Prev | Current Page 335 | Next

"A work on english grammar and composition"

_Each_,
_either_, and _neither_ are always singular; _both_ is always plural; and
_all, any, farmery latter, none, same, some_, and _such_ are either
singular or plural. [Footnote: On the pages immediately preceding Lesson 1,
we said that +usage+, as determined by the majority of the best writers and
speakers of the generation, is the only authority in language; and we there
explained how we are able to appeal to usage as we all along have done. In
treating of the adjective pronouns we now appeal to it again. In the first
twelve paragraphs below we give alternative expressions. Only the second of
these alternative locutions in each paragraph is allowed by many
grammarians; they utterly condemn the first. On the warrant of usage we say
that both expressions are correct.
1. We may use +each other+ with more than two; we may use _one another_ in
such a case. We may say, "_Several_ able _men_ were in correspondence with
_each other_," or "with _one another_."
2. We may use +one another+ with only two; we may use _each other_ in such
a case. We may say, "The _two countries_ agreed to stand by _one another_,"
or "by _each other_."
3. We may use +all, both+, and +whole+ with a preposition and a noun
following; we may use these words as adjectives qualifying the noun.


Pages:
323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347