Nor without Neither—or or, without Either?

Alternatives in English are often phrased using the correlative conjunctions either . . . or and neither . . . nor:

Each guest sent either a favorite photo or a brief reminiscence.

Neither the recording nor the transcript could be found.

Either . . . or presents existing alternatives, whereas neither . . . nor indicates what is not available.

But when a different negative term, such as no, not, or never, introduces two or more alternatives, the use of nor is considered to create a double negative. “Modern usage,” according to Wilson Follett, “feels that [the two negative terms] cancel each other out” (147).

 Therefore, we write:

I could not see any scuffs, bumps, or chips.  

I saw no scuffs, bumps, or chips. 

Claire Cook summarizes, “If a word like no, not, or never precedes the conjunction but clearly carries over to what follows, the or is appropriate; there’s no need for a nor to repeat the negation for the second part” (187).

However, Cook explains that when “the conjunction joins not two elements governed by the same negative modifier but two independent clauses,” the negation “stops at the conjunction” (187). If the first sentence below is rephrased to include two independent clauses, as in the second example, nor is needed:

We did not receive any complaints at the premiere or in the press.

We did not receive any complaints, nor did the press report any.

The conjunction between the independent clauses introduces a change of subject and predicate, so it, too, must change, from or to nor. 

Works Cited

Cook, Claire Kehrwald. Line by Line: How to Improve Your Own Writing. Houghton Mifflin, 1985.

Follett, Wilson. Modern American Usage: A Guide. Edited by Jacques Barzun et al., Hill and Wang, 1966.