| 释义 |
eitherpron.adj.adv.conj. Forms: α. early Old English ægheþer, early Old English oeghweðer, Old English æghwæþær (rare), Old English æghwæþer, Old English æghwæþr- (inflected form, rare), Old English æghwæðer, Old English æghwæðr- (inflected form), Old English æghweþer, Old English æghweðer, Old English æghwęþer (rare), Old English æghwþrne (accusative singular masculine, transmission error), Old English ægweðer (rare), Old English æiwheþer (rare), Old English ęghwæþer (rare), Old English oeghwæþer (rare). β. early Old English ægþe (transmission error), Old English aegþer (rare), Old English æeþer (perhaps transmission error), Old English ægder (probably transmission error), Old English æghþer (rare), Old English ægre (dative singular feminine, rare), Old English ægþær, Old English ægþæs (genitive singular masculine, transmission error), Old English ægþr- (inflected form), Old English ægðær, Old English ægðr- (inflected form), Old English æigþer, Old English æigðer, Old English æiðre (dative singular feminine, rare), Old English eghder (Northumbrian, perhaps transmission error), Old English egþer (rare), Old English egðer, Old English egðr- (dative singular feminine, rare), Old English eigðer (rare), Old English–early Middle English æiþer, Old English–Middle English (in copy of Old English charter) ægþer, Old English–Middle English (in copy of Old English charter) ægðer, late Old English æigþær, late Old English egþr- (inflected form), late Old English–early Middle English æiðer, early Middle English aegðe (in copy of Old English charter, probably transmission error), early Middle English æȝder, early Middle English æȝr- (inflected form), early Middle English æȝþær, early Middle English æȝþer, early Middle English æȝþor, early Middle English æȝþr- (inflected form), early Middle English æȝðe (probably transmission error), early Middle English æȝðer, early Middle English æȝðr- (inflected form), early Middle English ætþer (probably transmission error), early Middle English aider, early Middle English aiðer, early Middle English aiðr- (inflected form), early Middle English asþer (probably transmission error), early Middle English eægþar (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English eȝȝþer ( Ormulum, rare), early Middle English eȝȝþerr ( Ormulum), early Middle English eiȝer, early Middle English eiȝðer, early Middle English eiðer, early Middle English eiþr- (inflected form), early Middle English eiþre, early Middle English ȝeider, early Middle English heyþer, Middle English aidire, Middle English aieþer (northern), Middle English aithir, Middle English aithire, Middle English aithre, Middle English aithur, Middle English aiþer, Middle English aiþere, Middle English aiþir, Middle English aiyar (northern), Middle English aiyer (northern), Middle English aiyere (northern), Middle English ayder, Middle English aydur, Middle English ayȝyr (Lincolnshire), Middle English ayþar, Middle English ayþer, Middle English ayðer, Middle English ayþere, Middle English aythere, Middle English ayþir, Middle English aythir, Middle English aythire, Middle English aythur, Middle English ayþyr, Middle English aythyr, Middle English aythyre, Middle English ayyer (north midlands and northern), Middle English ayyire (northern), Middle English eider, Middle English eiȝþer, Middle English eithar, Middle English eithe (transmission error), Middle English eithere, Middle English eithir, Middle English eithre, Middle English eiþer, Middle English eiþir, Middle English eiþur, Middle English eiyer, Middle English eiyir, Middle English euþer, Middle English eyder, Middle English eydir, Middle English eydur, Middle English eydyr, Middle English eyȝer (Norfolk), Middle English eyȝir (Norfolk), Middle English eythere, Middle English eythre, Middle English eythur, Middle English eythyr, Middle English eyþer, Middle English eyþir, Middle English eyþur, Middle English eyþyr, Middle English eyyer, Middle English eyyir, Middle English hayther, Middle English–1600s aither, Middle English–1600s ayther, Middle English–1600s eyther, Middle English–1600s eythir, Middle English– either, 1500s yther (transmission error); English regional 1800s aider (Cumberland), 1800s aither (northern and western), 1800s ayder (northern), 1800s ayther (chiefly northern); U.S. regional 1800s– eider (southern, in African-American usage); Caribbean 1900s– eider; Scottish pre-1700 aithir, pre-1700 aydir, pre-1700 aythir, pre-1700 aythire, pre-1700 aythyr, pre-1700 eithir, pre-1700 eythir, pre-1700 1700s– either, pre-1700 (1800s–1900s south-western) eyther, pre-1700 1800s– aither Scottish English  /ˈeðər/, pre-1700 1900s– ayther, 1800s aider, 1800s eidder (Shetland), 1900s– eider (north-eastern); also Irish English 1800s– aither, 1900s– ayther (northern). γ. Old English æþer (rare), Old English æðer (rare), early Middle English æþar, early Middle English æþre (dative singular feminine), Middle English edere, Middle English ethere, Middle English etheyr, Middle English ethir, Middle English ethyr, Middle English eþer, Middle English eþir, Middle English eþur, Middle English eyer, Middle English eyir, Middle English–1600s ether, 1500s hether, 1500s–1600s eather; English regional 1700s eather (Yorkshire), 1800s aether (Yorkshire), 1800s ether (Derbyshire), 1800s ider (Cumberland); U.S. regional 1800s 'ither, 1800s– ither, 1900s ether, 1900s– eeder (southern, in African-American usage); Scottish pre-1700 æthir, pre-1700 eather, pre-1700 ethair, pre-1700 ethir, pre-1700 ethyr, pre-1700 1700s–1800s ether, 1800s aether, 1800s idder (Shetland), 1800s ither, 1800s– edder (Shetland and north-eastern); Irish English (northern) 1900s– ether; Manx English 1800s ether. See also er conj. