French is one of the most register-stratified languages in Western Europe. The same idea — however, therefore, while, since — has at least two encodings, often three or four, ranging from intimate spoken French to high literary prose. The choice between them is not optional decoration: a student who writes du coup in a dissertation will have it crossed out, and a tourist who says néanmoins in a café will sound like a parody of a 19th-century novel. This page maps the parallel sets and gives concrete advice on what to use where.
The key idea is that conjunctions in French come in registers — broad bands of formality that include neutral, conversational/familiar, careful written, and literary/elevated. Most everyday conjunctions are neutral and work everywhere (et, ou, mais, parce que, quand). The interesting cases are the ones with a clear register marking, where swapping the wrong one in shifts how the sentence reads.
Why register matters in conjunctions specifically
Open any French novel from the 19th century and you will see or, néanmoins, cependant, toutefois, partant, dès lors on every page. Open a transcribed conversation between two friends and you will see mais, alors, du coup, en fait, donc, et puis, sauf que. Both texts are in the same language, and both are perfectly grammatical, but the conjunctions are almost completely disjoint.
The reason conjunctions stratify so sharply is that they are stylistic markers. They have very little semantic content beyond and, but, so, because, while — meaning, almost any pair of clauses can be linked by any conjunction in the relevant family without changing the truth conditions. What changes is what kind of speaker the writer or talker projects herself to be. Picking néanmoins over mais quand même commits to a careful, controlled, written voice. Picking du coup over par conséquent commits to a relaxed, contemporary, spoken voice.
A non-native speaker who hits the wrong note here is immediately heard as not-quite-native, even if every word and grammatical ending is correct.
The spoken-French repertoire
These are the conjunctions and connectors that make up the bulk of conversational French. Use them in dialogue, casual emails, text messages, and informal blog posts.
mais — but
The everyday adversative. Works in every register, but it is the only but you should use in conversation.
Je voulais venir, mais j'ai eu un empêchement.
I wanted to come, but something came up.
C'est bon, mais c'est trop salé.
It's good, but it's too salty.
parce que — because (the universal because)
The neutral, default because. It is correct in any register but is the only natural one in speech. Other because-conjunctions (car, puisque, comme) carry register or pragmatic differences covered below.
Je n'y vais pas parce que j'ai trop de travail.
I'm not going because I have too much work.
On a annulé parce qu'il pleuvait trop.
We cancelled because it was raining too hard.
donc — therefore / so (everyday)
Donc is the workhorse logical connector in speech. It marks a conclusion or consequence, and it is fully neutral — fine in writing too, though formal writing often prefers par conséquent or ainsi.
Il pleut, donc on reste à la maison.
It's raining, so we're staying home.
Tu es en retard, donc tu prendras le prochain train.
You're late, so you'll take the next train.
alors — so / then (sequencing or consequence)
Alors is more conversational than donc. It links events in a narrative (so then…) and signals consequence with a softer, more spoken feel.
Il m'a parlé, alors je l'ai écouté.
He spoke to me, so I listened.
J'avais faim, alors je suis allé manger.
I was hungry, so I went to eat.
du coup — so / as a result (very common, casual)
Du coup exploded in spoken French in the 1990s and is now the dominant casual therefore among speakers under 50. It is never appropriate in formal writing — write par conséquent or donc instead — but it is everywhere in conversation.
Le train était annulé, du coup j'ai pris le bus.
The train was cancelled, so I took the bus.
J'ai pas pu venir hier, du coup on se voit demain ?
I couldn't come yesterday, so shall we meet tomorrow?
Il m'a tout expliqué — du coup, je comprends mieux maintenant.
He explained everything to me, so now I understand better.
et puis — and then / also (additive)
Et puis adds an item to a list or a thought to what was just said. Conversational and warm.
On a mangé, on a discuté, et puis on est rentrés.
We ate, we chatted, and then we went home.
J'aime pas son attitude, et puis il est toujours en retard.
I don't like his attitude, and besides, he's always late.
quand — when (everyday)
Quand is the neutral when and works everywhere. In formal writing you sometimes prefer lorsque (covered below), but quand itself is never wrong.
Quand je suis arrivé, il dormait.
