What are the seven French coordinating conjunctions?

Mais, ou, et, donc, or, ni, and car. They are usually learned through the sentence Mais où est donc Ornicar ?, whose sounds contain all seven in order. Each one joins two elements of equal grammatical rank.

What does or mean in French?

Not or — that is ou. Or is an argumentative connector meaning now, yet, or as it happens, and it marks a turn in reasoning: il jurait n'avoir rien vu ; or il était présent. You will meet it far more in writing than in conversation.

What's the difference between car and parce que?

Both give a reason, but car is coordinating and formal while parce que is subordinating and neutral. Car cannot start a sentence or answer a question, so Pourquoi ? is answered with Parce que…, never with Car…

Because ni only coordinates; it does not negate the verb. Je ne bois ni thé ni café keeps ne in front of the verb and drops pas, since ni has taken over that part of the negation.

Do I put a comma before et in French?

Not in an ordinary list: du pain, du fromage et du vin. A comma appears before et only when it separates two substantial clauses or marks a deliberate pause, so the English serial comma has no French equivalent.

French grammar · Intermediate

French Coordinating Conjunctions: Mais, Ou, Et, Donc, Or, Ni, Car

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

French has seven coordinating conjunctions — mais, ou, et, donc, or, ni, car — traditionally memorised through the sentence Mais où est donc Ornicar ? Each joins two elements of equal rank, and each has a quirk: car cannot open a sentence, ni needs a ne, and or signals a turn in an argument rather than an addition.

Il a sonné, mais personne n'a répondu.

He rang, but nobody answered.

What it is

Coordinating conjunctions link two things of the same rank: two nouns, two adjectives, or two clauses that could each stand as a sentence. Because they coordinate rather than subordinate, they never change the mood of the verb and they never move — they stay at the seam between the two halves they are joining.

Mais où est donc Ornicar ? — the memory sentence that hides all seven: mais, ou, et, donc, or, ni, car.

How to spot it

Cover the conjunction with your finger. If what remains on each side is a complete, self-standing sentence, you are looking at coordination.

Elle est fatiguée et elle a faim. — She's tired and she's hungry.
Je voudrais venir, mais je travaille. — I'd like to come, but I'm working.
Tout était fermé, donc nous sommes rentrés. — Everything was shut, so we went home.
Il n'a ni frère ni sœur. — He has neither a brother nor a sister.

Ornicar is not a French word; it exists only so that the seven conjunctions can be heard in one sentence.

Coordinating Conjunctions Quick Reference

The seven coordinating conjunctions

Conjunction	Meaning	Example
mais	but	petit mais solide — small but sturdy
ou	or	du vin ou de la bière — wine or beer
et	and	lui et moi — him and me
donc	so, therefore	je pense, donc je suis — I think, therefore I am
or	now, yet (a turn in the argument)	or il n'était pas là — now, he wasn't there
ni	nor (with ne)	ni l'un ni l'autre — neither one nor the other
car	for, because (written)	il se taisait, car il avait peur — he kept quiet, for he was afraid

Common Coordinating Conjunctions Examples in French

Each conjunction in its natural habitat:

Adding and Contrasting

Nous avons visité Lyon et Marseille.: We visited Lyon and Marseille.
C'est cher, mais c'est de bonne qualité.: It's expensive, but it's good quality.
Elle travaille et étudie en même temps.: She works and studies at the same time.
Ce n'est pas grand, mais c'est confortable.: It isn't big, but it's comfortable.

A comma normally comes before mais and is normally left out before et in a simple list.

Offering Alternatives

Tu préfères le train ou l'avion ?: Do you prefer the train or the plane?
Viens samedi ou dimanche, comme tu veux.: Come Saturday or Sunday, whichever you like.
On y va à pied ou bien on prend le bus ?: Shall we walk or shall we take the bus?
Il faut réserver, ou tu n'auras pas de place.: You have to book, or you won't get a seat.

Ou without an accent means or; où with an accent means where. Only the accent separates them.

Drawing a Conclusion

Le pont est coupé, donc il faut faire le tour.: The bridge is closed, so we have to go round.
Il pleuvait ; nous sommes donc restés à l'intérieur.: It was raining; we therefore stayed indoors.
Elle n'a pas répondu, donc elle n'a pas reçu le message.: She didn't reply, so she didn't get the message.

Donc is the only one of the seven that can move inside its clause: nous sommes donc restés.

Giving the Reason

Je n'insiste pas, car je respecte ton choix.: I won't push it, for I respect your choice.
Le musée était vide, car c'était un lundi.: The museum was empty, as it was a Monday.
Il a échoué, car il n'avait pas assez travaillé.: He failed, for he hadn't worked hard enough.

Car belongs to careful and written French. In conversation, parce que does the same work.

How Coordination Works in French

The seven behave alike in most respects, and the places where they diverge are worth knowing individually.

They Join Elements of the Same Rank

A coordinating conjunction can link two nouns, two adjectives, two infinitives, or two clauses, but not a noun to a clause. Whatever sits on the left sets the pattern for the right.

Il aime lire et écrire.

He likes reading and writing.

Same kind of thing on both sides.

