Neutral
Two options, one of which applies. What follows “either” must match what follows “or”: two nouns, or two verbs, not one of each.
Linking language · Correlative pairs
Correlative pairs connectors in English
These connectors tell the reader that two elements are joined as a pair, and the sentence needs both halves. Use a correlative pair when two things must be presented together: two options, two things both being ruled out, or two things both being true. They make a sentence feel deliberate — but only if both halves are built the same way.
5 connectorseach with where it goes and how it is punctuated
2 worked examplesthe relationship, explained
2 common mistakeswith the repair
4 exercisesrelationship first, then the word
Start here · what these words actually do
A connector joins two sentences and names the relationship between them
That is the whole job. The words are not decoration and they are not interchangeable: each one makes a claim about how the second sentence relates to the first, and the reader will read it that way whether you meant it or not. Here is what this family claims.
First sentence
The council can widen the road.
Either … or
Second sentence
The council can improve the bus network.
Two sentences saying the council has two choices. A correlative pair folds them into one and marks them as a pair: “The council can either widen the road or improve the bus network.” The word comes in two halves, and leaving one out breaks the sentence.
When you need it
Use a correlative pair when two things must be presented together: two options, two things both being ruled out, or two things both being true. They make a sentence feel deliberate — but only if both halves are built the same way.
Now you try · the relationship first
Before the word, the direction
Choosing the connector is the second decision. The first one is noticing where the next sentence is going.
Step 1 · the relationship
Which sentence comes next — and why that one?
The sentence you have: A city facing congestion has two realistic options.
Three sentences could follow. Only one of them two elements are joined as a pair, and the sentence needs both halves. Choose it before you think about any connector.
The connectors
Where each one goes, and how it is punctuated
They do not all behave the same way. Two connectors can mean the same thing and still be written differently — that is where most linking errors come from.
Formal
Rules both out. Never add a second negative: “neither … nor”, not “not neither … nor”. The verb agrees with the closer subject.
Neutral
Both apply. Takes a plural verb: “Both the council and the operator are responsible.”
Formal
Presents two possibilities without choosing. Use “whether”, not “if”, when the two options are stated.
Formal
Adds emphasis to the second half. If “not only” opens the sentence, the verb inverts: “Not only does it cost more, but it also takes longer.”
Watch one · then do three
See the relationship before you choose the word
The connector is not a decoration. It is a claim about how the two halves relate, and the reader will hold you to it.
Worked example · either … or
Two options, folded into one sentence.
either … or, The council can either widen the road network or invest in public transport, but its budget will not stretch to both.
Why this one: Both halves are verb phrases — “widen the road network” and “invest in public transport”. That symmetry is the rule: whatever follows “either” must match what follows “or”.
Worked example · neither … nor
Both ruled out at once.
neither … nor, Neither higher fines nor wider roads reduced congestion in the three cities studied.
Why this one: “Neither … nor” carries the negative on its own. Adding “did not” would make the sentence say the opposite.
What goes wrong
The two mistakes this family produces
The council can either widen the road or public transport.
The halves do not match: a verb phrase on one side, a noun on the other. The sentence loses its verb.
Repaired: The council can either widen the road or improve public transport.
Neither the council nor the operator did not accept responsibility.
“Neither … nor” is already negative. The extra “did not” cancels it and reverses the meaning.
Repaired: Neither the council nor the operator accepted responsibility.
Step 2 · the word
Choose the connector the sentence actually needs
Now that you can see the direction, pick the word that announces it. The first wrong answer gives you a hint and a second attempt, and every wrong option explains what it would have signalled instead. Nothing here is scored.
A city facing congestion can _______ widen its road network or invest in public transport, but rarely both.
_______ higher fines nor wider roads reduced congestion in the three cities studied.
The evidence suggests that _______ the employer and the employee gain from a well-designed remote arrangement.
The other families
Six more relationships to learn
Addition
The next idea goes the same way as the one before it.
6 connectors · 3 exercisesContrastThe next idea pushes against the one before it.
7 connectors · 3 exercisesCause and effectWhat comes next is the consequence of what came before.
6 connectors · 3 exercisesExamplesWhat comes next is one case of the claim you just made.
6 connectors · 3 exercisesConcessionYou accept the other side has a point, and you are about to answer it.
6 connectors · 3 exercisesComparisonThe next case behaves like the one before it.
5 connectors · 3 exercisesConclusionThis is the end of the whole text, not of a paragraph.
5 connectors · 3 exercisesConditionThe second idea only happens if the first one is true.
6 connectors · 3 exercises