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Equilibrium8 Posted 15 years ago
Grammar

Maybe but maybe

Hi

I'm at odds with this sentence:

"Maybe I’ll buy the boat, but maybe not."

Can the "but" be used here? It sounds wrong to me, but I'm not sure if it is breaking any grammar rules.

I think of but as "+ but -" or "- but +", but in this case it is " uncertain but uncertain" which seems strange.
  

Top answer

Equilibrium8 Can the "but" be used here? It sounds wrong to me, but I'm not sure if it is breaking any grammar rules. It's not breaking any grammar rules, but then consider that people can still speak a lot of nonsense without breaking any grammar rules.

— CalifJim

  • Equilibrium8 Can the "but" be used here?
  • It sounds wrong to me, but I'm not sure if it is breaking any grammar rules.
  • It's not breaking any grammar rules, but then consider that people can still speak a lot of nonsense without breaking any grammar rules.
  • I agree that it's strange.
  • It needs 'and' instead of 'but'.
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4 Answers
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Equilibrium8Can the "but" be used here? It sounds wrong to me, but I'm not sure if it is breaking any grammar rules.
It's not breaking any grammar rules, but then consider that people can still speak a lot of nonsense without breaking any grammar rules.
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Thanks Jim.

CalifJimIt's not breaking any grammar rules, but then consider that people can still speak a lot of nonsense without breaking any grammar rules. I agree that it's strange. It needs 'and' instead of 'but'. CJ
Sure, part of my job is explaining to people why it just does not matter how grammatically correct their illogical/nonsensical sent
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Equilibrium8Do you think "or" would be suitable?
Yes, but note that by far the most common way of saying it is with and.

Maybe ... and maybe not is almost a standard formula of English.

CJ
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