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Cognate with Old Frisian aider , eider , āder , Old Saxon iogihwethar (Middle Low German ietwēder , with assimilatory substitution of dental consonant), Old High German iogiwedar (Middle High German iegeweder , (with assimilatory substitution of dental consonant) ietweder , German jedweder ) < the Germanic base of o adv. + the Germanic base of Old English gehwæðer each of two, cognate with Old Saxon gihwethar , Old High German giwedar (Middle High German geweder ) < a prefixed form (see y- prefix) of the Germanic base of whether pron., adj., conj.1, and n. Compare outher pron., adj., adv., and conj. and forms at that entry.With the (contracted) β. forms compare also the Old Frisian forms cited above. Old English ǣg- (reflecting earlier *ā-gi- ) shows i-mutation caused by the i of the following prefix. Form and pronunciation history: (i) regular development. The β. and γ. forms show shortening of the original trisyllabic form (see α. forms) to a disyllabic form, already in Old English. In the β. forms Old English ǣg regularly yields the early Middle English diphthong ei , which subsequently merges with ai , and is reflected in the modern standard form (and in part in the widespread regional pronunciation /ˈeːðə(r)/). In the γ. forms Old English palatal g was lost and ǣ develops regularly to Middle English long open ē , which (after raising in the Great Vowel Shift, and when not merged with the regional pronunciation /ˈeːðə(r)/ cited above) is reflected in the modern standard variant pronunciation /ˈiːðə(r)/ (also in scattered regional use, chiefly in the midlands and north); forms with shortened ĕ (and ĭ developed from it) also arose in Middle English, perhaps originally in low stress (especially in use as a conjunction), and are reflected in the regional pronunciations /ˈɛðə(r)/, /ˈɪðə(r)/ (e.g. in south-western England, northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, and New England). Form and pronunciation history: (ii) origin of the modern diphthongal pronunciation. The 16th- and 17th-cent. orthoepists record pronunciations of the initial vowel reflecting the two main types listed above, i.e. respectively /eː/ (the reflex of Middle English ai ) and /ɛː/ (the reflex of Middle English long open ē ), as well as shortened /ɛ/ and /ɪ/. However, they provide no evidence for the modern standard variant pronunciation with a diphthong /ˈʌɪðə(r)/, which is first recorded by Jones (1701). The origin of this pronunciation is unclear; it seems to presuppose a Middle English form with ī , and although no such form as *īþer is attested, compare (if it is not simply a scribal error) late Middle English nyther at neither adv., pron., and adj. β. forms in an isolated attestation in MS Singh (a1500) of Lydgate's Siege of Thebes. Middle English *īþer might represent a variant (with a slightly raised diphthong, e.g. /ɪi/) of the reflex of Old English (Kentish) ēgðer (with long close ē ) which merged with the already diphthongized reflex of Middle English long ī , or alternatively might have developed from a form *īhþer , reflecting earlier *ēhþer (Old English *ǣhþer ) (see further R. Jordan Handb. der mittelenglischen Grammatik (ed. 2, 1934) §94 note 2, and compare the development of high adj.). J. Wright Eng. Dial. Gram. (1905) 421 records regional pronunciations with this diphthong from Norfolk, Suffolk, Shropshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, and Devon; it seems likely that it entered the standard language from East Anglia. Form and pronunciation history: (iii) competing pronunciations. Of the two competing modern standard pronunciations /ˈʌɪðə(r)/ and /ˈiːðə(r)/ the former is now the dominant one in British English, while the latter is preferred in U.S. English (where the diphthongal pronunciation is chiefly urban north-eastern and often regarded as affected). Jones (1701), who is the first to note the diphthongal pronunciation, gives both /ˈeːðə(r)/ (the antecedent of /ˈiːðə(r)/) and /ˈʌɪðə(r)/; Elphinston (1765) also gives both /ˈiːðə(r)/ and /ˈʌɪðə(r)/, but considers the latter vulgar, whereas Buchanan (1766) and Franklin (1768) both give /ˈʌɪðə(r)/ without alternative. Sheridan (1780) has only /ˈiːðə(r)/, but Walker (1791) says that /ˈiːðə(r)/ and /ˈʌɪðə(r)/ are both very common, although he gives the preference to the former on the grounds of analogy and the authority of Garrick. Smart (1849) says that ‘there is little in point of good usage to choose’ between the two pronunciations, although in the body of his dictionary he, like earlier orthoepists, gives /ˈiːðə(r)/ without alternative. N.E.D. (1891) notes that the pronunciation /ˈʌɪðə(r)/, ‘though not in accordance with the analogies of standard English, is in London somewhat more prevalent in educated speech than /ˈiːðə(r)/’. Jones (1917) marks /ˈiːðə(r)/ as a less frequent pronunciation than /ˈʌɪðə(r)/; and Fowler (1926) comments that /ˈʌɪðə(r)/ ‘although not more correct, is displacing /ˈiːðə(r)/ in educated speech’. Specific forms. Middle English forms such