Quantifiers — both / either / neither / none / all / each / every

A quantifier tells you how much or how many. You learned the basics at A2 — some, any, much, many, a lot of. At B1, the system gets richer: words for two specifically (both, either, neither), words for groups of any size (all, none, each, every), and the small-quantity nuance pairs (a few / few, a little / little).

Most of these are short words you’ve seen everywhere. The traps are in subject-verb agreement (singular or plural verb?), in the two-vs-many distinction, and in the positive-vs-negative flavor of a few vs few. This lesson sorts them out, and rounds off Module 01.

Quantifying two: both, either, neither

These three words all refer to a set of exactly two. They differ in how the two are treated.

both — the two together (= 2)

Both books are good. I want both of them. Both my parents are doctors.

Form: both + plural noun, or both of + the/my/these + plural noun, or both of + plural pronoun (both of us).

Verb agreement: plural. Both books are good.

Position with verbs:

• They are both tired. (after be)
• We both like coffee. (before main verb)
• Both my parents work. (before noun)

either — one of the two (choice)

Either book is fine. (any one of the two — choice) I can come either tomorrow or Friday. You can sit on either side.

Form: either + singular noun, or either of + the/my/these + plural noun (either of the books), or in the pair construction either… or…

Verb agreement: singular when the subject is either + noun. Either book is fine.

With either of: traditionally singular, increasingly plural in casual AmE.

• Traditional: Either of the books is fine.
• Casual: Either of the books are fine.

The either… or… pair joins two options:

• You can have either tea or coffee.
• Either you apologize or I leave.

neither — not one of the two (both negative)

Neither book is good. Neither of them likes the idea. He speaks neither French nor Spanish.

Form: neither + singular noun, or neither of + the/my/these + plural noun, or in the pair neither… nor…

Verb agreement: singular in formal English (and traditionally in writing); plural in casual AmE conversation.

• Formal: Neither of the books is good.
• Casual: Neither of the books are good.

Critical Russian-speaker trap: neither is already negative — don’t add another negative.

• ❌ Neither of them don’t work.
• ✅ Neither of them works.

The verb stays positive because neither carries the negation. English avoids double negatives in standard usage.

The neither… nor… pair:

• I speak neither French nor German.
• Neither he nor I want to go. (verb agrees with the closer subject — I want)

Quick comparison

I have two brothers. Both are doctors. Either can help you. Neither lives nearby.

Quantifying many: none, all, each, every

These work for groups of any size (typically three or more, though all / none can apply to two as well).

none — not one (of any number)

None of the books are good. None of us know. None of the milk is left.

Form: none of + the/my/these/them. None doesn’t directly precede a noun — use no: no books, not none books.

Verb agreement:

• Countable: None of the books are good (plural — modern AmE) or None of the books is good (singular — traditional, formal).
• Uncountable: singular always. None of the milk is left.

In modern American English, plural agreement (None of them are) is more natural in conversation. Singular is preserved in formal writing.

all — 100 percent of the group

All students passed. All the money is gone. (uncountable — singular) All of us are tired.

Form: all + plural noun, or all (of) + the/my/these + noun, or all of + plural pronoun.

Verb agreement depends on what all refers to:

• Countable plural → plural verb: All students are here.
• Uncountable → singular verb: All the work is done.

You can drop of before a determiner: all (of) the books.

each — individually, one by one

Each student got a certificate. Each of the books is different. Each day brings new challenges.

Form: each + singular noun, or each of + plural noun/pronoun.

Verb agreement: singular always. Each student was present.

Each emphasizes the individual member, even when the total group is large. Each of the 100 students received a certificate.

every — 100 percent as a group, but always singular grammar

Every student passed. Every day, I read. Every book on the shelf is mine.

Form: every + singular noun. Cannot be followed by a plural noun directly.

Verb agreement: singular always. Every student was present.

❌ Every people understands. ✅ Every person understands. OR All people understand.

The trick: every needs a singular noun, all takes plural (or uncountable).

Each vs Every — fine distinction

Mostly interchangeable, but with subtle nuance:

Each student got a certificate. (one by one — focus on individuals) Every student passed. (the whole group — focus on totality)

In many sentences, both work: Each / Every day, I exercise.

Each / every with adverbial use

Each / Every day, I exercise. (frequency) He visits every other week. (alternate weeks) They meet every three months. (interval)

Every (not each) is used in interval expressions: every three months, every six hours.

a few / few / a little / little — small quantities

These four pairs distinguish positive (“some, enough”) from negative (“not enough, hardly any”) flavor.

a few (positive, countable)

I have a few friends in NYC. (some friends — positive) We’ve got a few minutes. (some time — positive) She made a few mistakes, but did well overall.

few (negative, countable)

I have few friends in this city. (almost none — negative) Few people understand this. (very few — negative) Few survivors were found.

