Both means the two items or people being discussed. When you say “both my parents,” you mean your mother and your father together. When a teacher tells the class that both answers are correct, she means the first answer is right and the second answer is right too.

The word helps us talk about two things as a pair or unit. If you have vanilla ice cream in one hand and chocolate in the other, and someone asks what flavors you got, you might say “both.” If your friend asks whether you want to play soccer or basketball, and you can't decide, you might answer “both!”

We use both when we want to be clear we're including two things completely, not choosing between them. “Both teams played well” means each team played well. “I finished both books” means you completed the first book and you completed the second book. Without the word both, someone might wonder if you meant only one.

You'll often see both paired with and: “She's both smart and funny” means she has both qualities at once. The word reminds us that sometimes the answer isn't either this or that, but rather this and that together.