The sentence in question is... "Neither X nor Y noticed her" While this is grammatically correct, is it archaic? Should "or" be used? Perhaps I should go into more detail on the sentence: "Neve entered the Norovirus testing facility. Neither Norburt nor Nora saw her."
hoho, can I stick a gold star on your... I dunno, wherever you keep them. What is it with you and gold stars anyway? Weird.
Random story... My old manager used to say "gold star for you!" to anyone who did a good job. She did it for so long, I eventually bought her a pack of gold stars to give out. We kept them on our name badges. =]
I think I have an equivalent story... perhaps not. I used to work with a guy who wore ankle swingers (short trousers). My boss once presented him with the cut-off bottoms of an old pair of his trousers and a sewing kit. They were wrapped. I hate myself for it but I laughed a lot.
Neither/nor is technically correct, and neither/or would sound so off that there'd be better alternatives even in a casual/technically incorrect character voice. But when "nor" doesn't fit stylistically (and sometimes it won't; most of the time it probably won't), just construct the sentence differently to find something that flows better. Building off your example, this is one way I'd get around "nor":
I say stick with nor so you can bang out that quadruple alliterative. Neither Neve nor Nora is literary gold! Sextuple alliteration if you include Norburt and Norovirus... I realize I just completely clobbered that sentence
Where people most often get this wrong is when the sentence is negative but 'neither' is not used. He didn't go to the store or to work. Folks often want to put 'nor' in sentences like that, however, 'or' is the correct conjunction. 'Either' is implied but not stated.
Well noted. You can also use 'nor' after the negative in this kind of scenario providing you switch the verb and subject: He didn't go to the store, nor did he go to work.
Oh there is more. I hate Big Bird apparently, according to a post in prog-journal. Why? IDK. Spoiler: Big Bird Rant Cavetroll, you have been very kind to me for a long time, and in recent discussions there has been something I have noticed. I do not mean to dwell on the subject, but it is also a subject that cannot be rushed. I imagine that you are aware that one day this situation might arise, ever since the first time it happened, which was perhaps some time ago now. But time is no longer a factor and we need to understand that I love Big Bird. Yes fuck off. I know you hate Big Bird because her face is as beaky as yours. Yes, you might look like a giant bird, but get over it. Yes, Your face is weirdly bird like. But Big Bird is like this every day, and I will marry her.
I don't know if you have the usage right for "nor." It is usually used in a negative comparison, while "or" is neutral. But it is archaic, so it should only be used in a situation where you want to express that.
But you had to add in the second verb in that construction. Now you have 'neither' implied. He didn't go to either the store or to work. Neither did he go to the store, nor did he go to work. He didn't go to the store, neither did he go to work. Cambridge gives a good explanation (the whole page is worth reviewing):
I think about the different ORs the way that they work in maths: or - 1 or the other, or both nor - Neither xor - 1 or the other, but not both
