both

1 of 3

pronoun

ˈbōth How to pronounce both (audio)
plural in construction
: the one as well as the other
both of us

both

2 of 3

conjunction

—used as a function word to indicate and stress the inclusion of each of two or more things specified by coordinated words, phrases, or clauses
prized both for its beauty and for its utility
he … who loveth well both man and bird and beast—S. T. Coleridge

both

3 of 3

adjective

: being the two : affecting or involving the one and the other
both feet
both his eyes
both these armies

Examples of both in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Conjunction
Case in point: Right after King Arthur cuts off one, then both, of the Black Knight’s arms, a woman walks in with a basket and scoops them up. —Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, 3 May 2017 Get her to the Early Bird, a charming little breakfast spot with locations in both Westminster and DTC that is super casual and super good. —Allyson Reedy, The Know, 23 Apr. 2017 See all Example Sentences for both 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'both.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Pronoun

Middle English bothe, from pronominal use of bothe both entry 3

Conjunction

Middle English bothe, from the use of the quantifier bothe both entry 3 as a correlative conjunction

Adjective

Middle English bothe, a compound of bo "two of a pair, both" and the, definite article, going back to Old English bā þā "both the, both these" (attested once late), from bā, feminine and sometimes neuter nominative of bēgen "both" + þā, plural of se, sēo, þæt, definite article; bēgen, bā, bū (neuter) going back to Germanic *bai (whence also Gothic bai "both," neuter ba), going back to Indo-European *h2(e)nt-bhoh1 (with loss of the initial element and assimilation of the endings to the nominal declensions); other Germanic languages show early merger of the quantifier and the article, as Old Frisian bēthe, beithe "both," Old Saxon bēthie, bēthiu, Old High German beide, bēde, Old Icelandic báðir (but genitive beggja, probably after tveggja, genitive of tveir "two") — more at ambi-, the entry 1

Note: Middle English bothe is also thought to reflect the Old Norse form exemplified by Old Icelandic báðir, given the scarcity of the evidence for the collocation bā þā in Old English, though other inflected forms of begen, bā, bū followed by the inflected article are attested; see discussion and note on forms in Oxford English Dictionary, third edition. The Old English masculine nominative bēgen mirrors twēgen, the masculine of "two" (compare twain entry 3); the origin of the forms is uncertain—see discussion and bibliography in R.D. Fulk, A Comparative Grammar of the Early Germanic Languages, John Benjamins, 2018, pp. 222-23.

First Known Use

Pronoun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Conjunction

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of both was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing both

Dictionary Entries Near both

botfly

both

Botha

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Both.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/both. Accessed 29 May. 2024.

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Kids Definition

both

1 of 3 adjective
ˈbōth How to pronounce both (audio)
: the two : the one and the other

both

2 of 3 pronoun
: the one as well as the other
both of us

both

3 of 3 conjunction
—used before two words or phrases connected with and to stress that each is included
both New York and London

More from Merriam-Webster on both

Nglish: Translation of both for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of both for Arabic Speakers

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