The term ‘grammar’ refers to how words are arranged to impart meaning to a sentence. In this, parts of speech play an essential role. Noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection, are the eight parts of speech. The correct usage of these parts of speech makes a sentence grammatically correct.
Adverb vs Conjunction
The main difference between adverb and conjunction is that an adverb is used to describe a noun in a sentence whereas conjunction joins clauses or sentences into a sentence. Adverbs can be placed anywhere in a sentence whereas the conjunction is usually placed in the middle of a sentence.
An adverb is an essential part of speech. It tells us more about a noun, by describing an adjective, another adverb, etc. They convey how the action takes place. Common adverbs include, fortunately, accordingly, etc. They can also be used to show the degrees of comparison, though they are not as frequently used as adjectives. The easiest way to identify them is through words that end in –‘ily’.
A conjunction is a phrase or words used to connect sentences, clauses, phrases, etc into one. And is a commonly used conjunction. These help in making the sentences shorter. Moreover, with the use of conjunctions, we can present our ideas in a better, and less confusing manner. For example, my friend and I are dancing. In this sentence, the conjunction is ‘and’.
Comparison Table Between Adverb and Conjunction
| Parameters of Comparison | Adverb | Conjunction |
| Meaning | An adverb refers to a word that redefines a verb, another adverb, adjective, or other types of words. | Conjunction refers to a word used to combine words or phrases into a sentence |
| Examples | Examples of adverbs are loudly, very, almost, certainly, etc. | Examples of conjunction are because, and, etc. |
| Types | Conjunctive adverbs, adverbs of frequency, time, manner, degree, and place. | Coordinating, subordinate, and correlative conjunctions |
| Position in a sentence | They can be placed anywhere in a sentence according to the sentence. | They are usually placed in the middle of a sentence. |
| Function | Its purpose is to describe a noun in a sentence | Its purpose is to join clauses or sentences |
What is Adverb?
An adverb provides more detailed information about the verb and answers the question how often, when, where, how long, how, and how much? Maximum adverbs end in –‘ily’. However, there are some commonly used adverbs not ending in ‘ily’. The best identifier of an adverb in a sentence is through its purpose in a sentence. Five types of adverbs are as follows:
- Adverbs of manner (describes the way something happens)- For example, beautifully, angrily, hungrily, etc.
- Adverbs of time (describes the time when something happens)- For example, next week, yesterday, etc.
- Adverbs of place (describes the time of the event)- For example, here, nowhere, there, etc.
- Adverb of degree (describes how much an event takes place)- For example, almost, very, so, etc.
- Adverb of frequency (describes the number of times an event takes place)- For example, almost, often, never, etc.
Apart from the above, conjunctive adverbs like besides, also, can be used in a sentence. In addition to this, sentence adverbs are used at the beginning of a sentence to add new meaning to it.
An adverb can be identified as the word describing something. The adverb usually answers a question. For example, she was dancing merrily. The adverb merrily is answering the question of how she was dancing. Moreover, the removal of merrily won’t change the meaning of the sentence. However, the addition of merrily makes the sentence clearer.
What is Conjunction?
Conjunction acts as the glue bringing together clauses, words, and phrases together. Because of conjunctions, sentences can be written shortly and crisply. And the need for log sentences is done away with. Three types of conjunctions used in a sentence are as follows:
- Coordinating conjunctions: These are the most commonly used type of conjunctions. These do away with the need for too many short sentences. For instance, the sentence -I am tall. And another sentence- she is tiny, can be rewritten as I am tall and she is tiny, with the help of the coordinating conjunction ‘and’. There are seven coordinating conjunctions- for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.
- Subordinating conjunctions: These conjunctions join a dependent clause with an independent one. A dependent clause cannot be used alone in a sentence. For example, of him. An independent clause can exist independently in a sentence. For example, I learned how to dance. The subordinate conjunction ‘because’ brings together the two clauses- Because of him, I learned how to dance.
- Correlative Conjunctions: These conjunctions are used in pairs. These conjunctions work hand in hand with one another and impart meaning to a sentence. Two equal grammatical terms are connected through correlative conjunctions. For example, Both/and, not only/but also, whether/or, either/or.
Main Differences Between Adverb and Conjunction
- An adverb refers to a word that redefines a verb, another adverb, adjective, or other types of words. On the other hand, conjunction is used to combine words or phrases.
- Examples of adverbs are loudly, very, almost, etc while examples of conjunctions are because, and, etc.
- Adverbs are of six types while there are three types of conjunctions.
- An adverb can be placed anywhere in a sentence according to the sentence while conjunctions are usually placed in the middle of a sentence.
- An adverb describes a noun in a sentence while conjunctions are used to join clauses or sentences together.
Conclusion
Thus, adverbs and conjunctions are two distinct but important parts of speech. They can be differentiated in terms of their purpose, meaning, etc. While adverbs help in making the sentences more specific and paint a more vivid picture, conjunctions help in joining sentences together. Often people confuse between the two and use them wrongly.
Thus, it becomes vital to know the differences between the two to correctly utilize them in a sentence. By their correct usage, the level of sentences can be taken further up a notch.
References
- http://jucs.org/jucs_14_18/using_conjunctions_and_adverbs/jucs_14_18_2967_2981_pavelec.pdf
- https://www.jbe-platform.com/content/journals/10.1075/dia.29.3.02rut