Learn English – use not only… but also… with two different subjects

sentence-construction

As in this sentence:

Not only should you cook your meals, but also they should be healthy.

The first subject is "you", and the second subject is "meals". Can I use not only... but also... this way? Otherwise what's the best way to connect the two parts?

Best Answer

Not really. Not only . . . but also assumes parallel subjects.

The best way to connect them, in the example you gave, is simply to drop the also:

Not only should you cook your meals, but they should be healthy.

Alternatively, you could rewrite it to make the subjects parallel:

Not only should your meals be cooked by you, but they should also be healthy.

There you're getting into the passive voice, though, which a lot of people like to avoid. Personally, I would avoid it here, simply because it's too wordy.

One more possibility, again trying to make the subjects parallel:

Not only should you cook your meals, but you should make them healthy.

Slight change in meaning, but works better.

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