Is this sentence correct:
I'm not either creative, motivated, or honest?
I'm debating it with an English teacher, and I've sent them several sources that prove my point, but I'm not sure yet.
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You are saying that either allows for 3 items. It does not. dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/either– FeliniusRex - goneCommented Jul 8, 2021 at 17:14
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5Does this answer your question? Can "either" be used for more than two items? Also either or with more than two alternatives and how to use either with more than three options with the word based on, among others.– FumbleFingersCommented Jul 8, 2021 at 17:22
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2The academics will tell you it is not correct. In practice, you will frequently encounter this usage. You'd probably be understood by most speakers, but you'd probably fail a test.– jimbobmcgeeCommented Jul 8, 2021 at 17:57
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1Can you show us the sources you've been referring to that prove your point? (Also, "not either" is wrong. Use "neither" instead.)– gotube ♦Commented Jul 8, 2021 at 20:06
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1 Answer
This is a slightly different question than the others I've seen, but has overlap. You're actually asking several different questions here I think:
How Many Options
The word "either" presents a list of options to choose from and indicates that only one of options can be selected. In formal writing or speech, this list should be exactly 2 options, but informally, it can have 2 or more. (Both you and your teacher are right.)
Either vs Neither
However, your example sentence is incorrect. When the word "either" is made negative, it becomes "neither" instead, and the word "nor" takes the place of "or" in the list. So you could say "I am neither creative nor honest."
The word neither is nearly always used in formal usage today, which means that the sentence "I am neither creative, motivated, nor honest" sounds very strange. Remember, in formal English, neither can only be 2.
And vs Or
Interestingly, when "either" is used, it means that one item out of the list is or will be selected.
For example, "I am either creative, motivated, or honest" means that you are one of those, but not all three. To pick one or more from the list, leave off the word either and just say "I am creative, motivated, or honest." and to pick all three, say "I am creative, motivated, and honest."
On the other hand, "neither" works differently. Neither means that none of the things in the list are selected. "I am neither creative nor motivated" means that I am not creative and I am not motivated.
