What is a connective in French?

It is a word or phrase that signals how one sentence relates to the next — cependant for a contrast, par conséquent for a consequence, autrement dit for a rephrasing. Grammatically they are adverbs, so they can move around and can be removed without breaking the sentence.

What's the difference between par contre and en revanche?

They mean the same thing, on the other hand, but par contre is conversational while en revanche is the choice for formal writing. Some traditional style guides still object to par contre in essays, so en revanche is the safer bet on paper.

What does du coup mean?

It means so or as a result, and it has become extremely frequent in spoken French: il n'y avait plus de train, du coup j'ai pris un taxi. In writing, replace it with donc, par conséquent, or c'est pourquoi.

Why does aussi cause inversion?

Because at the head of a clause aussi is not the adverb also but a connective meaning therefore, and that use inherits the old inverted word order: aussi avons-nous décidé de partir. Keep aussi after the verb when you mean too.

Which connectives should I use in a formal essay?

Tout d'abord, de plus, en outre, cependant, néanmoins, en revanche, par conséquent, en somme, and en conclusion. They map onto the spoken ones you already know: en revanche for par contre, par conséquent for du coup, en somme for bref.

French grammar · Intermediate

French Connectives: Signposting a Sentence, a Paragraph, or an Argument

Written by Camille Laurent, Lead French Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

Connectives are the words French uses to signpost a text rather than to glue clauses together: d'abord, ensuite, cependant, en revanche, par conséquent, bref. Unlike conjunctions they can move around the sentence, and choosing between two that mean the same thing is usually a question of register rather than grammar.

D'abord, il a refusé ; ensuite, il a changé d'avis.

At first he refused; then he changed his mind.

What it is

A connective, or mot de liaison, tells the reader what relationship the next sentence has to the last one: it continues, it contradicts, it concludes, it rephrases. Grammatically most of them are adverbs or adverbial phrases, which is why they float — they can open the sentence, sit after the verb, or come at the end.

Le film était long. Cependant, il ne m'a pas ennuyé. — The film was long. Nevertheless, it didn't bore me.

How to spot it

If the word can be lifted out and the sentence still stands, it is a connective. Conjunctions cannot be removed without breaking the sentence in two.

Il est donc parti sans nous. — So he left without us.
Elle a, par ailleurs, refusé de signer. — She also, incidentally, refused to sign.
Ce n'est pas grave, en fait. — It's not a big deal, actually.
Bref, personne n'était content. — In short, nobody was happy.

Written French sets most connectives off with commas. In speech the comma becomes a small pause, and dropping it entirely sounds rushed.

Connectives Quick Reference

The main families of connective, from neutral to formal

Job	Everyday	Formal or written
Starting	d'abord, pour commencer	en premier lieu, tout d'abord
Continuing	ensuite, puis, après	par la suite, en second lieu
Adding	et puis, aussi, d'ailleurs	de plus, en outre, par ailleurs
Contrasting	mais, par contre, quand même	cependant, néanmoins, toutefois, en revanche
Concluding a step	donc, du coup, alors	par conséquent, c'est pourquoi, ainsi
Rephrasing	c'est-à-dire, autrement dit	en d'autres termes, à savoir
Summing up	bref, en gros, au final	en somme, en conclusion, pour conclure
Giving an example	par exemple	notamment, ainsi, en particulier

Common Connectives Examples in French

Connectives at work in each of their roles:

Ordering a Sequence

D'abord, on fait revenir les oignons.: First, you fry the onions.
Ensuite, ajoutez le riz et remuez.: Then add the rice and stir.
Puis on laisse cuire vingt minutes.: Then you let it cook for twenty minutes.
Enfin, servez avec du persil.: Finally, serve with parsley.

Enfin closes a list. Finalement means in the end, after all that, and is not interchangeable with it.

Contrasting

Le loyer est élevé. En revanche, le quartier est calme.: The rent is high. On the other hand, the area is quiet.
Il avait promis de venir ; pourtant, il n'est pas là.: He'd promised to come; and yet he isn't here.
C'est cher, par contre la qualité est là.: It's expensive, but the quality is there.
Elle est jeune ; néanmoins, elle a beaucoup d'expérience.: She's young; nevertheless she has a lot of experience.

Pourtant expresses surprise at the contradiction; en revanche and par contre simply balance two facts.

Explaining and Concluding

Les routes étaient bloquées ; par conséquent, la réunion a été reportée.: The roads were blocked; consequently the meeting was postponed.
Il n'y avait plus de places, du coup on est rentrés.: There were no seats left, so we went home.
En effet, les chiffres confirment cette tendance.: Indeed, the figures confirm this trend.
C'est pourquoi nous avons changé de fournisseur.: That's why we changed suppliers.

Du coup is everywhere in speech and almost absent from formal writing, where donc or par conséquent take over.

Rephrasing and Summing Up

Il est arrivé en retard, autrement dit il a raté le début.: He arrived late, in other words he missed the beginning.
C'est-à-dire que nous devons tout recommencer.: Which means we have to start over.
Bref, ça ne s'est pas très bien passé.: In short, it didn't go very well.
En somme, le projet reste viable.: All in all, the project is still viable.

C'est-à-dire is often followed by que when a whole clause comes next, and stands alone before a noun.

