Learn English – Correct way of using – “Both”

conjunctionspredeterminerssentence-choicesentence-constructionword-order

Which one of the following two sentences is more correct/appropriate than the other? Why?

  1. That's a both interesting and challenging problem.
  2. That's both an interesting and challenging problem.

Best Answer

The best way to write this sentence is to make it simple and direct by eliminating the somewhat awkward-sounding phrase using "both" (in any version): "That's an interesting and challenging problem."

This says the exact same thing and is much more to the point. I spent many years on a newspaper copy desk and would strongly recommend grammar and composition guidelines found in Strunk & White's "The Elements of Style." One of their Elementary Principles of Composition is "Omit needless words."

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