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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Vocabulary

Rely vs. Depend

Hi,

I came across the following sentence today: "The outcome of the class relies on ....".

Everywhere I looked this up seemed to say that rely and depend can be used interchangeably, but I feel that is incorrect.

It seems to me that only a person can rely on something, that is to say, an outcome can depend on something but cannot rely on anything.

Is that correct?

Appreciate your help,

Yoav.
  

Top answer

I agree, Yoav. 'Rely' sounds odd there.

  • I agree, Yoav.
  • 'Rely' sounds odd there.
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2 Answers
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I agree, Yoav. 'Rely' sounds odd there.
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Thanks. I was hoping my "ear" was not deceiving me...

I spoke to a native english speaking friend of mine who also feels that rely does not work well in this case.

Feeling better now

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