How to use so, too, either, neither in english grammar
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Me too and so + auxiliary + subject
To answer affirmatively, most often we use so + auxiliary + subject. Orally, we can also say “Me too” (but this is more familiar):
- “I’m tired.” “Me too. / So am I”.
- “She can play the piano.” “So can he!”.
- “We have visited London.” “So have we.”
In the present tense and the preterite, there’s no auxiliary in the affirmative starting sentence. We then use the auxiliaries of these two tenses: do (present tense) and did (past tense):
- “My brother loves coffee.” “So do I!”
- “Paul ate a cookie.” “So did she!”
Me neither
When the starting sentence is negative, we use the structure neither + auxiliary + subject. Orally, we can also say “Me neither” (but that’s more familiar).
- “I’ve never been to Italy.” “Me neither. / Neither have I.”
- “We shouldn’t smoke” “Neither should I.”
- “Sarah isn’t very fat.” “Neither is her mother.”
How to reply negatively or positively
- “I love pizzas.” “I don’t.”
When the sentence is negative, the affirmative form is used in the contradiction answer. Remember to emphasize the ‘I’ orally!
- “I’m not tired.” “I am.”
An equivalent of ‘yes, it’s true’ ‘yes/no, indeed’
When the sentence is affirmative and there is no auxiliary, we use the affirmative form and the auxiliary do:
- “They succeeded.” “So they did.”
When the sentence is negative and there is for example the auxiliary have (or another one), we answer with the negative form and the same auxiliary:
- “They haven’t reached a compromise.” “So they haven’t.”
⚠️ We can also say: (Yes) you’re right. / (Yes,) that’s true. / (No,) indeed.
⚠️ Do not confuse the order of the auxiliary!
Compare the following two sentences:
- “I succeeded”. So did he.” → He also succeeded.
- “He succeeded. ” “So he did.” → He finally succeeded.
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