не само..., но и
Not Only ... but Also
Тя е не само умна, но и много мила. (She is not only smart but also very kind.)
How It Works
1. Joining two items. The two parts can be nouns, adjectives, adverbs or phrases of the same kind:
- Той говори не само английски, но и френски. (He speaks not only English but also French.)
- Градът е хубав не само през лятото, но и през зимата. (The town is lovely not only in summer but also in winter.)
2. The second part matters more. The item after но и is often the stronger or more surprising one.
3. Joining two clauses. With full clauses, the first part usually starts with не само че: Не само че закъсня, но и не се извини. (Not only was he late, but he also didn't apologise.)
4. A variant with а. You will also meet не само..., а и with the same meaning: Не само ще отидеш, а и ще играеш хоро. (Not only will you go, you will also dance the horo.)
5. The comma. Bulgarian always puts a comma before the second part of a paired conjunction: не само..., но и. The same rule applies to или... или and хем... хем.
6. Both words are needed. Leaving out и makes но sound like plain 'but', which breaks the meaning. See contrast with но.
A formal alternative is както..., така и, which presents both items as equal.
Examples (5)
- Той говори не само английски, но и френски.
He speaks not only English but also French.
- Тя е не само умна, но и много мила.
She is not only smart but also very kind.
- Не само че закъсня, но и не се извини.
Not only was he late, but he also didn't apologise.
With two whole clauses, the first part uses не само че.
- Този град е хубав не само през лятото, но и през зимата.
This town is lovely not only in summer but also in winter.
- Спортът помага не само на тялото, но и на ума.
Sport helps not only the body but also the mind.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out и in the second part.
Той говори не само английски, но френски.Той говори не само английски, но и френски.The second part is но и. Without и, the sentence breaks off as if a contrast were coming.
Leaving out the comma before но и.
Тя е не само умна но и мила.Тя е не само умна, но и мила.Bulgarian requires a comma before the second part of a paired conjunction.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Not only ... but also builds on но.
Related Patterns
- иAnd, Also and Too with И
The и in но и means 'also'.
Level 1 - същоAlso with Също
Също is a simpler way to add something: Говоря и френски, or Говоря също френски.
Level 1 - хем... хемBoth ... and with Хем
A colloquial pair that also joins two things that are both true.
Level 4 - както..., така иBoth ... and in Formal Style
A formal pair that presents two items as equal.
Level 5 - не..., аNot ... but Rather
Replaces one item with another instead of adding it.
Level 3
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice не само..., но и in Bubblegum
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