5 exercises — practise each, every, either, neither, and both with correct verb agreement in technical writing.
0 / 5 completed
1 / 5
A deployment script comment reads: "_____ node in the cluster must acknowledge the config change before rollout continues." Choose the correct quantifier for emphasizing individual, one-by-one confirmation.
"Each" is correct because it emphasizes individual members of a group being considered one at a time, which fits the meaning of requiring separate, individual acknowledgment from every node. "All" (option A) treats the cluster as a collective group and would be grammatically fine but loses the "one-by-one" nuance that "each" specifically conveys, which matters in this context since acknowledgment happens node by node. "Both" (option B) is restricted to exactly two items, but a cluster typically has more than two nodes. "Neither" (option D) is a negative quantifier for two items and would reverse the meaning entirely, saying no node should acknowledge — the opposite of what a rollout requires.
2 / 5
Choose the sentence with correct subject-verb agreement after "every":
"Exposes its own" is correct: "every" is always followed by a singular noun and takes singular verb agreement, no matter how many items exist in the group being described — "every microservice... exposes" (not "expose"). The possessive must also be the singular "its", not the plural "their", to stay consistent with the singular subject. Options A and B incorrectly use the plural verb form "expose". Option D correctly uses the singular verb but incorrectly pairs it with the plural possessive "their", creating a subject-agreement mismatch — this is one of the most common errors when writers subconsciously treat "every X" as a plural concept because it refers to many items.
3 / 5
A code review comment says: "_____ of the two approaches has trade-offs worth documenting." Choose the correct quantifier meaning "each one of the two, individually".
"Either" correctly refers to one or the other, or both, of exactly two items, and is used here to mean "each of the two approaches (there are only two) has its own trade-offs". "Every" (option A) is used for three or more items in a set, not exactly two, and would be grammatically odd applied to only two approaches. "All" (option C) is also typically used for three or more items and does not naturally pair with a stated total of two. "None" (option D) is a negative quantifier meaning zero, which reverses the intended meaning — the sentence is affirming that both approaches have trade-offs, not denying it.
4 / 5
Which sentence correctly uses "neither...nor" with proper verb agreement in a test report?
"Is affected" is correct: with "neither...nor", the verb agrees with the noun closest to it — here, "the production environment" is singular, so the verb must be singular ("is"), not plural ("are"). Option A incorrectly uses the plural verb "are". Option C omits the correct verb form entirely, using the bare form "be", which is ungrammatical in a declarative statement. Option D incorrectly pairs "neither" with "or" instead of its required partner "nor" — "neither" must always be paired with "nor", never "or", in standard English.
5 / 5
A release note states: "_____ the frontend team and the backend team signed off on the API contract before the freeze." Choose the correct quantifier meaning "the two of them together, both included".
"Both" is correct: it explicitly groups exactly two named parties together as jointly satisfying the condition, matching the meaning that both teams, together, signed off. "Each" (option A) would shift the focus to individual, separate sign-off, which is a subtly different meaning (each one on their own) rather than emphasizing the pair collectively; while grammatically valid in other contexts, "both" is the more natural and precise choice when the sentence explicitly names exactly two parties joined by "and". "Every" (option B) requires three or more items and does not fit exactly two named teams. "Either" (option D) implies a choice between one or the other, or an inclusive "one or both", which does not match the intended meaning of the sentence stating that both signed off.