But

A conjunction simply begging to be complicated — even slightly. Bonus points are on offer for “notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing”.

In the glorious words of George R. R. Martin, “everything before the word but is always horseshit”.

Plain English Anatomy™ Noun | Verb | Adjective | Adverb | Preposition | Conjunction | Latin | Germany | Flannel | Legal triplicate | Nominalisation | Murder your darlings