How Connectives Behave

They are not conjunctions, and the differences show up in punctuation, position, and word order.

They Move, Conjunctions Don't

A connective can open the sentence, follow the verb, or trail at the end, and the meaning barely shifts. Mais and car, being true conjunctions, are stuck at the join between the two clauses.

Cependant, il a accepté. Il a cependant accepté.

However, he accepted. He nevertheless accepted.

If it can slide, it's a connective.

They Do Not Join Two Clauses on Their Own

Because a connective is an adverb, it cannot hold two independent clauses together the way et or mais can. You still need punctuation — a full stop or a semicolon — or a real conjunction alongside it.

Il pleuvait. Nous sommes pourtant sortis.

It was raining. We went out anyway.

Connective plus punctuation, not instead of it.

Aussi at the Front Means Therefore

Mid-sentence, aussi means also. At the head of a clause it means therefore, and it triggers inversion of the subject and verb. This is a formal construction, but it appears often enough in print to matter.

Aussi avons-nous décidé de reporter le voyage.

We therefore decided to postpone the trip.

Aussi in front → therefore + inversion.

Most connectives come in pairs that mean the same thing at different levels of formality: par contre and en revanche, du coup and par conséquent, en fait and en réalité. Picking the wrong level is not a grammar mistake, but it is immediately noticeable.

En revanche, les résultats du second trimestre sont encourageants.

The second-quarter results, on the other hand, are encouraging.

Same meaning, different suit.

Common Mistakes with Connectives

Incorrect: Actuellement, je ne suis pas d'accord. — Actually, I don't agree.

Correct: En fait, je ne suis pas d'accord. — Actually, I don't agree.

Actuellement means currently, at present. The English actually, used to correct a wrong impression, is en fait or en réalité.

Incorrect: Aussi je suis parti tôt. — I left early too.

Correct: Moi aussi, je suis parti tôt. — I left early too.

Aussi at the head of a clause means therefore and demands inversion. To say too, attach aussi to the element it applies to, or put it after the verb.

Incorrect: Finalement, n'oubliez pas de signer. — Finally, don't forget to sign.

Correct: Enfin, n'oubliez pas de signer. — Finally, don't forget to sign.

Finalement reports an outcome after some hesitation. The last item in a list is introduced by enfin.

Incorrect: Il était fatigué, cependant il a fini le travail. — He was tired; nevertheless he finished the job.

Correct: Il était fatigué ; cependant, il a fini le travail. — He was tired; nevertheless he finished the job.

Cependant is an adverb, not a conjunction, so a comma alone cannot hold the two clauses together. Use a semicolon or a full stop, or switch to mais.

The Ones That Trip English Speakers Up

A handful of connectives look like English words they do not translate, and a couple are graded by register in ways that are easy to miss.

En effet is not in effect

En effet confirms what was just said and means indeed or that's because. The English in effect is en fait or en réalité, which does the opposite job: it corrects the previous statement.

Il est absent ; en effet, il est malade.: He's away; indeed, he's ill.
En fait, ce n'est pas lui qui a téléphoné.: Actually, it wasn't him who called.
En réalité, la loi dit le contraire.: In reality, the law says the opposite.

Confusing the two reverses your meaning, which makes this the most expensive connective error in French.

Enfin, finalement, and à la fin

Enfin closes a list, finalement reports how something turned out after uncertainty, and à la fin refers to the end of a period or an object.

Enfin, n'oubliez pas de signer.: Lastly, don't forget to sign.
Finalement, nous ne sommes pas partis.: In the end, we didn't go after all.
À la fin du film, tout s'explique.: At the end of the film, everything is explained.

Enfin also works as a filler expressing mild exasperation: Enfin ! Tu exagères.

Spoken shortcuts

Conversation runs on a small set of connectives that look out of place in an essay: du coup, quand même, alors, en fait, franchement.

Du coup, on a annulé.: So we cancelled.
Il l'a fait quand même.: He did it anyway.
Alors, tu en penses quoi ?: So, what do you think about it?

In written work, replace du coup with donc or par conséquent, and quand même with néanmoins or toutefois.

Connectives FAQs

What is a connective in French?: It is a word or phrase that signals how one sentence relates to the next — cependant for a contrast, par conséquent for a consequence, autrement dit for a rephrasing. Grammatically they are adverbs, so they can move around and can be removed without breaking the sentence.
What's the difference between par contre and en revanche?: They mean the same thing, on the other hand, but par contre is conversational while en revanche is the choice for formal writing. Some traditional style guides still object to par contre in essays, so en revanche is the safer bet on paper.
What does du coup mean?: It means so or as a result, and it has become extremely frequent in spoken French: il n'y avait plus de train, du coup j'ai pris un taxi. In writing, replace it with donc, par conséquent, or c'est pourquoi.
Why does aussi cause inversion?: Because at the head of a clause aussi is not the adverb also but a connective meaning therefore, and that use inherits the old inverted word order: aussi avons-nous décidé de partir. Keep aussi after the verb when you mean too.
Which connectives should I use in a formal essay?: Tout d'abord, de plus, en outre, cependant, néanmoins, en revanche, par conséquent, en somme, and en conclusion. They map onto the spoken ones you already know: en revanche for par contre, par conséquent for du coup, en somme for bref.