Uses of Both as various parts of speech

In this article, we will see:

• the various ways ‘both’ can function in a sentence.
• the various sentence structures/patterns involving ‘both’
• various use cases of ‘both’, including some dos and don’ts.

Both as various parts of speech

‘Both’ can function as:

• a pronoun,
• an adjective or
• a conjunction.

As a pronoun, or as an adjective ‘Both’ means the one as well as the other. As a conjunction ‘Both’ means alike or equally.

Both of us were going to play for the national team. (both – pronoun)
Both matches have been cancelled. (both – adjective; matches - noun)
She is both pretty and confident. (both … and – conjunction)

Both as a Pronoun

As a pronoun, or as an adjective ‘Both’ means the one as well as the other. So, it is basically used in place of the phrase ‘the two’.

As a pronoun, ‘both’ can work as a subject or as an object, and can have various positions in a sentence. Have a look at the examples given below.

Both as the subject

Both fell at the same time. (both – pronoun, working as a subject)

Both of them are playing squash. (both followed by ‘of’ – pronoun, working as a subject)

Students often commit word-order errors when using ‘both’ as a pronoun, when it is used after the subject of the sentence.

We always use ‘both’:

• before the main verb, and after the modal verb if there is any.
  
  The brothers both played well. (pronoun both used after noun or pronoun subject, and before the main verb)
  
  They bought both a book. (incorrect)
  They both bought a book. (correct; ‘both’ used before the main verb bought)
  
  We can both play squash. (pronoun both used after a modal verb)
  
  We both can study together. (incorrect)
  We can both study together. (correct; ‘both’ used after the modal verb can and before the main verb ‘study’)

• after an auxiliary verb or the first auxiliary verb, if there are more than one verbs in a sentence.
  
  They are both going to run away. (correct; are – auxiliary verb; going – main verb)
  They have both been apprehended. (correct; have – auxiliary verb; been – another auxiliary verb; apprehended – main verb)

Both as the object

Which candy do you like? I like both.

We like them both. (pronoun both used after main verb and pronoun object)

Both of

Pattern 1

We can use ‘both of’ in the following pattern:

Both + of + determiner + noun

Do not forget to add the determiner (the, my, this etc.), or else the sentence will be deemed incorrect.

Both of scientists claimed that they have discovered a new element. (incorrect – determiner missing)
Both of the scientists claimed that they have discovered a new element. (correct; the - determiner; scientists - noun)
Both scientists claimed that they have discovered a new element. (correct; scientists - noun)

Pattern 2

We can also use ‘both of’ in the following pattern:

Both + of + plural pronoun

Both of us are leaving the town.
Did the guards capture both of them?

Both as an Adjective

As an adjective/determiner, ‘both’ is followed by a noun, but not by a pronoun.

Both children are playing outside. (both – adjective; children - noun)

Both as a Conjunction

As a conjunction, ‘both’ is always used with ‘and’. They are examples of correlative conjunctions, just as “either…or” and “not only…but also”.

In the examples below, “both…and” is used as a conjunction relating two nouns, two adjectives, and two verbs, respectively.

Both Mragank and Aanya B will come to the party. (joining two nouns - Mragank, Aanya)
The flight was both late and turbulent. (joining two adjectives - late, turbulent)
He both killed and roasted the poor chicken. (joining two verbs - killed, roasted)

Uses of Both

We often use ‘both’ in following patterns:

Use 1

Pattern 1: Both + (the, my, your, etc.) + plural countable noun

Both players were hurt in the knee. (players - plural countable noun)

Both (of) my trainees will definitely qualify for the Olympics. (trainees - plural countable noun)

Use 2

Pattern 2: Both + these, those + plural countable noun

Both these kids need extra care. (kids - plural countable noun)

Use 3

We do not use ’both’ in negative sentences, as it makes the sentence ambiguous. We rather use ’neither’ or ‘either’. 

Both of my children do not want to study today. (incorrect, as meaning is ambiguous – one child out of the two do not want to study, or two children do not want to study?)
Neither of my two children want to study today. (correct; it means two children do not want to study).

There is not a major difference in percentages for both students, when it comes to science. (incorrect)
There is not a major difference in percentages for either student, when it comes to science. (correct)

Extra Books and Tools

If you prefer to learn via books, or want some good English Grammar books for reference purposes, you may read this article which enlists some of the books recommended by us.