Correlative structures are pairs of connectors that work together — you cannot use one without the other. Não só...mas também, ou...ou, nem...nem, quer...quer: each of these is a two-part connector that joins two elements and marks a specific logical relationship between them. They are the hinges of balanced Portuguese sentences, and mastering them takes your writing from simple to sophisticated.
Correlatives exist in English too — both...and, either...or, neither...nor, not only...but also — but the Portuguese system is larger and, in some cases, behaves differently. The connectors can appear in positions English wouldn't allow. Verb agreement with correlative subjects has its own rules. And a few Portuguese correlatives (quer...quer, seja...seja) have no direct English equivalent and cover meanings English expresses with separate constructions.
This page works through the seven main correlatives in European Portuguese, one by one, with the patterns, register, agreement behaviour, and natural examples you need to use each one confidently.
1. Não só...mas também (not only...but also)
Não só...mas também is the Portuguese workhorse for additive emphasis. The second half can also be como também or the simpler mas. It marks that the second element is not just added to the first but that it extends or intensifies it.
Pattern and variants
- não só...mas também
- não só...como também (slightly more literary)
- não só...mas ainda (emphatic: "but even")
- não só...mas (mesmo) (less formal)
Ela não só fala português, mas também escreve com grande elegância.
She not only speaks Portuguese, but also writes with great elegance.
A cidade é interessante não só pela história, como também pela gastronomia.
The city is interesting not only for its history, but also for its cuisine.
O novo modelo é não só mais rápido, mas ainda mais económico.
The new model is not only faster, but even more economical.
Inversion when não só is sentence-initial
When não só opens the sentence, Portuguese often triggers subject-verb inversion in the first half, in a way that parallels English. This is a marker of formal or literary register:
Não só conhece ele a obra do autor, como é especialista nela.
Not only does he know the author's work, he is a specialist in it.
Não só se enganou o jornalista, como insistiu no erro.
Not only did the journalist get it wrong, he insisted on the error.
This inversion is optional and belongs to written or formal registers. Spoken Portuguese often keeps the normal word order.
Agreement
When não só...mas também links two singular subjects, the verb is plural:
Não só o pai mas também o filho estão envolvidos no projeto.
Not only the father but also the son are involved in the project.
Some grammarians accept singular agreement when the subjects are conceptually unified, but plural is safer.
2. Ou...ou (either...or)
Ou...ou expresses an exclusive or inclusive alternative, depending on context. The first ou is often dropped in casual speech, leaving a plain ou between the elements, but the correlative form emphasises the choice.
Ou vais estudar, ou desligas a televisão.
Either you go study, or you turn off the TV.
A resposta está ou no primeiro capítulo ou no apêndice.
The answer is either in the first chapter or in the appendix.
Ou tens razão, ou estou completamente enganado.
Either you're right, or I'm completely mistaken.
Exclusive vs inclusive ou
Like English "or," Portuguese ou can be either inclusive (at least one, possibly both) or exclusive (exactly one). The context usually makes the intended reading clear, but for rigorous disambiguation:
- Exclusive: ou...ou, often with mas não ambos added.
- Inclusive: ou...ou...ou ambos for clarity; or simply ou.
Ou ganhamos agora ou perdemos tudo.
Either we win now or we lose everything. (exclusive)
Podes levar ou o vermelho, ou o azul, ou os dois.
You can take either the red, or the blue, or both. (inclusive)
Agreement
With two singular subjects, Portuguese allows both singular and plural verbs, depending on whether the speaker views the alternatives as independent or collective:
Ou o João ou a Maria vai à reunião.
Either João or Maria will go to the meeting. (one of them)
Ou o João ou a Maria vão à reunião.
Either João or Maria will go to the meeting. (they are jointly in consideration)
Singular is more common when the choice is genuinely between one or the other.
3. Nem...nem (neither...nor)
Nem...nem is the negative counterpart of ou...ou. It denies both alternatives.
Nem o filme nem o livro me impressionaram.
Neither the film nor the book impressed me.
Ela nem come carne nem bebe álcool.
She neither eats meat nor drinks alcohol.
Não quero nem ouvir falar disso.
I don't even want to hear about it.
Note the last example: nem alone can mean "not even" — a single-word use covered on the double negation page. When paired with a second nem, it becomes the correlative.
Agreement with nem...nem
With two singular subjects linked by nem...nem, Portuguese normally uses plural agreement, unlike English:
This is because nem...nem frames both elements as negated together, treating them as a collective subject. Singular is possible but less common.
No other negative needed
Nem...nem already sets the clause as negative. You do not add a não:
✅ Nem a Ana nem o Pedro vieram.
Neither Ana nor Pedro came.
❌ Nem a Ana nem o Pedro não vieram.
Incorrect — 'nem...nem' already carries the negation.
