And

Part of speech: conjunction

Pronunciation: /ænd/

Definitions

1. This term functions as a conjunction to connect elements in speech or writing, linking together words, phrases, or clauses to convey addition or agreement
2. It serves as a connective that combines similar concepts, uniting items in lists or clauses to show a relationship or continuity
3. This word acts as a coordinating conjunction that joins together words, phrases, or clauses to indicate addition or accompaniment

Etymology: The word "and" is one of the oldest in English, and its ancestor was not a conjunction at all. In Old English, "and" was "end" or "ond," and it could mean "against" or "in the direction of," in the same family as the Greek "anti" and Latin "ante," which both mean "opposite" or "in front of." Its earlier Germanic form, reconstructed as "*anþi," carried that sense of facing toward something, and the connecting use grew out of it gradually. Most of its relatives still show that older range. In Old Norse and several modern Scandinavian languages, a related word means "still" or "yet," as in Swedish "än" and Icelandic "enn." Danish "end" means "still, ever, even." The Dutch "en," German "und," and Yiddish "un" all keep the plain sense of joining, so "and" sits in a family where one branch stresses continuation and another stresses opposition.

Synonyms: also, plus

Antonyms: or