0
Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
"mustn't" for deduction
Do you "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction?
A: I can't get this can opener to work.
B: You mustn't be/must not be doing it right.
A: I can't get this can opener to work.
B: You mustn't be/must not be doing it right.
Top answer
Do you use "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction? -- Yes.
- Do you use "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction?
- -- Yes.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
5 Answers
0
Do you use "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction?-- Yes.
00
AnonymousDo you "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction?Yes, but then I'm American. Your example sounds American to me. I don't believe most British people would use it. They would say "You can't be doing it right". At least that's how it was once explained to me.
CJ
00
AnonymousDo you "mustn't/must not" for both obligation and deduction?In British English we normally use can't for deduction, as CJ suggested.
00
I'm British and the epistemic (deductive) modal force is different, imo. Here from the strongest to weakest assertion:
he can't be at home
he mustn't be at home
he's probably not at home
But many Brits tell me they don't use "mustn't" deductively.
he can't be at home
he mustn't be at home
he's probably not at home
But many Brits tell me they don't use "mustn't" deductively.
00
And for this Brit:mustn't be = I deduce that he isn'tcan't be = it's impossible that he is
0
Related Questions