Advanced Grammar – Correlative Conjunctions

We have already looked at Coordinating Conjunctions. Now we’ll continue with Correlative Conjunctions.

These conjunctions connect equal sentence elements together (like two nouns) and are always composed by two words.

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You need to be careful with verb agreements and pronoun agreements.

When do we use each connector? Examples.

Please read the following examples for the most popular Correlating Conjunctions.

Both… And – used before two words or phrases connected with and to stress that each is included.
Example: “Both husband and wife loved going to the cinema”

Either… Or – used with or to indicate choices or possibilities.
Example: “What is her name? It’s either Annita or Annalisa”

Neither… Nor – used with nor to indicate two or more people, things, actions, etc., about which something is not true.
Example: “I’m vegan, I eat neither dairy nor eggs”

Whether… Or – used to indicate choices or possibilities.
Example: “Andrew wasn’t sure whether to go on holiday or stay at home”

Not only… But also – used to say that both of two related statements are true.
Example: “It snowed not only in Barcelona, but also in neighbouring cities”

As… As – used to make comparisons.
Example: “James studied as hard as you did”
You now understand two of the four types of Sentence Connectors.

As the poet Anatole France, said: “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe”. What correlative conjunction does he use?

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