as aiyer, eiyer, eyer, etc. show y for þ (see discussion at Y n.). With the form euþer compare β. forms at outher pron., adj., adv., and conj. with au- , aw- . With the U.S. regional form eeder at γ. forms compare Gullah eeduh . Semantic considerations and relationship with outher pron., adj., adv., and conj. In Old English and early Middle English the word appears only in its original sense ‘each of two’, or as adverb in sense ‘both’; but about the beginning of the 14th cent. it assumed the disjunctive sense ‘one or other of two’ (and the corresponding adverbial use), which properly belonged to Old English āhwæþer , āwþer , āþer , Middle English owþer , oþer (see outher pron., adj., adv., and conj.). This disjunctive sense has now almost entirely supplanted the original distributive and universal sense in the pronoun and adverb (the conjunction has always been disjunctive in meaning); however, in the adjective the original sense remains common (compare sense B. 1a). In Middle English, formal similarities between either pron., adj., adv., and conj. and outher pron., adj., adv., and conj. appear to have contributed to mutual semantic influence. The development of a distributive sense of outher in the 13th cent. (see outher pron. 2) probably influenced the converse development of the disjunctive sense of either . Also, in the 14th cent. either began to replace other , in the midlands and East Anglia, as the first member of the alternative other——other—— and other——or—— (see sense C. 3), probably after a parallel replacement by outher in the midlands and north (see outher adv. 1b). The word outher pron., adj., adv., and conj. became obsolete in literary use in the 16th cent.; its modern regional forms are popularly regarded as belonging to either. A. pron. I. With distributive or universal meaning. †1. Each of the two. the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [noun] > an individual thing or person > each the world > relative properties > number > specific numbers > two > [noun] > both OE (Corpus Cambr.) ix. 17 Hig doð niwe win on niwe bytta & ægðer byþ gehealden. OE tr. Pseudo-Apuleius (Harl. 585) (O.E.D. transcript) (1984) xciv. 140 Genim ðas ylcan wyrte polleium & pipor, ægþeres gelice micel be gewihte. c1175 (Burchfield transcript) l. 10335 Þatt eȝȝþerr inn hiss tune [read time]. Þurrh drihhtin ȝede upp o þe flumm. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon (Calig.) (1963) l. 7976 Æiðer [c1300 Otho aiþer] wende to his hole. a1375 (c1350) (1867) l. 1014 (MED) Þanne told eche til oþer here tenes & here sorwe, þat sadly for eiþers sake hadden suffred long. a1382 (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Prov. xxix. 13 The pore and the creaunsour metten togidere; of either the liȝtnere [L. illuminator] is the Lord. c1425 in E. Edwards (1866) 68 (MED) To my twey sonys I beqweyth a thwsund pund, eythyr fyf hundryd pund [OE ægðrum fif hund punda]. 1591 E. Spenser Prosopopoia in 551 So parted they, as eithers way them led. 1676 in J. A. Picton (1883) I. 268 The Serjeant and Water Baylive shall have either a cloak. 1759 O. Goldsmith (1837) III. 219 Fontenelle and Voltaire were men of unequal merit; yet how different has been the fate of either. 1834 T. Medwin II. 286 Either are to me as bad as a double dose of sour crout. 1870 W. Morris (1871) 289 A little while they stood thus, with new ruth Gathering in either's heart for the other's pain. 1886 G. Meredith Appeasement of Demeter in Sept. 376 Forgot was horse of mare, yea, mare of horse: Reversed, each head at either's flank, they stood. b. With partitive construction. OE Ælfric (Cambr. Gg.3.28) (2009) vi. 88 On emnihtes dæge þæt is ðonne se dæg & seo niht gelice lange beoð, þonne hæfð hyra ægðer twelf tida. OE Wærferð tr. Gregory (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) ii. xxxv. 170 Beforan þam ylcan torre wæs swiþe rum hus, in þam hyra ægþres þenas [L. utriusque discipuli] hi gereston. c1175 (Burchfield transcript) l. 119 Forr eȝȝþerr here ȝede swa. Rihht affterr godess lare. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris (1868) 1st Ser. 15 Eour eyþer sunegað bi-foran drihten. c1225 (?c1200) (Bodl.) (1940) 449 Hwet ȝef..ti weres beo þe wrað oðer iwurðe þe lað, swa þet inker eiþer heasci wið oþer. c1275 (?c1250) (Calig.) (1935) l. 185 (MED) & mai hure eiþer wat hi wile Mid riȝte segge. c1325 (c1300) (Calig.) l. 1720 Tueie kinges..hor eiþer vp oþer worrede vaste. c1380 (1879) l. 4659 (MED) Seue fet of lengþe hur ayþer was told. a1400 (a1325) (Gött.) l. 8360 And did þair ether dun for to sitt. c1450 tr. Palladius (Bodl. Add.) i. l. 808 So shall her eitheres [?1440 Duke Humfrey ereither] werke been overblowe With colde or hoote. ?1615 G. Chapman tr. Homer (new ed.) iv. 79 The portraiture of Jove-sustain'd and sceptre-bearing kings Your either person in his presence brings. ?1624 G. Chapman tr. 138 Enter, and bring a Minde that most may moue, Conferring, euen the great in counsailes, Ioue: And let my verse taste, of your eithers loue. OE Ælfric (Cambr. Gg.3.28) Pref. 2 Ic gesette on twam bocum þa gereccednysse ðe ic awende... On ægðer þæra boca sind feowertig cwyda.] c1175 (Burchfield transcript) l. 10586 Eȝȝþer off þa tweȝȝenn wass. Beþania ȝehatenn. c1330 Lai le Freine in (1929) 10 2 (MED) In þe west cuntre woned tvay kniȝteþ..