Difference Between EITHER And NEITHER In English
🔆How To Use EITHER🔆
When we have two options, the word either means only one of the two (but not the other):
🔸You can have either chocolate ice cream or vanilla – which one would you like?
🔸Come visit on either Monday or Wednesday.
🔸If he’s not in his office, he’s either in the bathroom or out to lunch.
When someone offers you a choice between two things, and you don’t care which one is chosen, you can respond with “Either one.”
👱♀“Would you like coffee or tea?”
👱♂“Either one. Whatever everyone else is having.”
🧔“We have these two photos, which one do you want to use in the brochure?”
👩“Either one. They both look good to me.”
🔆How To Use NEITHER🔆
Not either and neither both mean NOT one thing, and NOT the other thing:
🔸I don’t speak either French or Spanish.
= I speak neither French nor Spanish.
🔸I don’t speak either of those languages.
= I speak neither of those languages.
As you can see in the example sentences, we use
▪not – either – or and neither – nor when naming the two items specifically
▪ not – either of and neither of when saying the two items together as a group.
Here are more examples:
🔸Neither my mother nor my father like to travel.
= Neither of my parents like to travel.
🔸Neither the first book nor the second book was very good.
= Neither of the books was very good.
= Neither book was very good.
When the two things are of the same type – as in two books – we can say neither of the books or neither book.
When someone offers you a choice between two things, and you dislike both or you don’t want the first thing or the second thing, you can respond with “Neither” or “Neither one.”
👱♀“Do you want a sandwich or a piece of pizza?”
👧“Neither. I’m actually not hungry at all.”
👱♂“Which of these two candidates do you think is better for the job?”
🧔“Neither one. We need somebody more experienced.”
🔆 NOT EITHER And NEITHER For “Also Not” 🔆
When somebody makes a negative statement (a statement with the word “not” in it), you can use not either / neither to say “also not.”
The structure of the reply is a little different, depending on which one you use:
👱♂“I can’t swim.”
👨“I can’t either.” = “Neither can I.” = “Me neither” (informal)
👱♀“Kavitha didn’t come to class today.”
🧔“Boby didn’t either.” = “Neither did Boby.”
🧕“We haven’t booked our tickets yet.”
👱♀“We haven’t either.” = “Neither have we.”
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