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And

And is a coordinating conjunction. We use and to connect two words, phrases, clauses or prefixes together:

  • Televisions and computers are dominating our daily life. (noun + noun)
  • I have to shower and change. (verb + verb)
  • The photos are black and white. (adjective + adjective)
  • My best friend and my father’s father both come from Wales. (phrase + phrase)
  • She got to the door and put the key in the latch. (clause + clause)
  • The houses were a mix of pre- and post-war build. (prefix + prefix)
See also
  • And, but, either … or, etc. (coordinating conjunctions)

Go and, come and​

Spoken English:

In informal speaking we often use and after go and come before verbs like ask, buy, check, collect, do, find, get:

  • Why don’t you go and ask her?
  • I need to go and buy myself some running shoes.
  • Can you come and do the washing up?
  • She should go and find another job.

In informal American English speaking, we often leave out and:

  • Dad will come collect you on the way back from work.
  • I was expecting him to go get the keys.

Fixed expressions with and​

We often use and in common fixed expressions. The order of the words cannot change: peace and quiet, pick and choose, come and go, knife and fork, black and white.

And + adjective​

Spoken English:

In informal speaking, when we want to emphasise something positive, we often use and after nice or lovely with another adjective:

  • The kitchen’s looking nice and clean.
  • You’re lovely and tanned.

And in numbers​

When we speak or write numbers, we use and to separate hundred, thousand, million from numbers smaller than a hundred:

  • 625: six hundred and twenty-five
  • 1,000,410: one million, four hundred and ten
  • 6,492: six thousand, four hundred and ninety-two
  • 101: one hundred and one

We also use and between whole numbers and fractions:

  • 23½: twenty three and a half