To soften the strong negative feel, you can use very few or only a few:

• Very few survivors were found.
• Only a few people came.

a little (positive, uncountable)

I have a little money. (some — positive) Add a little salt. We’ve got a little time.

little (negative, uncountable)

He has little patience. (not much — negative) We have little time left. There’s little hope.

The contrast in feel:

A useful test: if you can replace it with “some, a bit of” → positive. If “not enough, hardly any” → negative.

In modern AmE conversation, the negative few and little sound slightly formal. Casual speakers often say not many friends, not much time instead. But you’ll see few/little in writing constantly.

Compounds: some / any / no + body / one / thing / where

Quick recap of A2 territory with B1 polish.

Verb agreement: always singular even though they refer to multiple people.

• Everyone is here. (not are)
• Nobody knows. (not know)

Pronoun agreement: traditionally singular masculine (everyone took his seat); modern AmE prefers singular they (everyone took their seat) for gender neutrality.

Some-, any-, no- follow the same logic as some / any / no:

• Some- in positive statements and offers/requests: I saw someone. / Would you like something?
• Any- in questions and negatives: Did you see anyone? / I don’t know anything.
• No- makes the verb positive (already negative): I know nothing. (not I don’t know nothing)

I want something to eat. / Is there anything in the fridge? / There’s nothing to eat.

Compounds with else add “other / additional”:

• anyone else = any other person
• somewhere else = some other place
• nothing else = no other thing

AmE notes

• Plural verbs after none of / neither of / either of are extremely common in modern AmE conversation. Traditional grammars insist on singular; modern usage allows both. None of them are coming sounds completely natural.
• Both / either / neither are stricter in AmE than in BrE about doubling negatives — neither of them doesn’t is a clear error in both, but Americans are especially quick to flag it.
• Singular they is now standard AmE for unknown / mixed-gender singular references: Everyone took their seat. Major US style guides (AP, Chicago, MLA) all accept it.
• Each and every are very interchangeable in AmE conversation; pick whichever sounds smoother.
• A few / a little are everyday; few / little (without a) sound formal in spoken AmE. I have hardly any friends often replaces I have few friends in casual speech.

Pronunciation notes

• both /boʊθ/ — note the /θ/ at the end. Russian speakers often substitute /s/ or /t/.
• either — two pronunciations: /ˈiðɚ/ (more common AmE) or /ˈaɪðɚ/ (also heard in AmE). Both are correct.
• neither — same split: /ˈniðɚ/ or /ˈnaɪðɚ/.
• none /nʌn/ — short, like fun.
• every /ˈɛvri/ — two syllables, the e often dropped: ev-ry.
• each /itʃ/ — full /i/ vowel.
• enough /ɪˈnʌf/ — /ɪ/ start, /f/ end.
• a little /ə ˈlɪɾəl/ — flap T in AmE.

Common Russian-speaker mistakes

1. Double negative with neither / none / nobody. Neither of them don’t work → Neither of them works. / Nobody doesn’t know → Nobody knows. English doesn’t double up; the negative quantifier carries the negation alone.
2. Every with plural noun. Every people understands → Every person understands OR All people understand. Every always takes a singular noun.
3. Wrong countable / uncountable pairing. I have a few money → I have a little money. A few is for countable plural; a little for uncountable.
4. Plural verb after every / each. Each students has a book → Each student has a book. (singular noun + singular verb).
5. Confusing positive a few / a little with negative few / little. I have few friends in NYC (negative — almost none) when you mean I have a few friends in NYC (positive — some). The little article a flips the meaning.
6. Using both with three or more. Both my three brothers → All my three brothers (or just all three of my brothers). Both refers to exactly two — never more.

Summary

• both (= 2) + plural noun + plural verb. either (one of two) + singular noun + singular verb. neither (not one of two) + singular noun + singular verb (don’t double-negate).
• none (not one of any number) + of + plural/uncountable noun. Verb singular (formal) or plural (modern AmE).
• all (= 100%) + plural / uncountable noun, verb matches noun.
• each + singular noun, singular verb — emphasizes individuals.
• every + singular noun, singular verb — emphasizes totality.
• a few / few for countable plural; a little / little for uncountable. a few / a little = positive (some); few / little = negative (almost none).
• some- / any- / no- / every- compounds: singular verbs always; modern AmE uses singular they for gender neutrality.

Module 01 (Grammar) is complete. You’ve covered the full B1 grammar inventory — perfect tenses, conditionals, passives, reported speech, modals, gerund/infinitive, relative clauses, AmE specifics, and now the quantifier system.

Next module: Vocabulary themes — work, education, health, food, travel, technology, environment — the 22 topics that build a productive 2,500-word B1 vocabulary.