& aiþer of hem hadde wedded wiif. 1479 in S. Tymms (1850) 54 I beqwethe to eyther of myn executors xl s. 1498 in J. C. Cox (1913) x. 141 In primis iiij Crossis ij of Copir and over gilted, with ayther of theyme a fote of the same. 1535 Ruth i. 9 Ye maie fynde reste ether of you in hir huszbandes house. 1600 L. Lewkenor tr. A. de Torquemada i. f. 21v There liued two men Pusion and Secundila, of which, either of them had x. feete or more in length. 1703 J. Evelyn Let. 12 Sept. in (1994) vi. 92 But when, or where they either of them died, or what became of them..I cannot readily tell. 1853 R. Shittler (Leviticus x.) 196/2 They took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not. the world > relative properties > relationship > correlation > [noun] > mutuality or reciprocity > each other eOE tr. Orosius (BL Add.) (1980) ii. iii. 40 Him Tarcuinius oðerne ðegn ongean sende.., & heora þær ægðer oðerne ofslog. OE (1932) 1051 Ægðer þara eorla oðrum trymede heofonrices hyht, helle witu wordum werede. c1175 (Burchfield transcript) l. 336 Eȝȝþer sibb wiþþ oþerr. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris (1873) 2nd Ser. 213 Þesse wise biswikeð her aiðer oðer. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon (Calig.) (1963) l. 1962 Eiþer [c1300 Otho aiþer] hateden oþer. c1275 (?c1250) (Calig.) (1935) l. 796 Ȝif tueie men goþ to wraslinge, An eiþer oþer faste [a1300 Jesus Oxf. vaste] þringe. c1300 (c1250) (Cambr.) (1966) l. 509 Eiþer oþer sone ikneu. c1330 (?c1300) (Auch.) l. 1990 Aþer askede of oþeres stat. c1330 (Auch.) (1882) l. 605 Bote clippe & kusse eyþer oþer, As eiþer hedde been oþeres broþer. c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham (1902) 65 And ayþer folȝy oþer. c1400 (?a1387) W. Langland (Huntington HM 137) (1873) C. xxi. l. 127 Ayþer axed of oþer of þis grete wonder. c1460 (?c1400) Prol. l. 126 (MED) For ethir-is þouȝt & tent was, othir to begile. c1500 King & Hermit in M. M. Furrow (1985) 268 Ather betauȝt oþer gode dey. 1570 R. Sempill (single sheet) Aganis vice that vertew ay hes streuin: Thocht ather vther be tyme hes oft opprest, Last Iustice Iudge bure ay the ballance euin. 1594 W. Shakespeare sig. B2v Beauties red and Vertues white, Of eithers colour was the other Queene. View more context for this quotation 1623 R. Abbot 109 Looke as therefore man and wife doe become one flesh, and are concorporated either into other by vertue of that contract and couenant of God betwixt them made. a1676 M. Hale (1677) 297 There seems to be a more connatural Transmutation of either into other. 1715 H. Felton (ed. 2) 193 The English may write French; the French English; the Spaniard Italian; and the Italian Spanish, and either other with equal Purity and Perfection. 1838 E. S. Wortley III. 302 The one seems like a floating Breath, The other like a Dream! Either to other seemeth still Nearest and dearest now. 1874 J. Morley 81 The rights of either to disturb the other. 1886 Apr. 204 Their respective sarcodes almost directly fuse into each other, until nucleus reaches nucleus and the two nuclei melt ‘either into other’, and the whole of the blended bodies become a globular sac. 1909 W. B. Godbey 47 We knew we would have to go on, but we both said, either to other, that we were willing to suffer any amount of pain if we knew that he would leave life in us. 1948 T. Roethke (1949) 39 This way! This way! The wren's throat shimmered, Either to other, The blossoms sang. the world > relative properties > number > specific numbers > two > [adjective] > both OE (Northumbrian) v. 38 Sed uinum nouum in utres nouos mittendum est et utraque conseruantur : ah þæt win niua in byttum niuum to sendanne is & egðer biðon gehaldan. c1155 ( Will of Wulfwaru (Sawyer 1538) in S. E. Kelly (2007) 136 Dælon hi þæt heafodbotl him betweonan..þæt heora ægðer his gelice micel habbon. ?c1225 (?a1200) (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 158 Fweord [read sweord] & cnif eiðer baðe ha beoð schearpe & kerewinde word. a1513 R. Fabyan (1516) I. ccxlv. f. clxvii Eyther Prynce enforsed so straytly that other, that eyther of theym were vnhorsed. 1534 tr. Constit. Otho in f. 109 We therfore straytly forbeadyng eyther both of these doo wyll and commaunde that no chyrches hereafter be letten vnto the lay for any tyme at all. 1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus f. 53v Either of them as naked as ever they wer born. a1645 W. Browne tr. M. Le Roy (1647) iii. iii. 90 Either of them have treated me as the scandall..of my Sex. 1698 J. Turner iii. 99 The Eminency of the Rational Soul above the Brutal or Corporeal, shines clearly by comparing either both as to the Objects, and to the chief Acts or Modes of Knowing. 1565 T. Harding viii. f. 295 This is the abridgement of either of those three safecondutes. 1588 R. Parke tr. J. G. de Mendoza 76 The other thirteene prouinces that do remaine haue eyther of them a vizroy or governor. 1691 A. Wood I. 96 When or where, either of these three was printed, I cannot tell, for I have not yet seen them. 1805 W. C. Oulton II. 659/1 Three extensive commons are belonging to this town... In either of the three, any person belonging to the town has an unlimitted right of pasture. 1867 W. D. Howells 228 Just above the feet, at either of the three corners, is an exquisite..female bust. 1893 T. Hardy Our Exploits at West Poley in Mar. 78/4 ‘Did you walk in through Giant's Ear, or Goblin's Cellar, or Grim Billy?’ ‘We did not enter by either of these.’ II. With disjunctive meaning. 5. the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [noun] > an individual thing or person > one of > one of two > one or other of two 1439 in (1838) V. 17 (MED) To either of þe douteris of William Devyle, x li. to mariage; And yf ethir of hem deye on payid and onmarijd, þt ouerleuyng to haue al þe xx li. c1450 ( J. Walton tr. Boethius (Linc. Cathedral 103) 288 (MED) Þe schippes..þat þere flete In ayther of these ryueres [sc. Tigris & Euphrates] doun along. a1500 (?c1400) (Adv.) (1886) l. 527 Þo ton in reyd, þo todur in blacke: Had eydur of hom byn to lacke, Full evyll we had ben steyd. 1549 M. Coverdale et al. tr. Erasmus II. 1 Cor. iii. f. xv If eythers worke be with fyre destroyed, the workeman shall lose his labour. 1593 R. Hooker i. x. 71 If we be both or either of these. ?1615 G. Chapman tr. Homer (new ed.) xxiii. 354 A greater glory, then if wrought alone; Both being stuck off, by eithers mixtion. 1690 J. Locke ii. xv. 96 None of the distinct Ideas we have of either is without all manner of Composition. 1766 W. Blackstone II. 381 Here A and B have cross remainders by implication, and on the failure of either's issue, the other or his issue shall take the whole. 1780 W. Cowper 18 Mar. (1979) I. 325 The love of Power seems as natural to Kings, as the desire of Liberty is to their Subjects; the excess of either is vicious, & tends to the ruin of both. 1802 8 188 It is by no means necessary to determine a preference between the two..since either of them may be resorted to. 1849 T. B. Macaulay I. 164 Whatever was ridiculous or odious in either increased the scorn and aversion which the multitude felt for both. 1874 J. Ruskin 119 I don't mean that either of the writers I name are absolutely thus narrow in their own views. 1954 (News of World) 93/1 This may be removed with caustic soda or a ‘stripper’; either are obtainable at any paint shop. 1989 R. Tong iv. 135 The conviction that men are men and women are women and that there is no way to change either's nature. 2009 1 Dec. 21/4 Both approaches have their virtues, but careful scrutiny and a degree of scepticism should accompany the reading of either. the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [noun] > an individual thing or person > one of > one of two > one or other of two 1532 T. More iii. p. ccxxvii For he sayed of those twayne, that yf eyther of bothe had lakked, they had not ben in the synne of infydelite. 1572 Abp. M. Parker Let. 17 Aug. in (1853) (modernized text) 396 I never heard of either of them both till your honour had sent me your last letters. 1616 H. Ainsworth (xxii. 24) sig. R2v Wives were taken in Israel, by bils of Dowry, and solemne espowsals; but concubines without eyther of both. 1838 W. Holloway Either of both, either of the two. 1895 W. Morris & A. J. Wyatt tr. (1898) 60 So to Beowulf thereon of either of both The Ingwines' high warder gave wielding to have, Both the war-steeds and weapons. 1616 S. Hieron 59 That doctrine whch tends to the furtherance of all, or either of these three. a1661 T. Fuller (1662) Mddx. 177 Whosoever considereth either of these three, would admire that he [sc. Cardinal Woolsey] had any thing for the other two left,..viz. His House-building. House-keeping. House-furnishing. 1796 (Dublin ed.) XVII. 566 Rubens, Jordens, and Snyders, used to co-operate in each other's..pictures..and thus they became more valuable than if finished by either of them singly. 1867 Oct. 455/2 Every part ought to be examined, and a shingle put in place, a clapboard nailed down, a pane of glass set, or a door righted up wherever either are needed. 1875 c. 92. §5 An improvement comprised in either of the three classes following: chalking of land, clay-burning, claying of land. 1905 A. H. Bate iii. 34 Electrical power can thus be expressed in either of three units, namely:—The watt,..kilowatt..and the electrical horse-power. 1970 in (1991) II. 282/2 I wouldn't marry either of the girls on the main [= mainland]. 2006 R. Szczepaniak 27 The lack of statistically significant context effect in either of the three studies is explained against the background of Finn's..‘transfer feature theory’. B. adj. ( attributive) (in later use, determiner). I. With distributive or universal meaning. 1. With singular noun. the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > each > each of two eOE tr. Orosius (BL Add.) (1980) i. xi. 31 Hwa is þætte ariman mæge hwæt þær moncynnes forwearð on ægðere hand? OE (2001) I. vi. 4 Drype..ænne dropan in ægðer eage. c1175 (Burchfield transcript) l. 10590 Þurrh þe name off eȝȝþerr tun. Iss herrsummnesse tacnedd. c1225 (?c1200) (Bodl.) l. 555 (MED) He dude on eiðer half hire fowre of hise cnihtes. c1325 (c1300) (Calig.) l. 1439 Muche folc in eiþer half to gronde me slou. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 125 Galilea..is double, þe ouer Galilea and þe neþer Galilea;..in eyþer Galilea is good lond. a1425 (a1400) (Galba & Harl.) (1863) l. 1274 Bot with þe world comes dam fortone, Þat ayther hand may chaung sone. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour (Adv.) ii. 349 On ayir syd yus war yai yhar. 1535 Ezek. xl. 48 By the walles also were pilers, on either syde one. 1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin i. Pref. They all endeuor..to kepe still eyther bothe kingdome safe. 1596 W. Warner (rev. ed.) xii. lxx. 293 The Poldrons, Grangard, Vambraces, Gauntlets for either hand. 1628 T. Hobbes tr. Thucydides (1822) 25 The standard being on either side lift up, they joind battle. 