Not only ... but also — Aptitude Question
Not only ... but also: Choose the correct sentence: Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Sentence Correction
- Section: Verbal Ability
- Difficulty: Medium
- Time target: 55 seconds
Question
Choose the correct sentence:
Options
- She not only sings but also she dances.
- She not only sings but also dances.
- She not only sings but dances also well.
- Not only she sings but also dances.
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: B. She not only sings but also dances.
Worked solution
- 'Not only' and 'but also' must be followed by matching structures.
- 'not only sings but also dances' pairs two verbs correctly.
Answer: She not only sings but also dances.
The idea
Correlative pairs demand parallel structures. Read the sentence with each half alone to check both make sense.
Shortcut. 'Not only' is followed by a bare verb (sings), so 'but also' must be followed by a bare verb (dances). That rules out the extra 'she', the stray 'also well' and the misplaced 'Not only she'.
Common trap. "She not only sings but also she dances." — repeating the subject sounds emphatic, but it turns the second half into a full clause while the first half is just a verb.