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"Then", meaning next or afterwards, is among a group of adverbs* that link independent clauses. Style manuals, e.g. the AMA Manual or the Mayfield Handbook, tell us that they should be preceded by a semicolon (or full stop). This makes sense since their function (linking sentences) lies beyond the sentence. However, it may be just as common, if not more common, to find "then" preceded by a comma. Also, "then" can link other elements, namely phrases and words. Excluding patterns with "and" before "then", this is what one can find in the dictionaries (albeit at varying frequencies).

(1) She did X, then she did Y.

(2) She did X, then did Y.

(3) She did X, then Y.

This brings up some questions.

Regarding (1), how is this not a comma splice? Is the second clause a supplement? It is even possible to find examples (the examples I found where in user guides or online help) where the comma is absent. So is "then" functioning as a conjunction or is there an elliptical "and" before "then"?

Regarding (2) and (3), are the structures "did X, then did Y" and "X, then Y" compound structures? That is, again, is "then" functioning as a conjunction or is there an elliptical "and" before "then"? If not, what are the structures beginning with "then"?

*This group is called, among other names, conjuncts by Quirk et al, linking adverbials by Biber et al and connective adjuncts by Huddleston and Pullum.

K Adams
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  • And then is the single phrase that summarizes narrative. There are languages where just about every sentence starts with something that means "and then", As for how stuff afterwards is parsed, it's a clause or it's a phrase -- however the narrative is being laid out. There's no special term for the construction and no special grammar associated with it. Everything depends on the verbs used, as usual. – John Lawler Apr 06 '23 at 01:07
  • The term in the literature you want is Conjunction Reduction. It refers to non-repetition of auxiliaries, articles, prepositions, pronouns, particles, etc. in conjoined constituents – John Lawler Apr 06 '23 at 01:16
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    The commas in 2 and 3 are superfluous in writing styles (She ate dinner then bathed.). The comma in 1 acknowledges/placemarks the elliptical and — so as to absolve splicing sins for joining independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction. – Tinfoil Hat Apr 06 '23 at 03:01
  • As written, your examples are strictly speaking ungrammatical since the coordinator "and" is required. Note that "then" is best analysed as a preposition, as evident from the fact that we can say "and then". Note that English permits only one coordinator per clause. – BillJ Apr 06 '23 at 09:20
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    Does this answer your question? "then" vs "and then" – Edwin Ashworth Apr 06 '23 at 11:54

1 Answers1

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Particularly in informal contexts, then can be used as a conjunction, as TfD notes. It meaning is essentially the same as "and then," but there is no reason to describe this as a case of ellipsis when it can just be analyzed as a separate conjunction in such sentences.

alphabet
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  • I think this is most common when the phrases being connected are short. It feels more like a list than a narrative. – Barmar Apr 05 '23 at 22:43
  • "Then" cannot be a conjunction. English only permits one conjunction as marker, and the conjunction "and" is already present in "and then". "Then" is best analysed as a preposition, understood here as "after that". Note that "then" functions here as an adjunct. – BillJ Apr 06 '23 at 08:41
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    @BillJ Obviously "then" is not a conjunction in "and then," but I suspect that in this case the words "and then" have joined to create a new conjunction. – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 11:07
  • I wouldn't say so. I take "then" to be an adjunct, a separate constituent at word level. – BillJ Apr 06 '23 at 11:18
  • @BillJ My reasoning comes from sentences like "That building was a pharmacy, then a grocery store, then a pharmacy again" or "She bought, then ate, a whole rotisserie chicken," where "then" does seem to function much like a conjunction meaning "and then" or "and later." – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 11:47
  • TfD articles usually (as here) contain quotes from three respected dictionaries. Here, the dictionaries disagree in terminology at least. There is also a pertinent AHD usage note, with no such caveat from Collins or R H K Webster's. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 06 '23 at 11:53
  • It is true, though, that it requires some level of prosodic detachment; omitting the comma before "then" seems incorrect. Hrm... – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 11:53
  • @alphabet Yes, "then" could be replaced with "and then" or "after that", but "then" is clearly a preposition, not a conjunction, since preps have a distinct meaning while conjunctions are virtually meaningless markers of coordination. "Then", for example has a clear temporal meaning. – BillJ Apr 06 '23 at 12:41
  • @BillJ The question is about syntactic function, not semantic role; that said, I'd need to think more about how Huddleston & Pullum might answer this. – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 15:04
  • @alphabet The point is that most traditional prepositions have meanings to do with relations in space or time, which is why "then" is best classified as a prep. – BillJ Apr 06 '23 at 15:56
  • @BillJ H&P generally think that ultimately we should (more or less) ignore a word's meaning when deciding how to classify it and instead focus on how it's used syntactically. (See chapter 1, §4.4). – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 20:00
  • @BillJ It's worth noting that "and" often expresses (or strongly implies) temporal order; compare "He went to the beach and met up with his friend" with "He met up with his friend and went to the beach." – alphabet Apr 06 '23 at 20:38
  • @alphabet "And" expresses "in addition". not a temporal meaning. – BillJ Apr 07 '23 at 06:45