Both or both of?
Posted by pakguru on June 17th, 2018 | 0 comments | compare contrast, determiners, IELTS, kedua, keduanya, quantifiers, speaking, writing
Euthanasia may be a good solution for both of patients and their families.
Both/both of follows the same rule as some/some of, all/all of, most/most of, etc. Elsewhere on GuruEAP you can listen to a song that includes examples of most of these (but not, I now realise, both/both of!), plus you can find another post showing how this kind of grammar can be useful in IELTS task 1 writing when describing statistical data.
As usual I suggest you approach this problem lexically – in other words pay close attention to the words (lexis) immediately following these signals. Here are some examples.
Both + plural count noun
- Both systems serve quite different yet very important purposes.
- The route map above displays both route options.
- We had carefully paid cash both places.
Both of + plural object pronoun
- The staff always remembers both of us!
- Do sit down, both of you.
- Both of them are very talented actors.
Both of + the/these/those + plural count noun
- Both of the theories are probably correct.
- Both of those sales were perfectly legal.
- He was honouring both of these men.
Both of + possessive + plural count noun
- This undoubtedly saved both of their lives.
- My mom met both of my kids.
- Industrial logging has hit both of our old growth rainforests hard.
Exceptions
If you’ve already mentioned the two things then you can use both without mentioning the two things for a second time. In this way you avoid repetition and include a bit of sophistication much loved by IELTS examiners. The following examples move from more repetitive to less repetitive.
- I love both of my pets, but it’s hard work looking after both of my pets.
- Primitive – unnecessary repetition of both of my pets.
- I love both of my pets, but it’s hard work looking after both of them.
- Better – pronoun them substitutes for my pets.
- I love both of my pets, but it’s hard work looking after both.
- Better still – both at the end of the sentence implies both of my pets.
You will also often hear people use both + possessive (without of)! However this is quite informal and generally not recommended. Both of the following examples are correct!
- I love both of my pets.
- I love both my pets.
Finally you will often see and hear both + verb, where of them has been left out!
- I love both of my pets.
- Both live in the same ‘pet house’ at the bottom of the garden.
Exercise
Now try this quick exercise.
I studied for both of my postgraduate qualifications in England. Both required serious study and several times I almost gave up on both. Both of them were quite expensive and both of my parents were impressed by my determination to complete them. In both cases, I felt as though I had aged 10 years by the end!
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