I
am a military man from Albania and I would be very grateful if you
could give me some explanation of how to use neither, either
and too. I find it very difficult.
Wojciech
Szczupa from Poland
writes:
Try
as I might, I couldn't find a clear answer to this question. How
should we say: neither of them is or neither of them are?
Which form would you use? Is one more proper than the other?
Either
indicates a choice between two alternatives. Neither combines
two negative ideas. Study the following examples of use:
Which
of these apples would you prefer? ~ I don't want either
of them, thanks.
You
can have either the 拢15 cotton top or the 拢17 cotton-and-polyester
blouse. You can't have both.
Neither
Richard nor Judy could come to the party.
I
want neither alcohol nor cigars for my birthday. Now that
I'm fifty I must live a healthier life.
Both
either and neither can function as pronouns,
determiners or adverbs.
When
they function as pronouns, they are often followed by of
+ noun phrase:
I've
known you for two years, but I haven't met either of your
two brothers yet. (OR: I've
known you for two years, but I haven't met either Francis
or Damien yet.)
Neither
of my two brothers survived the war. Neither Francis, nor
Damien.
Which
of these fur coats is yours? ~ Neither (of them). That
one's mine.
When
they function as adverbs, they behave as linking words which
can be tagged on in agreement at the end of a negative sentence. But
with neither, subject and verb are inverted, with either
this does not happen:
I
can't make the meeting on Tuesday. ~ No, neither can I
(OR: No, nor can I.)
I
can't make the meeting on Tuesday. ~ No, I can't either.
I
don't approve of sex before marriage. ~ No, neither do
I. (OR: No, nor do I.)
I
don't approve of sex before marriage. ~ No, I don't either.
I
don't go mountain climbing and I don't go mountain walking, either.
(OR: I don't go mountain climbing and neither do I go mountain
walking.
Too
can function as an adding adverb which is placed in agreement at
the end of an affirmative sentence. Compare the following:
I
like peaches and nectarines best. ~ Yeah, I like peaches and nectarines,
too.
I
don't like peaches or nectarines. ~ No, I don't like peaches or
nectarines, either.
When
either and neither function as determiners,
they are placed before the noun.
On
neither side of the road was there anybody to be seen.
Neither
player could raise his game. It was a very boring game of tennis
to watch.
The
sisters in the photograph were standing on either side
of their dad. (OR: ...on each side..., OR: ...on both sides....)
Neither
of them is
or neither of them are?
I don't
think there is a clear answer, Wojciech. Although this of-pronoun
is normally considered singular, it is normally followed by plural
nouns or pronouns. Thus, the boundary between singular and plural
is blurred and effectively it can go with either a singular or plural
verb form. Strictly speaking, it should be singular, but you will
hear both formulations with no clear preference for one or the other:
Neither
of them are coming. They both have to work next weekend.
Neither
of them is coming. They both have to work next weekend.
Which
of these umbrellas is yours? ~ Neither of them are. That
one's mine.
Which
of these umbrellas is yours? ~ Neither is. That's mine.
There
is similar confusion, I think, when neither...nor are employed
as conjunctions, meaning not one and not the other. Consider
the following:
Neither
Francoise nor Helmut likes to eat English breakfasts, even at
weekends.
Neither
Franciose nor Helmut like to eat English breakfasts, even at weekends
