1

Is is grammatically okay to say?

I can't do this and that

My colleague persists that when you negate the verb, you can't use 'and' and it should be either; 

I can't do this or that

or

I can neither do this nor that

This doesn't sound substantial to me. I've tried googling, but there weren't any thread that specifically discusses this. Either it's pretty much rudimentary and usage of 'and' is completely okay, or I'm going to learn something new.

Please share some insights.

Quidam
  • 473
Pouya Ataei
  • 113
  • 1
    Once deletion occurs, ambiguity becomes far more likely. Even with 'I can juggle three balls and ride a unicycle', there is ambiguity. There is a different issue with your examples. 'I can't juggle three balls and ride a unicycle' is grammatical, totally acceptable, and means you can't do both at once. 'I can't juggle three balls or ride a unicycle' is grammatical, totally acceptable, and means you can't do either. And I'm 98% sure that this is what your colleague is correctly saying. – Edwin Ashworth May 07 '17 at 14:19
  • Your example is very clear and understandable. How about this one, 'I can't play football and volleyball'. Is this totally acceptable too? – Pouya Ataei May 07 '17 at 14:24
  • Totally grammatical, but, I'd say, not totally acceptable. Ambiguity should be avoided. There is no reason not to use it in reply to 'Can you manage to play both football and volleyball for the school as well as studying for your A-Levels?' Or (with a different meaning) in reply to 'Which of the following would you like not to have to take part in in your sports periods – football, tennis, swimming, rowing, volleyball, hockey, cricket, podex ... ?' – Edwin Ashworth May 07 '17 at 14:42
  • I realize that this is not what you're asking; but "I can neither do this nor that" is not parallel. The words following 'neither' and 'nor' should be the same parts of speech. I can do neither this nor that; I can neither do this nor avoid that. – Chaim May 07 '17 at 15:05

0 Answers0