When I got there, he was sleeping.
en fait — actually / as a matter of fact
A discourse marker rather than a strict conjunction. Extremely common in speech to introduce a clarification or correction.
En fait, je préfère rester ici.
Actually, I'd rather stay here.
sauf que — except that (concession, casual)
Sauf que introduces a casual concession or counterargument. Conversational only — replace with si ce n'est que or à ceci près que in writing.
C'était sympa, sauf que la musique était trop forte.
It was nice, except the music was too loud.
The written / formal repertoire
These conjunctions belong to written French — essays, news articles, official letters, academic writing — and to elevated speech (lectures, official addresses). Hearing them in casual conversation usually signals that the speaker is being deliberately formal, or quoting, or being slightly ironic.
cependant — however
The standard however of careful prose. Slightly more emphatic than mais, and used to introduce a clarifying counterpoint rather than a flat contradiction.
Le projet est ambitieux ; cependant, il manque encore de moyens.
The project is ambitious; however, it still lacks resources.
Cela paraît simple. Cependant, plusieurs difficultés subsistent.
It seems simple. However, several difficulties remain.
néanmoins — nevertheless
Stronger than cependant, with the connotation despite what was just said. Reaches from journalism into literary prose.
L'accusé nie tout. Néanmoins, les preuves sont accablantes.
The defendant denies everything. Nevertheless, the evidence is damning.
Le résultat est décevant ; il reste néanmoins encourageant à long terme.
The result is disappointing; nevertheless it remains encouraging in the long run.
toutefois — however / nevertheless
Close synonym of cependant, slightly more formal. Common in legal and administrative writing.
L'offre expire demain ; toutefois, une prolongation est possible.
The offer expires tomorrow; however, an extension is possible.
or — now / yet (literary, argumentative)
Or is one of the trickiest French conjunctions for English speakers because it does not match any single English word. It introduces a fact that complicates or refutes what was just stated, typically in argumentative or narrative writing.
On le croyait coupable. Or, le vrai responsable était ailleurs.
They thought he was guilty. Yet the real culprit was elsewhere. (literary)
Tous les témoins affirmaient l'avoir vu. Or, il était à Paris ce jour-là.
All the witnesses said they had seen him. But in fact he was in Paris that day.
In speech, you would say mais en fait or sauf que. Or in spoken French sounds bookish.
tandis que — whereas / while (contrast)
Tandis que is the formal whereas, used to draw a contrast between two clauses. It also has a temporal use (while) that overlaps with pendant que.
Mon frère adore les maths, tandis que moi, je préfère la littérature.
My brother loves maths, whereas I prefer literature.
L'économie ralentit, tandis que l'inflation continue de grimper.
The economy is slowing, while inflation continues to rise.
lorsque — when (formal)
The careful written counterpart to quand. Same meaning, same grammar, more formal voice. Common in journalism, narrative, legal text.
Lorsque le président a pris la parole, la salle s'est tue.
When the president began to speak, the room fell silent.
L'accident s'est produit lorsque le conducteur a perdu le contrôle.
The accident occurred when the driver lost control.
puisque — since / given that (presupposed reason)
Marks a reason that is already known to the listener, used to invoke it rather than to inform. Both spoken and written, but with a slightly more careful flavor than parce que.
Puisque tu es là, aide-moi à porter ça.
Since you're here, help me carry this.
Puisqu'il refuse de répondre, passons à la question suivante.
Since he refuses to answer, let's move on to the next question.
car — for / because (formal)
Car and parce que both mean because, but car is markedly more formal. It introduces a justification rather than a direct cause and is more common in writing.
Il a démissionné, car il ne supportait plus la pression.
He resigned, for he could no longer bear the pressure.
L'opération a été reportée, car les conditions n'étaient pas réunies.
The operation has been postponed, for conditions were not met.
In speech, car is rare — it sounds like a press release. Use parce que.
étant donné que / vu que — given that / seeing that
These two phrasal conjunctions both mean given that, seeing that. Étant donné que is more formal (administrative, academic); vu que is semi-formal and edges into the spoken register.
Étant donné que la situation a évolué, nous devons revoir notre stratégie.
Given that the situation has evolved, we must review our strategy.
Vu qu'il pleut, on annule la sortie.
Seeing as it's raining, we're cancelling the outing.
