T he C or r el at ive C onj unct i on

1 T h e C o r r e l a t i v e C o n j u n c t i o n Recognize a correlative conjunction when you see one. Either .. or, neither .. nor, and not only .. but also are all correlative conjunctions. They connect two equal grammatical items. If, for example, a noun follows either, then a noun will also follow or. Read these examples: I n th e fa ll, P hi ll ip w ill either s tar t c l as s es a t the c omm un it y c olle ge a s h is mo th e r wis he s or join the Navy, his father s hope. Neit her the po t ted ivy on th e c ou nt er nor th e d irt y d ish es i n th e sin k h ave enj oye d w at er on th eir surf ac es for th e p as t w ee k.

2 Profe ss or W il so n not only req uire s a 3, 000-wor d res earc h ess ay but also a ss ig ns a 500-w ord re ac t i on p ap er ever y s in gl e wee k. When you use correlative conjunctions, be careful about verb agreement. If you connect two subjects with a correlative conjunction , the second one must agree with the verb that follows. Ever y si ng le ev en ing eit her th e h orne d owl or th e squ ab bli ng cats wake S am an th a w it h t h eir rac k e t. Ever y si ng le ev en ing eit her th e s qu abb li ng c a ts or the horn ed owl wakes Sam an th a w i th i t s ra c ket.

3 When you use correlative conjunctions, be careful about pronoun agreement. If you connect two antecedents with a correlative conjunction , the second one must agree with the pronoun that follows. Neit her Y ol and a no r the cou sins expr e sse d their d is app oi n tme nt w hen bl ind Au nt So phi e se t d ow n the pl at e of burn t h am bur gers. Neit her t he c o usi ns nor Yolanda ex pre sse d her di sa pp oi nt men t whe n bl in d A un t S op hie se t d ow n t he p la te o f bur n t ha mb urg ers. When you use correlative conjunctions, be careful about parallel structure.

4 Either .. or, neither .. nor, and not only .. but also require special attention when you are proofreading for parallelism. Be sure that you have equal grammatical units after both parts of the conjunction . You can have two main clauses like this: Not onl y di d Mi chael grill a st ea k for Tiff an y, b u t he also prepared a ho td og for R oc k et, her d og. Or you can shorten the sentence with two prepositional phrases: Mic ha el gril led me at not o nl y for Tiffany b u t also for Rocket, her dog. Or you can have two nouns as this version does: Mic ha el gril led me at for no t o nly Tiffany b u t also Rocket, her dog.

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