What is the most common mistake with "Too" and "Also"?

Three most common errors: 1. 2. "I don't want one too" = wrong in negatives, use EITHER: "I don't want one EITHER." 3. ALSO at the end after the object: "She completed the report also" sounds odd. ALSO goes before the main verb: "She ALSO completed the report."

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Which one to use?Beginneradverbadverb

ToovsAlso

'Too' and 'as well' go at the end of the sentence; 'also' goes before the main verb.

Side-by-side comparison

Too

adverb

All three mean "also", but they go in different positions in the sentence. "Also" goes before the main verb or after the auxiliary. "Too" and "as well" go at the end.

I love Italian food. My sister does too, we often go to the same restaurant together.
Can I have a coffee? I would like a slice of cake as well, please.
"I did not get an invitation." "I did not get one either, maybe it got lost in the post."

Also

adverb

"Also" is the most formal of the three. "As well" is neutral. "Too" is the most informal and conversational. In everyday speech, "too" is the most common.

She also speaks Japanese, which surprised everyone at the interview last week.
He also mentioned that the café closes early on Sundays, so we should go in the morning.
The hotel is also very close to the beach, it is just a five-minute walk from the door.

Common mistake

Three most common errors:

2."I don't want one too" = wrong in negatives, use EITHER: "I don't want one EITHER."
3.ALSO at the end after the object: "She completed the report also" sounds odd. ALSO goes before the main verb: "She ALSO completed the report."

Trick to remember it

Position trick: END of affirmative sentence = TOO or AS WELL. MIDDLE (before main verb) = ALSO. End of negative sentence = EITHER. Register: TOO = informal/neutral. AS WELL = neutral/slightly British. ALSO = slightly more formal, more common in writing.

Quick rule

Too / As well = at the end of the affirmative sentence. Also = before the main verb. In negative sentences: always EITHER at the end (not "too" or "also" in negatives).

Did you know?

The #MeToo social movement (2017) leveraged precisely the colloquial and direct form of "me too", which in colloquial English functions as an affirmative response of solidarity. The grammatically complete version would be "I do too" or "So do I" (with subject + auxiliary + too), but "me too" has become so conventionalized that it is accepted as a response to any positive statement. Part of the hashtag's power was that "me too" is the most direct and immediate solidarity expression in English, two words that every English speaker understands instantly.