either: [OE] Either is the modern descendant of an ancient Germanic phrase which meant literally ‘always each of two’. Its constituents were *aiwō, source of English aye ‘ever, always’, (which was also one of the building blocks of which each was made) and *gikhwatharaz, ancestor of English whether. In Old English this became lexicalized as the compound ?gehw?ther, subsequently contracted to ?gther, from which developed modern English either. Despite its similarity, neither is more than just either with a negative prefix tacked on: its history is parallel but slightly different. => aye, whether
either
Old English ?geer, contraction of ?ghw?eer (pron., adv., conj.) "each of two, both," from a "always" (see aye (adv.)) + ge- collective prefix + hw?eer "which of two, whether" (see whether). Cognate with Dutch ieder, Old High German eogiwedar, German jeder "either, each, every").
Modern sense of "one or the other of two" is late 13c. Adverbially, for emphasis, "in any case, at all," especially when expressing negation, by 1828. Use of either-or to suggest an unavoidable choice between alternatives (1931) in some cases reflects Danish enten-eller, title of an 1843 book by Kierkegaard.
例文
1. She had met both sons and did not care for either .
2人の息子は彼女はすべて会って、1人も好きではありません。
2.He seems either to fear women or to sentimentalize them.
彼は女性を恐れるか、ロマンチックな考えを持っているようだ。
3.On either side of the tracks the ground fell away sharply.
滑走路の両側は非常に急な斜面になっている。
4.Both groups on either side are just picking off innocent bystanders.