Both, either, neither – quantifiers

Exercise 1

Choose the correct forms of both, either, neither to complete the sentences.

Exercises: 1 2 3

Both, either, neither – Grammar chart

Quantifiers – both, either, neither

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We use both, either and neither to talk about two things or people. Both= A and B (the two things or people) Either= A or B (one thing/person or the other thing/person) Neither= not A and not B (zero out of two things or people)

Both / either / neither + noun

I like both cars .
You can park on either side of the street.
Neither parent was at the meeting.

Note that we use both + plural noun and either/neither + singular noun.

Both (of) / either of / neither of

We can use both (of) / either of / neither of + the/these/my/her/Peter’s/etc. + noun

Both (of) your parents are really nice.
Either of those two dates is perfect for the wedding. (=We can choose one or the other)
Neither of the tennis players had a great game.

Note that we don’t need of after both.

Both of your parents are really nice. = Both your parents are really nice.

We can use both of / either of / neither of + us/you/them

Both them did very well in the exam.
Both of them did very well in the exam.
Can either of you give me a coin for the vending machine?
Neither of us knows the truth.

Both / either / neither (without a noun)

We can use both/either/neither alone, without a noun.

A: Do you speak French or Spanish? B: I speak both .
A: Do you want tea or coffee? B: Either . I don’t mind.
A: Which car do you prefer? B: Neither . I think both of them are horrible.

Both … and …/ either … or … / neither … nor …

We can say both … and …/ either … or … / neither … nor … to mention the two things or people that we are talking about.

Remember this!

Use either and neither with a singular verb.

(not) either= neither.

The word neither is negative, so we use it with positive verbs.

Neither John nor Paula can’t come.
Neither John nor Paula can come.

We also use the word both with positive verbs. We can only use either with negative verbs.

I did n’t like both/neither of the pictures.
I did n’t like either of the pictures.

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