top of page

B1 : English Grammar Both, Either, Neither 

This page is dedicated to helping you understand how to use both, either, & neither. 

Neither, neither … nor and not … either

Neither as a determiner

Neither allows us to make a negative statement about two people or things at the same time. Neither goes before singular countable nouns. We use it to say ‘not either’ in relation to two things. Neither can be pronounced /ˈnaɪðÉ™(r)/ or /ˈni:ðÉ™(r)/.

Neither parent came to meet the teacher. (The mother didn’t come and the father didn’t come.)

Neither dress fitted her. (There were two dresses and not one of them fitted her.)

We use neither of before pronouns and plural countable nouns which have a determiner (my, his, the) before them:

Neither of us went to the concert.

Neither of the birthday cards was suitable.

Spoken English:

In formal styles, we use neither of with a singular verb when it is the subject. However, in informal speaking, people often use plural verbs:

Neither of my best friends was around.

Neither of them were interested in going to university.

In speaking, we can use neither on its own in replies when we are referring to two things that have already been mentioned:

A:

Mike, which would you prefer, tea or coffee?

B:

Neither thanks. I’ve just had a coffee.

Neither … nor

We can use neither as a conjunction with nor. It connects two or more negative alternatives. This can sound formal in speaking:

Neither Brian nor his wife mentioned anything about moving house. (Brian didn’t mention that they were moving house and his wife didn’t mention that they were moving house.)

Neither Italy nor France got to the quarter finals last year.

The less formal alternative is to use and … not … either:

Italy didn’t get to the quarter finals last year and France didn’t either.

See also:

Not with neither and nor

When a clause with neither or nor is used after a negative clause, we invert the subject and the verb after neither and nor:

He hadn’t done any homework, neither had he brought any of his books to class.

We didn’t get to see the castle, nor did we see the cathedral.

See also:

Neither do I, Nor can she

We use neither and nor + auxiliary/modal verb + subject to mean ‘also not’:

A:

I hate snakes. I can’t even look at a picture of a snake.

B:

Neither can I.

Not: I can’t also.

A:

Jacqueline doesn’t drive.

B:

Nor does Gina.

Not: Gina doesn’t also.

See also:

Not … either

We can use not … either to mean ‘also not’, but we do not change the word order of the auxiliary or modal verb and subject:

A:

I haven’t ever tasted caviar.

B:

I haven’t either. (or Neither have I./Nor have I.)

A:

I didn’t see Lesley at the concert.

B:

I didn’t either. (or Neither did I./Nor did I.)

In informal speaking, we often say me neither:

A:

I can’t smell anything.

B:

Me neither. (or I can’t either.)

Neither: typical errors

  • We use neither, not none, when we are talking about two people or things:

Books and television are different. Neither of them should replace the other.

Not: None of them …

  • We don’t normally use both (of) + not to make a negative statement about two people or things:

Neither of these shirts is/are dry yet.

Not: Both of these shirts aren’t dry yet.

  • Take care to spell neither correctly: not ‘niether’ or ‘neighter’.

​

​

External Link : https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/grammar/british-grammar/neither-neither-nor-and-not-either_2

Both, Either, and Neither

You can use both, either, and neither to talk about two things or people.[1]

​

Both

Both is used to talk about two things. You can use it with both nouns and adjectives.

Both this and that

For example:

  • I like both ice cream and pizza.

  • She is both pretty and tall.

  • They have both a car and a motorcycle.

Both (of) + Determiner + Plural Noun

You can also use determiners (such as possessive adjectives) with “both”.

For example:

  • Both of my sisters are older than me.

  • Both of the schools have be rivals for a long time.

  • Both of the kids have been friends for a long time.

Both of + Object Pronoun

You can also use object pronouns (such as us) with “both”.

For example:

  • They invited both of us to the party.

Verb + Object Pronoun + Both

For example:

  • I hope that the university accepts us both.

Either

The word “either” is used to talk about one of two things.

Either this and that

For example:

  • You can have either a chocolate cake or ice cream.

  • Either John or Sam is going to pick us up.

  • You can choose either a car or a motorcycle.

Neither

Neither is used to talk about not this thing and not the other thing. This is the negative form of “both”.

Neither this nor that

For example:

  • I want neither cake nor ice cream.

  • Neither Sam nor Jake helped us.

  • I neither sing nor dance.

Neither + Singular Noun

For example:

  • Neither school participated in the competition.

  • Neither team had an advantage.

Neither of + Pronoun

For example:

  • Neither of us want to swim.

  • Neither of them wanted to help.

Neither vs. Either

You can replace “neither” with “either” if you change the positive verb in the “neither” phrase with a negative verb.

For example:

  • I have neither friends nor family.

  • I don’t have either friends or family.

​

​

External Link : https://englishacademy101.com/both-either-and-neither/

B1 - English Grammar Quizzes - Both, Either, & Neither 

Other English Grammar Tasks

Section Title

This is a Paragraph. Click on "Edit Text" or double click on the text box to start editing the content and make sure to add any relevant details or information that you want to share with your visitors.

Slide Title

This is a Paragraph. Click on "Edit Text" or double click on the text box to start editing the content.

bottom of page