Prepositions

Neither, neither … nor and not … either

Grammar > Words, sentences and clauses > Negation > Neither, neither … nor and not … either

from English Grammar Today

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 /ˈnaɪðə(r)/ or /ˈni:ðə(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 … either

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:

·         Conjunctions

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:

·         So am I, so do I, Neither do I

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’

Adverbs of frequency :

Always
Usually
Often
Sometimes
Seldom/rarely
Never

• They often go out for dinner.
• I never go to cinema. I don't like it.
• I don't mind going to the theater. I sometimes go with my husband.
• Never say never. (proverb)
• She likes dancing. She always goes to the night club to dance.
• They usually quarrel. I rarely see them in good terms with each other.

Other adverbs of frequency include:

• occasionally
• frequently

Position of adverbs of frequency

• Generally speaking adverbs of frequency come before the main verb except the main verb "to be":
• I sometimes visit my uncle.
• We have often seen him pass by the house.
• They are seldom at work.
• Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can also go at the beginning or end of a sentence:
• Sometimes they visit him.
• I miss him occasionally.
• Rarely and seldom can also go at the end of a sentence (often with "very"):
• We see them rarely.
• John eats meat very seldom.

Adverbs of frequency include (form most often to least often):

1	always
2	usually
3	often
4	sometimes/occasionally
5	seldom/rarely
6	never

Do the exercises below on adverbs of frequency and click on the button to check your answers.

(Before doing the exercise you may want to read the lesson on adverbs of frequency and adverbs)

Put the following adverbs of frequency in the correct order from the most often to the least often (1-6):

3	often
2	usually
1	always
6	never
5	seldom/rarely
4	sometimes

Rewrite the complete sentence using the adverb of frequency in brackets in its correct position.

1. They often go to the movies. (often)
2. She rarely listens to classical music. (rarely)
3. He sometimes reads the local newspaper. (sometimes)
4. Sara neversmiles. (never)
5. She always complains about her husband. (always)
6. I drink sometimes coffee. (sometimes)
7. Frank often is ill. (often)
8. He usually feels terrible (usually)
9. I always go jogging in the morning. (always)
10. She never helps her daughter with her homework. (never)
11. We always watch television in the evening. (always)
12. I never smoke. (never)
13. I seldom eat meat. (seldom)
14. I always vegetables and fruits. (always)

Vocabulary: Base and Strong Adjectives

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Base adjectives versus strong adjectives

Base adjectives

Base adjectives are normal adjectives that don't have the idea of 'very'

Strong adjectives

Strong adjectives, however, are extreme adjectives that have the idea of 'very'

Examples

• gorgeous = very beautiful
• huge = very big

Base Adjectives	Strong Adjectives
beautiful	gorgeous
ugly	awful
dirty	filthy
good	superb, great, fantastic
bad	terrible
happy	thrilled
angry	furious
hungry	starving
tired	exhausted
funny	hilarious
big	huge, enormous
small	tiny
fat	obese
scared	terrified
cold	freezing
hot	boiling

The use of very, absolutely and really with base and strong adjectives

Very, absolutely and really are used differently according whether the adjective is a base or a strong one:

	very	absolutely	really
Base adjectives
Strong adjectives

Examples:

• He was very happy; he was absolutely thrilled.
• He was really happy/thrilled.

Do the exercise below on the vocabulary related to base and strong adjectives (used with very and absolutely) and click on the button to check your answers.

Choose the right words:

1. absolutely perfect
2. absolutely incredible
3. very dirty
4. absolutely enormous
5. very angry
6. absolutely fantastic
7. absolutelyfurious
8. absolutely hilarious
9. absolutely terrified
10. very beautiful

c) Use EITHER ……. OR …… .

1.      John has your book, or Mary has your book. Is that right?

Yes, either John or Mary has my book.  

2.      You’re going to give your friend a book for her birthday, or you’re going to give her

a pen. Is that right?

               ………………………………………………………………………………….

3.      Your sister will meet you at the airport, or your brother will meet you there. Right?

………………………………………………………………………………….

4.      They can go swimming, or they can play tennis. Is that right?

………………………………………………………………………………….

5.      You’re going to vote for Mr. Smith, or you’re going to vote for Mr. Jones. Right?

………………………………………………………………………………….

6.      You’ll go to New Orleans for your vacation, or you’ll go to Miami. Right?

………………………………………………………………………………….

d) Use NEITHER ……. NOR …… .

1.      He doesn’t like coffee. Does he like tea?

No, he likes neither coffee  nor tea. 

2.      Her husband doesn’t speak English. Do her children speak English?

…………………………………………………………………………………..

3.      The students aren’t wide awake today. Is the reacher wide awake today?

…………………………………………………………………………………..

4.      They don’t have a refrigerator for their new apartment. Do they have a stove?

…………………………………………………………………………………..

5.      She doesn’t enjoy hunting. Does she enjoy fishing?

………………………………………………………………………………….

6.      The result wasn’t good. Was the result bad?

………………………………………………………………………………….