4. Quer...quer (whether...or)
Quer...quer is the emphatic "whether...or" — it presents two alternatives and asserts that the statement holds for both. It has no direct English single-word equivalent; English usually expands it to "whether X or Y" or "regardless of whether X or Y."
Quer chova quer faça sol, vamos sair.
Whether it rains or it's sunny, we're going out.
Quer gostes quer não, é assim que é.
Whether you like it or not, that's how it is.
Quer queiras quer não queiras, ela vai mudar de ideias.
Whether you want it or not, she'll change her mind.
Subjunctive after quer
Quer...quer almost always takes the present subjunctive, because the alternatives are hypothetical conditions rather than asserted facts. This aligns with the concessive nature of the construction.
Quer estejas de acordo, quer não, a decisão está tomada.
Whether you agree or not, the decision is made.
Register
Quer...quer is neutral-to-slightly-formal. It is very common in written Portuguese and in careful speech. The less formal alternative in conversation is seja como for or como quer que seja (see subjunctive in main clauses).
5. Seja...seja (whether it be...or)
Seja...seja is a sibling of quer...quer, built from the subjunctive of ser. It is slightly more bookish and adds a flavour of classification: presenting options within a category.
Seja por razões pessoais, seja por razões profissionais, a decisão é dele.
Whether for personal or professional reasons, the decision is his.
Toda a gente, seja jovem seja idoso, tem direito a cuidados de saúde.
Everyone, whether young or old, has a right to healthcare.
Seja...ou
A variant seja...ou is also common, especially when the second alternative is introduced less formally:
Seja no verão ou no inverno, o clima é sempre agradável.
Whether in summer or winter, the climate is always pleasant.
Seja + wh-word + for template
As noted on the subjunctive in main clauses page, Portuguese uses the template seja + wh-word + for as a concessive pattern:
Seja quem for, não vou atender.
Whoever it is, I'm not going to answer.
6. Tanto...como (both...and)
Tanto...como marks that a statement applies equally to two elements. It is the Portuguese counterpart of English both...and, but it has wider reach — it can connect nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and clauses.
Tanto o Pedro como a Sofia falam francês.
Both Pedro and Sofia speak French.
Gosto tanto de jazz como de música clássica.
I like both jazz and classical music.
Tanto em Portugal como em Espanha, o café é uma instituição.
Both in Portugal and in Spain, coffee is an institution.
Ele é tanto inteligente como dedicado.
He is both intelligent and dedicated.
Tanto...quanto (slightly more formal)
Tanto...quanto is a formal variant that appears more often in writing:
A decisão afecta tanto os trabalhadores quanto os patrões.
The decision affects both workers and employers.
Agreement with tanto...como
Verb agreement is plural when tanto...como joins two singular subjects — the construction treats them as a compound subject:
Tanto o meu irmão como a minha irmã vão ao casamento.
Both my brother and my sister are going to the wedding.
Not tanto...como of comparison
Do not confuse this correlative with the comparative tão...como / tanto...como meaning "as...as":
O café é tão forte como o expresso italiano. (comparison)
The coffee is as strong as Italian espresso.
Tanto o café como o chá têm cafeína. (correlative, both/and)
Both coffee and tea have caffeine.
The distinction is usually clear from context: comparison compares a degree; the correlative lists two elements.
7. Outro...outro (one...another)
Outro...outro (or um...outro) distributes across two referents — "one...another" or "this one...that one."
Um diz uma coisa, outro diz outra.
One says one thing, another says something else.
Uma mão lava a outra.
One hand washes the other.
Temos dois candidatos: um é advogado, o outro é engenheiro.
We have two candidates: one is a lawyer, the other is an engineer.
With enumeration beyond two
For three or more alternatives, Portuguese uses the flexible uns...outros...outros pattern:
Uns preferem o mar, outros a montanha, outros ainda o campo.
Some prefer the sea, others the mountains, others still the countryside.
Umas ruas eram estreitas, outras largas, outras cheias de árvores.
Some streets were narrow, others wide, others full of trees.
Less common but alive: mais...mais, quanto mais...mais
Though not always classified as correlatives, the mais...mais / quanto mais...mais construction works correlatively and deserves mention. It expresses proportional relationships — as one thing increases, so does another.
Quanto mais lês, mais aprendes.
The more you read, the more you learn.
Quanto mais rápido for o comboio, menos tempo demora a viagem.
The faster the train, the less time the journey takes.
Mais estudo, menos percebo.
The more I study, the less I understand.
Note the third example drops quanto in a colloquial style. The full correlative uses quanto mais...mais / quanto mais...menos / quanto menos...mais.
For this construction in detail, see comparison structures.
