并列连词either…or…用法归纳

either…or…主要用于表示选择，其意为“要么……要么……”“或者……或者……”，用于连接两个性质相同的词或短语。如：

Either your watches or mine is wrong.

不是你们的表不准，就是我的表不准。

I have not been to either Paris or Rome.

我既没有到过巴黎也没有到过罗马。

You can have either this one or that one. 你拿这个或那个都可以。

You must either go at once or wait till tomorrow. 你要么马上走，要么等到明天。

We can finish the work either this week or next week. 不是这星期就是下星期我们就可完成这项工作。

不定式

He did not like to either lie or sit long.

他不喜欢长时间躺着或坐着。

A man must decide either to curb his appetites or surrender to them.

一个人必须决定，或抑制其欲念，或向其欲念屈服。

I am not in a position either to contradict or affirm his statement.

我不能否定或肯定他说的话。

在具体使用时还应注意以下几点：

1. either…or…连接两个成分作主语时，谓语动词通常与其靠近的主语保持一致。如：

Either you or I am to go. 你或我必须有人去。

Either he or you are right. 要么他对，要么你对。

但在非正式文体中，有时也会一律用复数谓语。如：

If either David or Janet come, they will want a drink. 大卫或珍妮特来的话，是会要喝酒的。

2. either…or…除可连接两个词或短语外，有时也可连接两个句子。如：

Either you must improve your work or I shall dismiss you. 要么你改进工作，要么我就辞退你。

Either you’ll leave this house or I’ll call the police.你要是不离开这座房子，我就叫警察来。

3. either…or…的否定式可以是not either…or…，也可以是neither…nor...。如：

He didn’t either write or phone.=He neither wrote nor phoned.他既没写信又没打电话。

注意，正如不能说either…not 一样(但可说not…either)，英语习惯上也不说either…or…not，如不能说：Either he or his wife hasn’t come.可改为：Neither he nor his wife has come.\\

有这样一道题，该选哪个答案？注意与句中的并连词有关：

They weren’t a particularly good team, but they refused to give in and _________ defeat.

A. accept

B. accepted

C. accepting

D. to have accepted

容易误选B，误认为 accepted 与谓语 refused 并列。其实，最佳答案为A，动词 accept 与 give 并列。请看类例：

(1) Mother told Jim to watch the milk until it boiled and then _________ off the gas.

A. turn

B. turning

C. turned

D. having turned

答案为A，turn off the gas 与 watch the milk until it boiled 并列。

(2)He just does what he pleases and never _________ about anyone else.

A. think

B. thinks

C. thinking

D. thought

答案选B，thinks 与前面的 does 为并列谓语，同用一般现在时。

(3)I don’t know whether to stay in teaching or_________ another job.

A. trying getting

B. to try to get

C. trying to get

D. try get

答案选B，to stay in teaching 与to try to get another job 为两个并列的选择成分，故同用不定式。另外比较：try to do sth=设法做某事，try doing sth=做某事看看有何效果。