></ruby><ruby>和<rt>hé</rt></ruby><ruby>玛<rt>mǎ</rt></ruby><ruby>丽<rt>lì</rt></ruby>' (John and Mary). <ruby>而<rt>ér</rt></ruby><ruby>且<rt>qiě</rt></ruby> joins clauses: '<ruby>他<rt>tā</rt></ruby><ruby>来<rt>lái</rt></ruby><ruby>了<rt>le</rt></ruby>，<ruby>而<rt>ér</rt></ruby><ruby>且<rt>qiě</rt></ruby><ruby>带<rt>dài</rt></ruby><ruby>了<rt>le</rt></ruby><ruby>礼<rt>lǐ</rt></ruby><ruby>物<rt>wù</rt></ruby>' (He came, and he brought a gift). Spanish and English use *y/and* for both nouns and clauses. Chinese learners of English often overuse 'and' between clauses where a more specific connector would be better, and English learners of Chinese struggle to remember which 'and' to use.

What is the serial comma, and why does it matter in English but not in Spanish or Chinese?

The serial (Oxford) comma appears before the final conjunction in a list: 'apples, oranges, and bananas.' In English, omitting it can create ambiguity: 'I dedicate this to my parents, Ayn Rand and God' (are your parents Ayn Rand and God?). Spanish and Chinese do not have this convention; they use commas more freely and do not treat the final comma as structurally significant. Spanish learners of English must acquire this purely stylistic convention.

How does Spanish handle negative coordination differently from English?

English uses 'neither...nor' or 'not...or': 'I have neither time nor money.' Spanish uses *ni...ni*: *No tengo ni tiempo ni dinero.* The double negative is required in Spanish (*no...ni*), while English uses a single negative with 'neither.' A Spanish speaker learning English might say 'I don't have neither time nor money,' which is a double negative error in English. An English speaker learning Spanish might omit the initial *no* and say *Tengo ni tiempo ni dinero,* which is ungrammatical in Spanish.

References

Nueva gramática de la lengua española — Real Academia Española / Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española, 2010
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language — Huddleston & Pullum, Cambridge University Press, 2002
A Comprehensive Grammar of the Modern Chinese Language — Li & Thompson, 1981

Read this first

conjunctions

Last updated: June 4, 2026

Overview

Spanish

Coordinating conjunctions

Correlative coordination

Clause coordination

Comma usage

English

Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS)

Correlative coordination

Comma before and/but/or in independent clauses

Oxford comma

Chinese

Noun coordination

Clause coordination

Correlatives

都dū for universal quantification

Comparison at a glance

Examples

In Context

Common mistakes

Related topics

Examples

Examples

Examples

Comparison at a glance

Side-by-side comparison

Examples in context

Key Takeaways

Frequently Asked Questions

References