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Abil Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

The rainy season

The rainy season is almost drawing to a close, yet there has been not much rain. This means that hundreds of thousands of acres of lands will have to be left uncultivated, food production will decrease and food prices will go up.

Are there any mistakes and room for improvement?
  

Top answer

The rainy season is almost drawing to a close, yet there has not been not (that) much rain. This means that hundreds of thousands of acres of land s will (have to) be left uncultivated, food production will decrease and food prices will go up.

— Optilang

  • The rainy season is almost drawing to a close, yet there has not been not (that) much rain.
  • This means that hundreds of thousands of acres of land s will (have to) be left uncultivated, food production will decrease and food prices will go up.
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9 Answers
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The rainy season is almost drawing to a close, yet there has not been not (that) much rain. This means that hundreds of thousands of acres of lands will (have to) be left uncultivated, food production will decrease and food prices will go up.
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Thanks Optilang. But may I ask is "has been not much" completely woring? Or, you have made the changes for the sake of style?
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I don't know if it's style or a hard grammatical fact, but no native would say "there has been not much rain." The "not" needs to go right before "been."
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AbilThe rainy season is almost drawing to a close
I would say "The rainy season has almost drawn to close, yet there has been little rain".
Grammar Geekno native would say "there has been not much rain." The "not" needs to go right before "been."
I think that about the closest that a native would say while still mai
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"The "not" needs to go right before "been." says Grammar Geek.

My question is: is it a hard and fast rule? I ask it because a google book search for
"there has been not much" has  produced 306 hits.

Thanks
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Like GG I don't know about a hard and fast rule.

It is possible to say 'there has been not much .......' but I would put not before been.

I would say:

There hasn't been much interest - not - there has been not much interest.
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AbilMy question is: is it a hard and fast rule?
You're not going to find it in literature.
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=site%3Agutenberg.org+%22there+has+not+been+much%22&btnG=S
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AbilMy question is: is it a hard and fast rule?
What do you think about the inversions

Much rain there has not been.
Not much rain there has been.
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Thanks Optilang and Huevos.

I think grammar rules are mostly violated in poetry. After all, languages have come before grammar, and like any other living phenomenon, they are also dynamic,
and change all the time.
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