tačiau
However with Tačiau
Tačiau means but or however. It works like bet but sounds a little more formal: Norėjau ateiti, tačiau susirgau.
How It Works
1. Joining two clauses. Put a comma before tačiau:
- Norėjau ateiti, tačiau susirgau. (I wanted to come, but I got sick.)
- Egzaminas buvo sunkus, tačiau visi jį išlaikė. (The exam was hard, but everyone passed it.)
2. Joining two words. Tačiau can also link two describing words: brangus, tačiau geras telefonas (an expensive but good phone), butas nedidelis, tačiau jaukus (the flat is small but cosy). The comma stays.
3. Starting a sentence. Tačiau often opens a new sentence that turns the story around: Planas atrodė paprastas. Tačiau viskas pasisuko kitaip. It is a conjunction, not an inserted word, so it does not itself require a following comma.
4. Tačiau, bet and o. Tačiau and bet mean the same thing, and bet is more common in everyday talk. Use only one of them at a time. For a simple side-by-side comparison with no surprise, Lithuanian prefers o: Aš dirbu, o jis ilsisi (I am working, and he is resting).
5. Related words. Vis dėlto (nevertheless) insists more strongly. A nors clause (although) marks a concessive clause, which can come first or second: Nors egzaminas buvo sunkus, visi jį išlaikė. English however can also mean no matter how. For that meaning, Lithuanian uses kad ir kaip.
Examples (6)
- Norėjau ateiti, tačiau susirgau.
I wanted to come, but I got sick.
Tačiau joins two clauses, with a comma before it.
- Egzaminas buvo sunkus, tačiau visi jį išlaikė.
The exam was hard, but everyone passed it.
The second clause goes against what the first one leads you to expect.
- Butas nedidelis, tačiau labai jaukus.
The flat is small, but very cosy.
In the present, yra can be left out.
- Tai brangus, tačiau geras telefonas.
It is an expensive but good phone.
Here tačiau joins two adjectives before one noun.
- Planas atrodė paprastas. Tačiau viskas pasisuko kitaip.
The plan looked simple. However, everything turned out differently.
At the start of a sentence, tačiau has no comma after it.
- Galite ateiti, tačiau ne per anksti.
You can come, but not too early.
Tačiau adds a limit to what was just allowed.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the comma before tačiau.
Norėjau ateiti tačiau susirgau.Norėjau ateiti, tačiau susirgau.When tačiau joins two parts of the same sentence, a comma always comes before it.
Putting a comma after tačiau at the start of a sentence, as with English however.
Tačiau, viskas pasisuko kitaip.Tačiau viskas pasisuko kitaip.Tačiau is a conjunction. It does not need the introductory comma that English however often takes.
Using bet and tačiau together.
Norėjau ateiti, bet tačiau susirgau.Norėjau ateiti, tačiau susirgau.Bet and tačiau mean the same thing, so one of them is enough.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Tačiau expresses an unexpected contrast in a more formal connective.
Related Patterns
- oContrast with O
O compares two things side by side, without the surprise that tačiau brings.
Level 2 - vis dėlto / vis tiekNevertheless and Anyway
Vis dėlto insists on the contrast even more strongly.
Level 4 - norsAlthough with Nors
A nors clause marks a circumstance that does not prevent the main event; it can come first or second.
Level 3 - todėlSo and That Is Why with Todėl
Todėl joins clauses by result, where tačiau joins them by contrast.
Level 3 - kad ir kas / kad ir kaipWhatever and However with Kad Ir
Expresses the other English meaning of however: no matter how.
Level 5
Words in This Pattern
Practice tačiau in Bubblegum
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