Discourse phrases for written French
Beyond simple conjunctions, written French uses standard phrases as connectors. Memorize these for essays:
- cela dit — that said
- somme toute — all in all, on the whole
- en somme — in short
- en définitive — ultimately, when all is said and done
- par ailleurs — moreover, furthermore
- en revanche — on the other hand (contrast)
- par conséquent — consequently (formal donc)
- de surcroît — moreover, what's more
- en outre — furthermore
Cela dit, il faut reconnaître ses qualités.
That said, we must acknowledge his qualities.
Le projet est risqué ; somme toute, il mérite d'être tenté.
The project is risky; all in all, it's worth trying.
Par ailleurs, le coût reste un obstacle majeur.
Furthermore, cost remains a major obstacle.
Pairing the registers
The cleanest way to internalize the split is to memorize the parallel pairs:
| Spoken | Written / formal |
|---|---|
| mais | cependant, néanmoins, toutefois |
| parce que | car (more formal) |
| donc | par conséquent, ainsi |
| alors / du coup | par conséquent, dès lors |
| quand | lorsque |
| pendant que | tandis que |
| sauf que | si ce n'est que |
| en plus | de surcroît, en outre |
| en fait | à vrai dire, en réalité |
| comme / vu que | étant donné que |
The right-hand column is what to write in essays, articles, and formal letters. The left-hand column is what to say in conversation. Mixing across is fine in principle but rarely sounds right — a written essay full of du coup sounds slack, and a casual conversation full of néanmoins sounds pompous.
Hedging cases — the words that work in both registers
A few connectors are genuinely register-neutral:
- donc — natural in both speech and writing, only slightly less formal than par conséquent
- quand — natural in both, only slightly less formal than lorsque
- parce que — fully neutral, though car is preferred in writing
- bien que — works in both registers (it triggers subjunctive, which feels formal, but the conjunction itself is everyday)
- si — fully neutral, the universal conditional/interrogative
These are safe defaults when you're not sure which register the situation calls for.
How to upgrade your written French
Three concrete moves take a conversation-style French paragraph into a written-style one:
- Replace mais with cependant, toutefois, or néanmoins (vary across paragraphs).
- Replace du coup and standalone sentence-initial alors with par conséquent or ainsi.
- Replace quand and pendant que with lorsque and tandis que in narrative.
Conversely, three moves take an over-formal paragraph back to natural speech:
- Drop cependant and néanmoins; use mais.
- Drop par conséquent; use donc, alors, or du coup.
- Drop lorsque; use quand.
Common Mistakes
❌ J'ai pris l'apéro avec lui, néanmoins on a parlé.
Incorrect register — néanmoins is too formal for casual conversation, and the logic is off.
✅ J'ai pris l'apéro avec lui, et on a parlé.
I had a drink with him and we chatted.
❌ Du coup, conformément à l'article 4, le contrat sera résilié.
Incorrect register — du coup is conversational and clashes with administrative French.
✅ Par conséquent, conformément à l'article 4, le contrat sera résilié.
Consequently, in accordance with Article 4, the contract will be terminated.
❌ Salut, lorsque tu arrives, appelle-moi.
Incorrect register — lorsque is bookish in a casual message.
✅ Salut, quand tu arrives, appelle-moi.
Hi, when you get there, call me.
❌ Or, mon pote, je peux pas venir.
Incorrect — or is literary/argumentative and clashes with mon pote.
✅ Du coup mon pote, je peux pas venir.
So buddy, I can't come.
❌ Il a démissionné car.
Incorrect — car cannot stand alone or end a clause; it must introduce a full clause.
✅ Il a démissionné car il en avait assez.
He resigned, for he had had enough.
Key Takeaways
French conjunctions stratify by register more sharply than English connectors do. The big spoken set — mais, parce que, donc, alors, du coup, quand, pendant que — is the workhorse of conversation, and any of them slot naturally into casual speech and informal writing. The written set — cependant, néanmoins, toutefois, lorsque, tandis que, puisque, car, par conséquent — belongs in essays, articles, and formal correspondence. The fastest way to sound native is to commit to one register at a time: pick speech or pick writing, and don't mix them on the same page. With a year or two of reading and listening, the right conjunction will start to feel obvious before you choose it.
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