Starting a sentence with an and. And whether it is right?

[Don Quixote]

It is completely fine. Pick up any book of ficton and you'll probably find sentences that begin with and or but.

 

[GT49er]

What about when people start sentances with 'so' ?

So many people appear to think, incorrectly, that is wrong to start a sentence with "so".

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

And Cameron is a ****.

Seems right to me.

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

So many people appear to think, incorrectly, that is wrong to start a sentence with "so".

It is incredibly irritating ( to me ) though, when listening to an interview, if every reply starts with it.

 

[Monkey Man]

English is a language that is mercifully free of a lot of the rules you find in other places but from time to time people have tried to codify it a bit more with rules about split infinitives, starting sentences with conjunctions etc. In most cases these rules don't make sentences more intelligible or elegant and very often they simply add to the confusion.

Having said that, using expressions like "should of" instead of "should have" and getting apostrophes in the wrong place are things that kids should be taught to avoid - these aren't arbitrary rules but things that ensure their words are more readily understood and are taken more seriously by the reader. Ditto spelling.

 

[GT49er]

‘There is a persistent belief that it is improper to begin a sentence with and, but this prohibition has been cheerfully ignored by standard authors from Anglo-Saxon times onwards.’
RW Burchfield, New Fowler’s Modern English Usage

I was always taught not to start sentences with 'and', and by and large I still agree with that. Have to accept the authority of Fowler's, though - even though they don't actually go as far as to say it's right!

Many congratulations for being able to actually find something in Fowler's by the way - it's a nightmare for looking things up in.

 

[GT49er]

... corrected for CMD.

Looks much better. The original was an example of the damage the plain English campaign has done to the English language.

 

[GT49er]

It is incredibly irritating ( to me ) though, when listening to an interview, if every reply starts with it.

That's probably because it's the verbal equivalent of 'so' followed by a comma, when it often becomes an alternative to 'errr' or 'yer know'.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Dave wants to be cool with the kids who grew up under a Thatcher administration.

 

[Zebedee]

What about when people start sentances with 'so' ?

This must be the most annoying trait of all.

 

[bristolseagull]

I think you and Dave are stuck in the 70's and 80's PERIOD.

I mean who sends letters any more ?

Me, daily, but I'm a solicitor....

 

[Hamilton]

I was chatting this through with my old friend from the Bullingdon Club and he was astonished. Literally fell orf his char.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/sep/22/how-talk-posh-glossary-non-u

And so, I use 'and' at the start of a lot of sentences.

 

[Arthritic Toe]

I understand its mandatory for Match of the Day pundits to start every sentence with "For me..." and for every player interviewed post match, to start "Yeah no ..."

 

[soistes]

Quick example:

We've come along way since 2010. And now, thanks to the hard work and determination of the British people, we are making our way back: the deficit is down, taxes have been cut, new businesses are opening and more jobs are created. And we've done all this whilst protecting the NHS budget and investing an extra £12.9 billion in it since 2010.

But the job is not done. And the choice you face now is whether we stick to a plan that is working, or turn back and waste all the hard work and sacrifices of the last five years.

His English isn't too bad, but his economics is full of holes.

 

[soistes]

I understand its mandatory for Match of the Day pundits to start every sentence with "For me..." and for every player interviewed post match, to start "Yeah no ..."

Or "as I said..", immediately followed by something that they haven't already said.

 

[Worthingite]

I think Hove Born and Bred is the grammatically sound go-to guy for this question.

 

[Eeyore]

And it came to pass....