neither

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /ˈnaɪ.ðə/, /ˈniː.ðə/, US /ˈniː.ðɚ/, /ˈnaɪ.ðɚ/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English neither, earlier naither and nauther,^[2][3] inherited from Old English nāwþer,^[3][4][5] a contraction of nāhwæþer (“not of two”),^[3][4] from nā (“no”) and hwæþer (“which of two”),^[3][4] the source of whether.^[4][5] The vowel and spelling were altered about 1200 after either.^[3][4][5] Old High German neweder “neither” is formed in the same way.^[4] See also nor, a contraction of the older form.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

As a pronoun, not either of two: late Old English, before 899, in Alfred's translation of Boethius.^[4][3] The Middle English form næther is from about 1150, and neither from about 1200.^[4]

Semantic evolution

It was paired with ne at first, and with nor from about 1300.^[3][6] Neither here nor there is from the 14th century.^[6] As an adjective, “not either”, it is from the mid-14th century.^[3] “Nor, also not”, as in nor I neither, is from 1462,^[6] and “not at all, in no case” from the 1550s.^[3] Use with another negative, as in I don't know neither, is from 1470–85 and is now nonstandard.^[6][7]

Timeline

• before 899 – pronoun, not either.^[4]
• c. 1200 – the spelling neither.^[4][3]
• c. 1300 – neither … nor.^[3]
• mid-14th century – adjective.^[3]
• 1462 – “nor, also not”.^[6]

Modern meaning

Determiner

1. Not one or the other of two: neither side won.

Pronoun

1. Not either one: neither of them came.

Conjunction

1. Not either; used with nor: neither here nor there.
2. Also not: if you won't go, neither will I.

Adverb

1. (nonstandard) Either, after a negative: I don't like it neither.

Related words

• either
• nor
• whether
• no

Usage notes

Traditional grammar says neither as a pronoun takes a singular verb (neither is ready), though a plural verb is common in speech, and that neither … nor links only two alternatives.^[7][6] The Cambridge pronouncing dictionary gives /ˈnaɪ-/ first for British English and /ˈniː-/ first for American.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
5. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin