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Maple Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

Could "didn't" be repalced by "mightn't"

Question (1), Could didn't be repalced by mightn't ?

Question (2) , If you're interested in the content, could you paraphrase the second sentence?

Sentences:

What might lead one person to cheat or steal while another didn't? How would one person's seemingly innocuous choice, good or bad, affect a great number of people down the line?

The source of it: http://www.harperacademic.com/catalog/book_essay_xml.asp?isbn=006073132X#top

Thanks for you help!
  

Top answer

Mightn't does not exist. It should always be might not . The first sentence is ungrammatical.

— Cool Breeze

  • Mightn't does not exist.
  • It should always be might not .
  • The first sentence is ungrammatical.
  • What is an interrogative pronoun acting as the subject of the main clause and might lead is the main verb.
  • While introduces a subordinate clause and the writer seems to have forgotten what he wrote before it.
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7 Answers
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Mightn't does not exist. It should always be might not. The first sentence is ungrammatical. What is an interrogative pronoun acting as the subject of the main clause and might lead is the main verb. While introduces a subordinate clause and the writer seems to have forgotten what he wrote before it. Clearly, what he wants to say is: What might lead one person t
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Question 1: In this case, 'didn't' cannot be replaced with 'mightn't'.

Question 2: One person makes a choice. His or her choice seems innocuous. How can one person's choice subsequently affect so many other people?
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Cool BreezeMightn't does not exist. It should always be might not.

Oxford Advanced: "might modal verb (negative might not, short form mightn’t ) "

Cambridge:
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>What might lead one person to cheat or steal while another didn't?

To me this is correct. It shows that the 2nd person did not steal (there's no question about it, this is a past fact), while the other might (there are doubts about it), if put/placed (now, today, tomorrow) in the same circumstances.

CoolBreeze interpretation is a bit different, but corr
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It is ambiguous. But you guys' explanations have helped me a lot.

Thanks a thousand!
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I would have used one of the following.

What might lead one person to cheat or steal while another (one) doesn't?
What might have led one person to cheat or steal while another (one) didn't?

CJ
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CalifJimI would have used one of the following.

What might lead one person to cheat or steal while another (one) doesn't?
What might have led one person to cheat or steal while another (one) didn't?

These are both fine, of course, CJ, but they don't cover, IMO, the situation described in my post, where someone is asking why
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