Summary table
| Correlative | Meaning | Register | Verb agreement |
|---|---|---|---|
| não só...mas também | not only...but also | neutral to formal | plural |
| ou...ou | either...or | neutral | singular or plural |
| nem...nem | neither...nor | neutral | plural (usually) |
| quer...quer | whether...or | neutral to formal | verb in subjunctive |
| seja...seja | whether it be...or | formal | verb in subjunctive |
| tanto...como | both...and | neutral | plural |
| um...outro | one...another | neutral | context-dependent |
| quanto mais...mais | the more...the more | neutral | each clause independent |
Parallelism: the non-negotiable rule
The single most important rule for correlatives: the two elements joined by the correlative must be grammatically parallel. If the first element is a noun phrase, so is the second. If the first is a clause, so is the second. If the first is a verb in the preterite, so is the second.
❌ Ela não só canta bem, mas também a escrever poesia.
Incorrect — parallelism broken: verb + nominalised verb.
✅ Ela não só canta bem, mas também escreve poesia.
She not only sings well, but also writes poetry.
❌ Vou quer vou a Lisboa, quer ao Porto.
Incorrect — broken parallelism around 'vou'.
✅ Quer vá a Lisboa, quer vá ao Porto, fico contente.
Whether I go to Lisbon or to Porto, I'll be happy.
This is the same rule English correlatives follow. Native speakers judge parallelism instinctively; non-natives have to check it deliberately.
Position of the correlative
A common mistake is to place the first connector too early. The rule: both connectors should be placed immediately before the element they are joining, with identical syntactic position.
❌ Não só a Ana fala francês, mas também inglês.
Awkward — parallelism is off because 'a Ana' is inside the first half but not the second.
✅ A Ana não só fala francês, mas também inglês.
Ana speaks not only French but also English.
✅ Não só a Ana fala francês, como também o João.
Not only Ana speaks French, but so does João.
The second option shifts focus from the two languages to the two people — both are correct, but only one at a time.
Common Mistakes
Error 1: using e or and inside a correlative.
Portuguese correlatives do not take e as a connector — the second element is joined by mas também, ou, nem, quer, como, etc.
❌ Ela não só canta e também dança.
Incorrect — use 'mas também' or 'como também'.
✅ Ela não só canta, mas também dança.
She not only sings but also dances.
Error 2: adding não to nem...nem.
❌ Nem o pai nem o filho não vieram.
Incorrect — 'nem...nem' already negates.
✅ Nem o pai nem o filho vieram.
Neither the father nor the son came.
Error 3: using the indicative after quer...quer.
❌ Quer chove quer faz sol, vamos sair.
Incorrect — 'quer...quer' takes the subjunctive.
✅ Quer chova quer faça sol, vamos sair.
Whether it rains or shines, we're going out.
Error 4: breaking parallelism.
❌ Ou vamos ao cinema ou ficar em casa.
Incorrect — 'vamos' is finite, 'ficar' is infinitive.
✅ Ou vamos ao cinema ou ficamos em casa.
Either we go to the cinema or we stay home.
Error 5: using singular agreement with tanto...como and não só...mas também.
❌ Tanto o Pedro como a Sofia fala francês.
Incorrect — tanto...como joining two singular subjects takes plural agreement.
✅ Tanto o Pedro como a Sofia falam francês.
Both Pedro and Sofia speak French.
Key Takeaways
- Portuguese correlatives come in fixed pairs: omit either half and the sentence breaks.
- Parallelism between the two elements is mandatory — same grammatical category, same position.
- Plural verb agreement is the safe default with não só...mas também, nem...nem, and tanto...como.
- Quer...quer and seja...seja are concessive and take the subjunctive.
- Nem...nem already carries the negation — don't add não.
- Ou...ou takes singular or plural depending on whether you mean one-of or collective.
Correlatives are the connective tissue of sophisticated Portuguese. They let you express relationships — addition, alternative, negation, concession, distribution — that would otherwise require two separate sentences. Deploy them well and your Portuguese will sound crafted, not patched together.
Related Topics
- Double Negation StructuresA2 — In Portuguese, double negation is required, not forbidden — how não pairs with nada, ninguém, nenhum, nunca, and nem to build grammatical negative sentences.
- Comparison StructuresB1 — Mais/menos (do) que, tão/tanto como, quanto mais...mais, tal como — the full system of Portuguese comparatives.
- Indefinite Pronouns (Alguém, Ninguém, Algo, Nada, Tudo)A2 — Referring to unspecified people and things — someone, no one, something, nothing, everything
- Complex Grammar OverviewB1 — A map of advanced syntactic structures in European Portuguese — conditionals, reported speech, relative clauses, cleft sentences, concessives, causatives, and more
- Subjunctive Mood OverviewB1 — What the conjuntivo is in European Portuguese, why it exists, and when the language requires it — a tour of irrealis across the present, imperfect, and future subjunctive