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Peaceblinkfriend Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

Ending with 'however' - good style?

Would it be considered good style to end a sentence with 'however' ? 

For instance, 'Emma cannot go with us to the library. Her sister will be coming to the meeting however.' The type of text is email. 

Thanks

PBF
  

Top answer

Fine, but be sure to precede it with a comma.

— Mister Micawber

  • Fine, but be sure to precede it with a comma.
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16 Answers
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Fine, but be sure to precede it with a comma.
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Cool. 'Her sister will be coming to the meeting, however.'  

Just wondering, would ending a sentence in formal contexts be just as fine as well?  

Thank you Mister Micawber.

PBF
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However is listed in the dictionary as a conjunction or an adverb.
Sentences never end in a conjunction, since the function of a conjunction is to logically link two or more sentences, clauses or phrases. If "however" can be replaced with "but", and keep the intended meaning, then it should not be placed at the end of a sentence.
However placed at the end of a sentence reads as an after
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Her sister will be coming to the meeting, however.'

Just wondering, would ending a sentence in formal contexts be just as fine as well?
Yes, that is fine.
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I disagree with this usage of however:
"Emma can't come to the library, however (but) her sister will be attending the meeting."

"However" and "but" have similar meanings, but they are not interchangeable. I would change the sentence to this:
Emma can't come to the library; however, her sister will be attending the meeting.
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AnonymousEmma can't come to the library; however, her sister will be attending the meeting.
This is indeed the recommendation of many style manuals, but in practice the advice is probably more often disregarded than observed.
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My dictionary does not list 'however' as a conjunction.
Merriam Webster does, but defines it very narrowly, as meaning 'in whatever manner or way'.
eg Do it however you can. (= Do it in whatever way you can.)

This thread focuses on
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If you surf the web a little, you'll see that two similar terms are in use for words like however, moreover, therefore, and nevertheless— conjunctive adverb and adverbial conjunction.

CJ
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So, let's be clear, please.
Consider eg The telephone rang, however nobody answered it.
Is it your position that this will be considered correct in a English exam?

Clive
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