Neither or Either?

"Either" and "neither" are both singular adjectives meaning "one or the other of two." "Neither" of course means "not the first one and not the second one."

In formal writing, we usually use a singular verb because "either" and "neither" signal that one of the following nouns is the subject, but not both:

Either Bill or Bob is going to the conference. (One or the other is going, but not both.)
Neither Joan nor Jane likes sushi. (= Joan doesn't like sushi. Jane doesn't like sushi either!)

Notice that we say "either...or" and "neither...nor." In informal English, most people would say "Neither Joan OR Jane LIKE sushi." That's all right in conversation, but in formal documents you should prefer the formal usage.

Of course we have a confusing exception to this rule. You can use a plural verb if you have a plural noun next to the verb:
Either Joan or the Kennedys are going to the conference.

But put the singular noun closer to the verb, and it goes back to singular!
Either the Kennedys or Joan is going to the conference.

And it's the same with "neither":
Neither Jane nor her brothers like sushi.
Neither her brothers nor Jane likes sushi.

Of course the verb will be plural if both nouns are plural:
Either the Smiths or the Robinsons are meeting us at the station.
Neither the Canadians nor the Americans are interested in this problem.

Match the sentence halves to make a complete sentence.

Both Peter Not only do we want to go Either Jack will have to work more hours That story was Students who do well not only study hard In the end he had to choose Sometimes it is I would love to take

but we have enough money. neither true nor realistic. not only wise to listen to your parents but also interesting. and I are coming next week. either his career or his hobby. both my laptop and my cell phone on holiday. but also use their instincts if they do not know the answer. or we will have to hire somebody new.

Combine the following sentences into one sentence using paired conjunctions: both ... and; not only ... but also; either ... or; neither ... nor

We could fly. We could go by train.
She will have to study hard. She will have to concentrate to do well on the exam.
Jack is not here. Tom is in another city.
The speaker will not confirm the story. The speaker will not deny the story.
Pneumonia is a dangerous disease. Small pox is a dangerous illness.
Fred loves traveling. Jane wants to go around the world.
It might rain tomorrow. It might snow tomorrow.
Playing tennis is good for your heart. Jogging is good for your health.

To the teacher: Read the following aloud and have students use paired conjunctions to respond. Example: You know Peter. Do you know Bill? Student: I know both Peter and Jack.
You like tennis. Do you like golf?
You don't know Jane. Do you know Jack?
You are studying Math. Are you studying English?
You need to work on the weekend. Do you need to work in the evening?
You don't eat fish. Do you eat beef?
I know your country has good universities. Does England have good universities?
He collects money. Does he collect stamps?
They haven't visited Rome. Have they visited Paris?

Topics: Go to future

Essential idioms 15:

How i changed my life?

SIMPLE PAST
PAST CONTINOUS
PAST PERFECT
PAST PERFECT CONTINOUS

Some simple tips for improving your memory:

1)When you need to remember something important, find a way to create an image about it in your mind that is very funny or bizarre. Your brain easily remembers things that are unusual, or funny or scary, while it easily forgets things that don’t stand out in any way.

2)Make written lists of what you need to do or to remember. This will free up your brain to remember other things that are more important.

3)Be sure to get enough sleep. Your brain uses its sleeping hours to put new information into long term memory storage.

4)To remember a long string of letters or numbers such as a telephone number, break the information up into small chunks of two or three numbers or letters at a time, such as 555 – 216 - 9827. Most people will find it very hard to remember 9 or 10 numbers in a row, but they can easily remember two or three numbers in a row.

5)When you need to learn and remember something, give yourself time to review the same material the next day for a few minutes and then a week later for a few minutes. Repetition and review will help your brain remember the material better.

6)When you are studying a lot of material, schedule a break every forty minutes to get up and walk and do something completely different. When you sit down to study again, your brain will be more refreshed and better able to pay attention.

7)When you are trying to study something, give yourself plenty of time to understand it and review it several times. Cramming at the last minute doesn’t work very well.

8)Give your brain a good workout by practicing memorization as a fun exercise. Every few days, pick a new poem or favorite passage to memorize, and then write it out or speak it out loud.

9)Get a basic children’s arithmetic book with simple number exercises such as 1 + 8 = ___ or 5 X 3 = ___ and commit to doing fifty such calculations every day as quickly as you can. Research has shown that quickly doing very simple arithmetic problems activates a lot of your brain.

10)Reduce the stress in your life by simplifying your schedule, delegating more tasks to others, getting regular physical exercise and practicing daily meditation. Long term stress can interfere with your ability to concentrate and to think clearly, and with your ability to form memories or to recall them later.

11)Get yourself a study buddy or a conversation partner, and try teach the other person what you are learning. This is a good way to signal your brain that what you are learning is important and you will remember more.

12)Learn how to create and use mind maps to organize your information. Many people can learn better by using mind maps than by writing out notes the traditional way.

13)Make up little rhymes and songs to help you remember important information. It's often a lot easier to remember facts that have been made into a song or a rhyme, such as "Thirty days hath September, April, June and November".

14)Your brain will remember things a lot better if you are breathing deeply in a relaxed way. Instead of just breathing shallowly from the upper part of your chest, learn to breathe smoothly from your belly, using your diaphragm muscle to move the air in and out.

15)Include a lot of berries in your diet that have dark red and blue colored skins. In an experiment where aging rats were fed a diet high in blueberries, their memory losses reversed and they grew new brain cells.

16)When you need to remember several unrelated items, use the first letter of each word and try to make a word out of it that will help you remember them. For example, if you need to buy bread, milk, apples, ink and bananas, you could use the first letter of each word to create the word "BAMBI" to jog your memory.

17)Focus on doing one task at a time and concentrating on one topic at a time. When you try to do too many things at once, your mind will be distracted and it will be difficult to perform every task as well as you need to, and difficult to remember what you need to remember.

18)Your brain is about 85 % water, so it is easily dehydrated. Try to avoid drinking too much coffee and too many pop drinks and instead, give your brain the hydration it craves by drinking half a fluid ounce of water for every pound of your body weight each day.

Topics: Spending Money