Can I use "but" at the beginning of a sentence?

For a while, using but to start a sentence was largely frowned upon. But, I think it is possible to use but at the beginning of a sentence, as long as it isn't overused.

Am I right?

Solution 1:

But for conditional usage, I would still tend to frown upon it. But, used sparingly, it can be effective in emphasizing the thought or action behind the "but".

Solution 2:

It is not ‘grammatically incorrect’ and it is not restricted to informal writing. When but occurs at the beginning of a sentence it is not to be construed as a conjunction, but as a conjunct. Conjuncts are adverbs which, in the words of ‘The Cambridge Guide to English Usage’,

. . . play a cohesive role between separate sentences, or clauses. They . . . express logical relationships such as addition, contrast and causation.

Solution 3:

In a narrative I can see no reason not to use it, however it is still wrong in most aspects of written English.

Seeing a 'but' at the start of a sentence would make me want to see what on earth had come before...

Solution 4:

I used to think it wrong to start a sentence with But. My English teacher told us not to say or write that way, though he admitted that in reality many did use that way.

I am very familiar with Longman Contemporary English Dictionary. In it, four parts of speech are given if we search for but. They are conjunction, preposition, adverb and noun. Yet when we want to start a sentence with but, we use its conjunction meaning. That is grammatically incorrect.

Barrie England wrote it was a conjunct (adverb) and referred to The Cambridge Guide to English Usage. If so, that well explains.

However, I see such usage is not in many dictionaries. That means it is not universally accepted. As a non-native English user, I will avoid using it this way.