2

When asked for preference between two things, e.g. today or tomorrow?

I feel like "either is fine" is dominant among native speakers. What about "both are fine"? Somehow I'm more inclined to say the latter, but not sure of its legitimacy.

Clarifications: The exact question is like this: Shall we go today or tomorrow? Meaning to choose only one of the two.

The definition of both is "to refer to two things", example is "both his parents indulged him". Follow this logic I can describe a common property of two things by saying "both days are fine". Right? I sense this is the logic of my language faculty when producing the answer.

|improve this question

closed as off-topic by Drew, user66974, NVZ, tchrist♦, k1eran Aug 22 '16 at 1:55

This question appears to be off-topic. The users who voted to close gave this specific reason:

If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

  • 2
    "Either" implies one or the other. "Both", in the context which you suggest (but alas do not explicitly provide) implies that it could be one, the other, or both. But "both" could confuse the listener into believing that the option you desire is to have both simultaneously. – Hot Licks Aug 21 '16 at 1:46
  • 2
    Dictionary, dictionary, dictionary. Either => or. Both => and. And fine is extraneous to your problem understanding, here. Please start with a dictionary or some other research. Google works: either definition, both definition. – Drew Aug 21 '16 at 1:47
2

As the comments state, there are differences. One would not say "Both are fine" if asked about travel on Saturday or Sunday, if one cannot travel on both days.

If the question is "Would you like chocolate or vanilla ice cream", the answer might be "either", meaning get one, or "both" meaning get both.

|improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.