both

Both is a word used in English to refer to two people or things and to emphasize that both of them are included. It can function as a determiner placed before a noun (both options, both students) or as a pronoun standing in for two referents (Both are invited, They both arrived). It is also common in the form both of + noun phrase (both of the options, both of them).

One of the most frequent constructions is the correlative pair both... and, which links two nouns or noun phrases: both the editor and the author, both options and both candidates. In clauses, the verb typically agrees with the two-element subject, so you usually see plural agreement: both options are viable, both candidates were present. When used with a specific set of items, the phrase both of + [pronoun or noun phrase] is standard: both of them are ready, both of the books have been read.

Etymology traces both to Old English, from a word meaning “two,” and it is cognate with German beide and Dutch beide. The term has a long-standing and widespread presence in formal and informal English, valued for its concise contrastive emphasis. Common alternatives include either, neither, or the construction not only... but also, but both remains the most direct way to signal inclusion of precisely two elements.