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Anonymous Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
Not to or to not do something
Hello. I was wondering if it were ever possible to use "to not" with an infinitive and what the difference was between that and "not to."
It is something that is commonly heard spoken. For example, "To not bother my roommate, I left the apartment." Is this different than, say, "Not to bother you, but may I have some change?"
Or is this just one of those things that's occasionally spoken incorrectly and should be ignored?
I'd really appreciate it if someone could help me. Thanks so much!
Paul
It is something that is commonly heard spoken. For example, "To not bother my roommate, I left the apartment." Is this different than, say, "Not to bother you, but may I have some change?"
Or is this just one of those things that's occasionally spoken incorrectly and should be ignored?
I'd really appreciate it if someone could help me. Thanks so much!
Paul
Top answer
While many will tell you that "to not" is just fine and in some cases has a different meaning from "not to", I would not recommend it. My personal reaction to "to not" is quite strong and quite negative. I always look for another way to phrase what I want to say so that I can avoid it.
- While many will tell you that "to not" is just fine and in some cases has a different meaning from "not to", I would not recommend it.
- My personal reaction to "to not" is quite strong and quite negative.
- I always look for another way to phrase what I want to say so that I can avoid it.
- "to never" is equally awful to my ear.
- In order not to bother my roomate, I left the apartment.
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2 Answers
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While many will tell you that "to not" is just fine and in some cases has a different meaning from "not to", I would not recommend it. My personal reaction to "to not" is quite strong and quite negative. I always look for another way to phrase what I want to say so that I can avoid it. "to never" is equally awful to my ear.
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