NEITHER


Meaning of NEITHER in English

/ ˈnaɪðə(r); NAmE ; ˈniːðə(r)/ determiner , pronoun , adverb

■ determiner , pronoun

not one nor the other of two things or people :

Neither answer is correct.

Neither of them has / have a car.

They produced two reports, neither of which contained any useful suggestions.

'Which do you like?' 'Neither. I think they're both ugly.'

■ adverb

1.

used to show that a negative statement is also true of sb/sth else :

He didn't remember and neither did I.

I hadn't been to New York before and neither had Jane .

'I can't understand a word of it.' ' Neither can I .'

( informal )

'I don't know.' ' Me neither .'

2.

neither ... nor ... used to show that a negative statement is true of two things :

I neither knew nor cared what had happened to him.

Their house is neither big nor small.

Neither the TV nor the video actually work / works.

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GRAMMAR

neither / either

After neither and either you use a singular verb:

Neither candidate was selected for the job.

Neither of and either of are followed by a plural noun or pronoun and a singular or plural verb. A plural verb is more informal:

Neither of my parents speaks / speak a foreign language.

When neither... nor... or either... or... are used with two singular nouns, the verb can be singular or plural. A plural verb is more informal.

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WORD ORIGIN

Middle English : alteration (by association with either ) of Old English nawther , contraction of nāhwæther (from nā no + hwæther whether ).

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.