They Never Touch the Mood of the Verb

Unlike bien que or pour que, these seven leave the verb alone. Both halves stay in whatever tense and mood they would have had as separate sentences, which makes coordination the safest way to build a long sentence.

Elle est partie tôt, mais elle est arrivée en retard.

She left early, but she arrived late.

No subjunctive after coordination.

Car Cannot Open a Sentence

Car links a statement to the justification that follows it, so there must be something to its left. That also means car cannot answer a question on its own: the answer to pourquoi is parce que.

Pourquoi es-tu parti ? Parce qu'il était tard.

Why did you leave? Because it was late.

Car joins, parce que answers.

Ni Requires a Negative Sentence

Ni is the negative counterpart of et and ou, so it only works inside a negation. The verb keeps its ne, and pas disappears because ni has already taken over the negating job.

Je ne bois ni vin ni bière.

I drink neither wine nor beer.

ne … ni … ni, and no pas.

Et Does Not Take a Comma in a Simple List

French punctuation puts no comma before the final et of a list, unlike the optional English serial comma. A comma before et appears only when it separates two long clauses or marks a deliberate pause.

J'ai acheté du pain, du fromage et des pommes.

I bought bread, cheese and apples.

No comma before the last et.

Common Mistakes with Coordinating Conjunctions

Incorrect: Tu viens où tu restes ? — Are you coming or staying?

Correct: Tu viens ou tu restes ? — Are you coming or staying?

Où with a grave accent means where. The conjunction or is spelled ou with no accent, and the two are pronounced identically.

Incorrect: Pourquoi es-tu en retard ? Car il y avait des embouteillages. — Why are you late? Because there was traffic.

Correct: Pourquoi es-tu en retard ? Parce qu'il y avait des embouteillages. — Why are you late? Because there was traffic.

Car needs a clause to its left to attach to, so it cannot begin an answer. Only parce que can stand at the head of a reply.

Incorrect: Il a ni argent ni travail. — He has neither money nor work.

Correct: Il n'a ni argent ni travail. — He has neither money nor work.

Ni coordinates but does not negate the verb by itself. The ne has to stay in front of the verb, even though pas is dropped.

Incorrect: D'abord nous avons mangé, donc nous sommes sortis. — First we ate, then we went out.

Correct: D'abord nous avons mangé, puis nous sommes sortis. — First we ate, then we went out.

Donc means therefore, not the temporal then. For a simple sequence of events French uses puis or ensuite.

The Three That Behave Unexpectedly

Or, donc, and ni are the members of the set that catch learners out, each for a different reason.

Or: the pivot in an argument

Or does not mean or. It marks the point where a line of reasoning turns, and translates as now, yet, or but as it happens. It is common in essays, court reports, and journalism.

Il affirme n'avoir rien vu. Or, il était sur place.: He claims he saw nothing. Yet he was there.
Nous devions partir à huit heures ; or le train était annulé.: We were due to leave at eight; as it happened, the train was cancelled.
Or, personne n'avait prévenu les voisins.: Now, nobody had warned the neighbours.

Unlike car, or can open a sentence, and often does. The homograph l'or, gold, is a different word entirely.

Donc: conclusion and emphasis

As a conjunction, donc draws a conclusion. In speech it also works as a small intensifier that gives an order or a question more force, and there it has no translation at all.

Tais-toi donc !: Do be quiet!
Dis donc, tu as vu l'heure ?: Hey, have you seen the time?
Allons donc, ce n'est pas si grave.: Come on now, it isn't that bad.

This emphatic donc always follows the verb. It is one of the small words that make spoken French sound natural.

Ni: coordination inside a negation

Ni replaces et and ou when the sentence is negative. It is repeated before each item, and any indefinite or partitive article in front of those items disappears.

Elle n'a ni voiture ni permis.: She has neither a car nor a licence.
Ni Paul ni Marie ne le savait.: Neither Paul nor Marie knew.
Il est parti sans manteau ni parapluie.: He left without a coat or an umbrella.

After sans, ni does the work of ou without needing ne, because sans is already negative.

Coordinating Conjunctions FAQs

What are the seven French coordinating conjunctions?: Mais, ou, et, donc, or, ni, and car. They are usually learned through the sentence Mais où est donc Ornicar ?, whose sounds contain all seven in order. Each one joins two elements of equal grammatical rank.
What does or mean in French?: Not or — that is ou. Or is an argumentative connector meaning now, yet, or as it happens, and it marks a turn in reasoning: il jurait n'avoir rien vu ; or il était présent. You will meet it far more in writing than in conversation.
What's the difference between car and parce que?: Both give a reason, but car is coordinating and formal while parce que is subordinating and neutral. Car cannot start a sentence or answer a question, so Pourquoi ? is answered with Parce que…, never with Car…
Why does ni need ne?: Because ni only coordinates; it does not negate the verb. Je ne bois ni thé ni café keeps ne in front of the verb and drops pas, since ni has taken over that part of the negation.
Do I put a comma before et in French?: Not in an ordinary list: du pain, du fromage et du vin. A comma appears before et only when it separates two substantial clauses or marks a deliberate pause, so the English serial comma has no French equivalent.