1682 45 He should on either sleeve wear an Embroidered faggot as a badg all his Life time. 1700 J. Dryden To Dutchess of Ormond in sig. A5 God in either eye has placed a cherubin. 1762 W. Falconer i. 3 The fierce extremes of either zone. 1819 W. Scott I. iii. 47 There was a huge fire-place at either end of the hall. 1842 Ld. Tennyson 37 Either twilight and the day between. 1914 K. L. Bates iii. 84 An altar stood below: on either hand A priest with roses crowned, who held a myrtle wand. 1943 53 Generating plants exist on either bank. 2015 K. Kwan ii. vii. 177 As the wing doors rose, they saw that the driver's seat was in the center of the car, with a passenger seat flanking either side. c1300 St. Kenelm (Harl.) l. 355 in F. J. Furnivall (1862) 57 Out berste aiþere hire eȝe & fulle adoun vpe hire sautere. 1612 M. Drayton iii. 48 Two Riuers of one name; which seeme as though they stayd Their Empresse as she went, her either hand that take. 1648 R. Herrick sig. O7v Feacie (some say) doth wash her clothes i' th' Lie That sharply trickles from her either eye. 1842 Father Connell viii. in 25 June Suppl. p. xiv They took their places at his either side. 1908 A. C. Ray xxiv. 302 Her eyes fixed absently upon the platform before her, upon the faces at her either hand. 1917 Dec. 869/1 At your either side construction sheds for the aeroplanes appear; gigantic structures, all. 2012 T. Lieberman 68 Soon I was kissing her either cheek, her wet chin, and..the bottomless bliss of her mouth. the world > relative properties > number > specific numbers > two > [adjective] > both c1300 St. Brendan (Laud) l. 439 in C. Horstmann (1887) 231 At þe furste dunte, he smot out eyþur eyȝen. a1375 (c1350) (1867) l. 3409 A ful breme bataile bi-gan þat ilk time, whan eþer sides a-sembled of þo segges sturne. 1448 in W. Fraser (1878) II. 41 Aithir partis has gevyn thair athis. a1470 T. Malory (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) II. 517 And so ayther knyghtes made them redy with two grete spearys. a1475 (Lansd.) (Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Washington) (1965) l. 6538 (MED) Smite anoon shullen þei noght Til eiþer cheueteins haue ful þoght And be ful avised i-wis And eiþer ouere-se her enemys. 1586 20 The Lords and Commons in either houses assembled. 1608 E. Topsell 142 Vppon either feete they [sc. skinks] haue fiue distinct fingers or clawes. 1688 R. Holme iii. 289/1 The Nose is either ends of the Shuttle, which are ever tipt with Iron. 1704 L. Charles II. 32 Many Houses, next to each Church, or at either Ends of the Streets. 1794 J. Warton tr. Apollonius Rhodius in 43 Each chief..shakes on either feet his gloomy wings. 1850 J. R. Logan in 4 353 On a small hill behind Pankalung Kotah and on either banks of the river. 1882 14 174 A large portion of the population of both nationalities on either sides of the river. 1960 R. G. Haggar 121/2 Lines were drawn upon the tile..which effectually separated the colours filled in on either sides of them. 2015 J. Manterola et al. in P. Pacheco & F. Magalhaes 188 Double carriageways with three lanes each and footpaths on either edges. II. With disjunctive meaning. the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > each > each of two > one or other of two the world > relative properties > number > specific numbers > one > [adjective] > one of two > one or other of two c1300 (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 2136 He miȝte..wende up aither side. c1330 (?a1300) (1886) l. 357 Chese onaiþer hand. c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 1004 How goddes gonne stellifye Briddes fisshe best..As the Ravene or eyther bere. 1595 W. Raleigh 25 Nov. (1999) 129 Yf there shall any disent be made by the enymye in either countye by the waie of surprise..then can nether be releeved as aforsaied. 1667 J. Milton i. 424 Spirits when they please Can either Sex assume, or both. View more context for this quotation 1740 Ld. Chesterfield (1932) (modernized text) II. 423 When the sun shines on either side of us (as it does mornings and evenings), the shadows are very long. 1788 E. Gibbon (1846) VI. 190 The artificial thunder, in the hands of either nation, must have turned the fortune of the day. 1832 H. Martineau iv. 47 The recreated statesman finds in either case equal pleasure and repose. 1898 T. Watts-Dunton iii. ix She was one of the few Gypsies of either sex who could speak with equal fluency both the English and Welsh Romanes. 1904 C. R. Van Hise (U.S. Geol. Surv.) 205 Titanation is the union of titanic acid with base, or the substitution of titanic acid for another combined acid, in either case producing titanates. 1927 2 22 In either case, it was groups of hard-working masons that perfected the ogival method of building, and groups of parishioners that made possible the work. 2015 (Tesco) June 90/3 A ‘break clause’..allows either party to end the tenancy early, which could benefit the landlord, too. c1330 (?c1300) (Auch.) l. 830 Who so winneþ þe turnament al Bi aiþer [c1475 Caius euery] half, þe priis have schal. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add.) f. 244v Þe roote is moder and welle of eyther herbes and most nedeful substaunce. ?c1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac (Paris) (1971) 361 In wryþinge, he [sc. the leg] was drawen to eyþer [L. quamlibet] partie. c1460 in A. Clark (1907) 21 (MED) All demaynes of ayther honowr þe which lye to þe Castell of Oxenforde. C. adv.†I. In correlative constructions. = both adv. 1a. In the oldest use usually followed by ȝe..ȝe, or ȝe..and (see ye conj. and adv.); later simply with and in the second place.eOE tr. Orosius (BL Add.) (1980) ii. v. 48 Swa micel folc.., þæt wæs nigon x hund þusenda of Persa anra anwealde buton hiera wiþerwinnum, ægþer ge of Sciþþium ge of Crecum. lOE (Laud) anno 1116 Ðis land & þas leodon wurdon..geswencte þurh þa gyld þe se cyng nam, ægðer ge binnan burgan & butan. a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 62 in J. Zupitza & J. Schipper (1904) 83 Æiðer to litel end to michel. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon (Calig.) (1978) l. 15417 Aiðer [c1300 Otho boþe] bi worden and by writen. c1475 Gregory's Chron. in J. Gairdner (1876) 136 (MED) Kepyng, nevyrtheles, in alle maner of eythyr thyngys and lawys, nought makyng subjecte..one of the same realmys on to the othyr. OE Ælfric Homily: De Duodecim Abusivis (Corpus Cambr. 178) in R. Morris (1868) 1st Ser. 303 Þonne byð his eard geyrmed foroft, ægðer ge [a1225 Lamb. 487 eiðer ȝe] on heregunge ge on hungre ge on cwealme ge on ungewyderum ge on wildeorum. OE (Corpus Cambr.) lv. 383 Sunnandæges cypingc we forbeodað æghwar..& ælce lade ægðer ge on wæne ge on horse ge on byrdene. OE (Tiber. B.iv) anno 1065 Þa Ryðrenan dydan mycelne hearm abutan Hamtune..ægþær þæt [lOE Laud ægðer þæt] hi ofslogon menn & bærndon hus & corn & namon eall þæt orf þe hig mihton to cuman. II. Expressing alternatives. 3. In correlative constructions with a conjunction, introducing the mention of alternatives. a1325 (c1250) (1968) l. 3484 His word gu wurðe digere al-so lif, Digere or eiðer child or wif. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. clxxvii. 1070 Whanne the spray of þe newe vyne is to soone take away eyþer to hastiliche kutte or in vndewe tyme. a1400 (a1325) (Gött.) l. 9838 If þu fonde..A barn..þat had thre fete, or handis thre,..And..siþen anoþer..þat wantid eyder fote or hand. a1425 (?a1400) (Harl. 674) (1944) 124 Bi þin eren, not bot noise... By þin nose, not bot eiþer stynche or sauour, & by þi taast, not bot eiþer soure or swete. c1450 tr. Palladius (Bodl. Add.) i. l. 25 Eyther [?1440 Duke Humfrey outher] springing there Or elles thider brought from elles where. ?a1475 (a1396) W. Hilton (Harl. 6579) i. ii. f. 2v (MED) Þis lif longeth to alle..whilke eiþer han stat, office, ore cure ouer oþer men. 1540 T. Cromwell Let. 12 June in R. B. Merriman (1902) II. 267 I neuer thought treson to your Highnes..ayther in woorde or dede. 1542 T. Elyot at Epilepsia It hapneth..of one of thre causes, eyther of a humour fleumaticke or melancholye..or of a wynde grosse and colde..or of humors aboundyng to moch in the stomacke. 1593 R. Hooker i. ii. 51 How should either men or Angels be able perfectly to behold? 1597 Bp. J. King xlvi. 624 The mutable and transitorye either pleasures or profittes of this life. 1603 S. Daniel Def. Ryme in (new ed.) sig. G6v The Reader must either giue off vnsatisfied, or vncertainely cast backe to retriue the escaped sence. 1607 T. Walkington xiv. sig. L2 These..dreames be prognosticous of either good or badde successe. 1697 tr. F. Burgersdijck ii. ix. 42 Reduction is either ostensive or else by way of impossible. 1713 G. Berkeley i. 52 Either, Hylas, you are jesting, or have a very bad Memory. 1725 J. Coats (rev. ed.) 175 Heads either of Men, Beasts, or Birds, are very frequent in Armoury, and born either full-fac'd, looking forward, or side-fac'd in profil. 1734 J. Swift Strephon & Cloe in 16 The Bride must either void or burst. 1790 W. Bligh 3 He..was forbidden..to touch either map, ephemeris, book of astronomical observations, sextant, time-keeper, or any of my surveys or drawings. 1833 C. Thirlwall in 2 656 Religious rites by which either Thebes or Eleusis were afterwards distinguished. 1837 T. Carlyle II. vi. vi. 400 Either emergent, or else emerged and full-blown. 1875 B. Jowett tr. Plato (ed. 2) III. 266 A narration of events, either past, present, or to come. 1919 N. A. Duddington tr. N. O. Lossky ii. viii. 310 The conceptualist view of the problem of universals must either involve an infinite regress or have recourse to realism. a1961 E. Hemingway (1964) 64 I would not have thought of eating a meal without drinking either wine or cider or beer. 2003 J. H. Munro in D. Jenkins I. 184 The yarns, spun by either the ‘rock’ or the ‘wheel’, were..strong and tightly twisted. ?a1425 MS Hunterian 95 f. 141 in at Other Þe nyneþe cause is þat ȝif þe surgene..leue eiþer heir oþer pouder in þe wounde oþer enye oþir þing. ?c1430 (?1383) J. Wyclif (1871) III. 297 Eþer to kyng..oþer to deukis. 1551 R. Record Pref. Knowledge..that maye appertaine either to good gouernance in time of peace, eyther wittye pollicies in time of warre. 1574 E. Hellowes tr. A. de Guevara 31 In those golden tymes, eyther Philosophers did gouerne, eyther else Gouernors did vse philosophie. 1588 A. King tr. P. Canisius G viij b Ather on ye day self of ye æquinoxe, ather ellis on ye day nixt yairefter. 