both

[ bohth ]

adjective

1. one and the other; two together:

   He met both sisters. Both performances were canceled.

pronoun

1. the one as well as the other:

   Both of us were going to the party.

conjunction

1. alike; equally:

   He is both ready and willing.

both

/ bəʊθ /

determiner

1. 1. the two; two considered together

      both dogs were dirty

   2. ( as pronoun )

      both are to blame

conjunction

1. coordinating used preceding words, phrases, or clauses joined by and , used to emphasize that not just one, but also the other of the joined elements is included

   both new and exciting

   both Ellen and Keith enjoyed the play

Word History and Origins

Origin of both¹

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English bothe, bathe, Old English bā thā “both the, both those”; cognate with German, Dutch beide, Old High German bêde; akin to Latin ambō, Greek ámphō, Lithuanian abù, Sanskrit ubháu

Word History and Origins

Origin of both¹

C12: from Old Norse bāthir ; related to Old High German bēde , Latin ambō , Greek amphō

Idioms and Phrases

• best of both worlds
• burn the candle at both ends
• cut both ways
• foot in both camps
• have it both ways
• play both ends against the middle
• work both sides of the street

Example Sentences

It’s both “familiar,” and “unfamiliar terrain,” Njoku said.

From Salon

But critics on both sides of the aisle say that far from just advocating for restraint, she has embraced talking points from militaristic autocrats like Assad and Putin, and as overseer of 18 spy agencies would undermine national security and the international order.

From Salon

It’s something important to study and understand for the many people living with both alcoholism and post-traumatic stress disorder.

From Slate

So now imagine you could do that same thought experiment, but not just doing it at random, doing it at a large scale while having some metric of screening for those who actually had both the greatest competence as well as the greatest commitment and knowledge of the Constitution.

From Slate

“How can anyone pretend that this collection can serve as a reference for anyone?” the collective asks, noting that online dictionaries are both bigger and faster-moving.

From BBC