Not more than? or No more than?

Question

0 Recently once of my ESL students asked me the difference between "Not more than" and "No more than". While I believe the meaning is the same, I wonder if one is more American in usage than the other? Alas I am in China and my Fowlers is home in Australia, so I ask for any comments or advice, which would be appreciated 02br02br00(in anticiaption) thanks! 0-

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

0Hello, AJ-- and welcome to English Forums. 02br
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00I can see no difference (and I checked my old Fowler's just for fun, with no luck). They both seem to work with quantities: 'There are no/not more than ten eggs in a Japanese dozen'. 02br
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00Oops! I do seem to detect that 'no more than' tends to mean 'precisely', where 'not more than' seems to mean 'equal to or less than'. 02br
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00With nouns: 'he is no more than a boy' seems to be the natural choice, while 'not more than a boy' seems a little odd. Yet 'a boy of no/not more than thirteen' seems fine in both forms. 02br
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00Perhaps another member can be more definitive. 0-

Pieanne · Answer

0 Hello, Ajinchina, 02br
00Welcome to The Forums! 02br
00I can only offer my feeling: 02br
00to me, "no more than" corresponds to "nothing more than", whereas "not more than" simply contains the negation "not". 02br
00f.i.: 02br
00- a few weeks ago, this kitten was no more than a furry ball. 02br
00- yes, you can have some candies, but not more than three. 02br
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00Maybe someone will come and correct me... 0-

Eimai_Anglos · Answer

0 There is certainly a difference in usage, if not in actual meaning.02br
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00"She paid for both of us. It was no more than I would have expected of her."02br
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00"Nobody could hear you. You are no more an actor than I am an artist!"02br
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00(In this context "not more" would be entirely wrong.) 0-

Not more than? or No more than?

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