4. At the end of a clause. c1390 Charter Abbey Holy Ghost (Laud) in C. Horstmann (1895) I. 344 (MED) & mad Adam, & hys wyf eyþer, a cote of leþer. a1438 (1940) i. 129 (MED) Þu art holdyn þe grettest loller in al þis cuntre, er a-bowte London eythyr. c1450 Jack Upland's Rejoinder (Digby) l. 284 in P. L. Heyworth (1968) 110 Þai fonde ȝou werse þan harlotes or joguloures eþer. 1584 King James VI & I 27 Princes..that ar tyrants rather Then Nero, Commode, or Caligule ather. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) ii. v. 182 To. Wilt thou set thy foote o' my necke? An. Or o' mine either ? View more context for this quotation 1852 C. Kingsley in Nov. 512/1 Ah, if all my priests were but like them! or my people either! 1860 ‘G. Eliot’ I. i. vii. 124 Mrs Tulliver had a sighing sense that her husband would do as he liked, whatever sister Glegg said, or sister Pullet either. 1891 at Either Mod. If John had said so, or William either, I could believe it. 1955 R. Stout (1970) i. 4 If anyone asks for me, or her either, he'll be told that we're busy. b. Used to emphasize a preceding (explicit or implied) negative (equivalent to nor preceding the clause: see nor conj.1 5b). Cf. neither adv. 3. 1571 sig. V.iijv/2 Ne cela aussi, nor that either. 1611 in M. C. Questier (1998) 112 No no: we would leave all first then suffer either hym to have any doing in our cause or his patrons the Iesswetes either. 1653 S. Fisher 282 That clause reasons Reasonlesly against Reason indeed, for it hath neither good sense nor reason in it to your own purpose, or ours either. 1718 28 To shew that his Lordship could not..intend his (seemingly) Hard Sayings, against the Honesty of his Misrepresenters; or against their Understanding Either. 1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian iv, in 2nd Ser. I. 107 We little thought to hae sittin doun wi' the like o' my auld Davie Howden, or you either. 1875 Ld. Tennyson ii. i. 63 No call for sonnet-sorting now, nor for sonnet-making either. 1885 July 355/2 There's no use cryin' over spilt milk; or watered stock, either. 1937 Apr. 106/1 (advt.) You will not get burnt waffles, or underdone ones either. 1998 14 Mar. i. 6/2 And all too often the vehicles are not insured or MoT tested either. 1810 S. T. Coleridge 14 Apr. (1959) III. 286 And Derwent is ‘a nice little fellow’—and no Lackwit either. 1879 A. W. Tourgée 308 The mare..was no slouch, either. 1954 K. Amis Let. in Z. Leader (2000) 395 All right, isn't he?, but rather argumentative without a lot of critical equipment. Not fond of drinking or Bohemianism, either. 1965 ‘E. Queen’ iii. 122 Also, I have the misfortune to be Irish. And not lace-curtain Irish, either! 2009 T. Wolfe in Sept. 314/2 The captain and the co-captain! Yeah! And they don't talk like any flight commanders, either! 1898 14 Apr. 4/2 ‘Durn if I'll do it fur ten if he gits fifteen.’ ‘Me, either’, said another. ‘Me, either,’ echoed the rest. And they slowly filed down the stairs. 1926 E. Hemingway xiii. 132 ‘You know I'm not much on those sort of places.’ ‘Me either,’ Bill said. 1978 H. Hodges x. 97 ‘I wouldn't want you to get pregnant if you didn't want to.’ She said, ‘Me either.’ 2008 A. Davies 71 ‘I can't believe it.’ ‘Me either,’ I say, feeling suddenly very chipper to be in agreement with Charlie. D. conj. c1384 (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Luke xvi. 19 Sum man..was clothid in purpur, and biys, ether [c1425 Egerton 617 & 618 or] whit silk. (Titus) (1851) 8 The cruelte of all theuis eithir robberis. a1450 (c1405) On translating Bible (Trin. Cambr.) in (1938) 7 175 (MED) He were cursed of God, þat wolde þe puple schulde be lewder eiþer wors þan þei ben. 1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry (1971) cxvii. 156 She was brente eyther stoned with stones. 1611 Luke vi. 42 Either [1881 Revised, Or] how canst thou say to thy brother. View more context for this quotation a1450 (a1396) W. Hilton 19 (MED) Eþer it turneþ in-to fleschli loue and in-to leccherie, eiþer ellis it makiþ myche of her tyme be lost and wastid. 1485 (Caxton) ii. iii. sig. cviiiv To mete with kynge Ryons and destroye hym eyther els to dye therfor. 1532 L. Cox sig. Cviiv Whan men mete with theuys or murderers, they must either be slayne by the wepons of suche vnthryfty and malicious persones: either els perysshe by your sentence gyuen in iugement vpon them. 1583 P. Stubbes sig. C1v Either else they would neuer be so desirous of reuenge. 1602 S. Patrick tr. I. Gentillet i. ii. 46 The words of detraction, of blame, and of slaunder that are tolde in the eare, bring often destruction, either to the reporter, or to him to whom they are reported, or to him of whom they are spoken, either els to all together. 1675 E. Stillingfleet 225 Where most need were, there were most perfection, either else ye hold them not your pure Brethren. a1897 F. B. Lloyd (1898) i. 15 Everything had been moved out or moved in or either moved off, or anyhow that was the general appearment to me. 1970 Spring–Summer 26 Roll 'em in flour..an' fry 'em; or either y'can take buttermilk 'n' an' egg an' whip it t'gether. 1982 P. M. Ginns iii. 43 We'd take a straight pin and bend it or either a safety pin and cut it off. 2012 G. Bettman in J. Gatehouse v. 167 They took us for granted, or either they didn't value us the same way we thought we should be valued. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2020; most recently modified version published online June 2022). <  pron.adj.adv.conj.eOE |
