# 1037 - How to Use BOTH Naturally in English

An episode of [Happy English Podcast (Natural American English)](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/884643408), 22 Apr 2026, 7:26.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/71538131/1037_how_to_use_both_naturally_in_english.mp3

Both. Such a simple word, right? But when you actually try to use it in conversation… things can get a little tricky. Should you say, “Both of us went”? Or “We both went”? Or maybe… “Both we went”? Yeah… that one doesn’t sound right. So what’s the deal with both? Where do you put it in a sentence? And how do native speakers actually use it in everyday conversation? That’s what we’re going to look at today. The Happy English Podcast Helping people speak English better since 2014 Over 1,000 episodes • 8 million downloads 📘 Get free weekly English lessons plus instant access to my FREE Vocabulary Workshop.: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/free-english-lessons 🎥 Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts 🌐 Learn more about my English lessons and courses https://www.myhappyenglish.com

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: Both Such a simple word, right, but when you actually
[0:04] Speaker 1: try to use it in conversation, things can get a
[0:08] Speaker 1: little tricky. Should you say both of us went, or
[0:14] Speaker 1: we both went, or maybe both we went? Yeah, that
[0:18] Speaker 1: one didn't sound so right. So what's the deal with both?
[0:23] Speaker 1: Where do you put it in a sentence? And how
[0:25] Speaker 1: do native speakers actually use it in everyday conversation. Well
[0:31] Speaker 1: that's what we're going to look at today. Welcome to
[0:38] Speaker 1: another Happy English podcast, coming to you from New York City,
[0:43] Speaker 1: and here's your English teacher, Michael. All right, thank you John,
[0:48] Speaker 1: and thanks everyone. It's Michael here from Happy English and
[0:53] Speaker 1: I help people speak English better. And this is Happy
[0:58] Speaker 1: English Podcast, Episode one thousand and thirty seven. How to
[1:04] Speaker 1: use both naturally in English. Let's start with a simple
[1:09] Speaker 1: idea that will help you remember everything we're going to
[1:12] Speaker 1: talk about today. We use both when we're talking about
[1:17] Speaker 1: two people or two things together. That's it. Two items,
[1:23] Speaker 1: not three, not many, just two. For example, imagine you
[1:29] Speaker 1: and a friend went to a concert. You can say
[1:33] Speaker 1: we both had a great time. That means you and
[1:37] Speaker 1: your friend, the two of you enjoyed it. Or maybe
[1:42] Speaker 1: you're talking about two restaurants you tried. You might say,
[1:46] Speaker 1: both places are really good. Again two places, So both
[1:52] Speaker 1: always connects two things together. Now, let's look at one
[1:57] Speaker 1: of the most common patterns, and that is both. And
[2:03] Speaker 1: we use both and to connect two nouns or two ideas.
[2:08] Speaker 1: For example, I like both coffee and tea. That means
[2:14] Speaker 1: you like coffee and you like tea. Here's another example,
[2:18] Speaker 1: she speaks both English and Spanish. Or imagine you're talking
[2:24] Speaker 1: about your weekend plans. You might say, I want to
[2:28] Speaker 1: relax both Saturday and Sunday. This pattern is very clear
[2:33] Speaker 1: and very useful. Both and connects to equal things. This
[2:42] Speaker 1: pattern is very clear and very useful both and connects
[2:48] Speaker 1: to equal things. Next, let's look at another very common pattern.
[2:54] Speaker 1: Both of we use both of a four pronoun like us,
[3:01] Speaker 1: them and you. For example, both of us went to
[3:05] Speaker 1: the meeting. That means you and another person went. Here's
[3:09] Speaker 1: another example, both of them live in Brooklyn. Or maybe
[3:14] Speaker 1: you're talking to some friends and you say, oh, I
[3:17] Speaker 1: want to invite both of you. That means the two
[3:21] Speaker 1: people you're talking to. Now, here's a small but important point.
[3:27] Speaker 1: When we use both of we need something after it,
[3:31] Speaker 1: like both of us, both of them, both of the students.
[3:37] Speaker 1: For example, both of the students pass the test, so
[3:42] Speaker 1: both of is used when we're being a little bit
[3:46] Speaker 1: more specific. Now let's look at something very conversational, and
[3:51] Speaker 1: this is where your English will start to sound more natural.
[3:55] Speaker 1: Instead of saying both of us went to the meeting,
[3:59] Speaker 1: native speakers very often say we both went to the meeting.
[4:03] Speaker 1: This is shorter, smoother, and very common in everyday conversation.
[4:09] Speaker 1: For example, we both like sushi, or they both work
[4:13] Speaker 1: in the same office. My parents both grew up in
[4:17] Speaker 1: New York. So instead of both of us, we often
[4:22] Speaker 1: move both after the subject. We both they both my
[4:28] Speaker 1: friends both. This is one of the most natural patterns
[4:31] Speaker 1: in spoken English. So let's compare these two both of
[4:36] Speaker 1: us went to the meeting. We both went to the meeting. Honestly,
[4:41] Speaker 1: there's not much difference in meaning, but we both sounds
[4:45] Speaker 1: more conversational and is used more often in everyday speech.
[4:51] Speaker 1: So if you want to sound more natural, this is
[4:54] Speaker 1: a great pattern to use. Now let's look at one
[4:58] Speaker 1: more useful idea, conversational shortcuts. In real conversation, we often
[5:05] Speaker 1: shorten things when the meaning is clear. For example, imagine
[5:09] Speaker 1: someone asks you do you like coffee and tea. You
[5:13] Speaker 1: can simply say yeah both. That means I like both
[5:17] Speaker 1: coffee and tea. Or if someone asks, did you and
[5:21] Speaker 1: your brother go to the game, you can say, yeah,
[5:24] Speaker 1: we both did. Here's another example. If someone asks are
[5:29] Speaker 1: those restaurants good, you can say yeah, both are great.
[5:34] Speaker 1: So both can stand alone when the meaning is clear
[5:38] Speaker 1: from the context. So let's recap. We use both when
[5:43] Speaker 1: we're talking about two people or two things together. We
[5:46] Speaker 1: use both, and to connect to ideas I like both
[5:52] Speaker 1: coffee and tea. We use both of before pronouns or
[5:57] Speaker 1: specific groups. Both of us went to the party, and
[6:01] Speaker 1: in everyday conversation we often say we both went instead
[6:05] Speaker 1: of both of us went. And finally, we can use
[6:09] Speaker 1: both by itself when the meaning is clear, yeah both.
[6:14] Speaker 1: So here's your challenge this week. Try using both in
[6:18] Speaker 1: your daily conversations. Talk about two things you like, two
[6:21] Speaker 1: places you went, or something you and a friend did together.
[6:26] Speaker 1: That's how you can start making these patterns part of
[6:29] Speaker 1: your everyday English. And keep in mind the best way
[6:33] Speaker 1: to remember English like this and any other word or
[6:36] Speaker 1: phrase is to take that word or phrase write it
[6:40] Speaker 1: in a sentence that's true for you or true in
[6:44] Speaker 1: your world, and then memorize your sentences. Hey, thanks for listening,
[6:50] Speaker 1: and remember learning another language is not easy, but it's
[6:53] Speaker 1: not impossible, and I'm here to help you on your journey.
[7:00] Speaker 1: This podcast was brought to you by Happy English. Please
[7:03] Speaker 1: visit Myhappy english dot com. Show your support for Happy
[7:08] Speaker 1: English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get happy,
[7:12] Speaker 1: Happy English

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