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Anonymous Posted 7 years ago
Grammar
Was It Grammatical?
He knew not how to select which of the innumerable sounds to listen to.
Could you tell me if that is grammatical or not? If grammatical, would you tell me the meaning difference between 'He knew not" and "He did not know"?
Top answer
" It sounds very formal.
- " It sounds very formal.
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2 Answers
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The meaning is the same, but it isn't very common to say or hear "He knew not." It sounds very formal.
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anonymousHe knew not
This pattern was regarded as grammatical in Shakespeare's time. It's still grammatical, technically, but nobody uses it unless they're trying to pretend they're living in Shakespeare's time, either because they're writing a historical novel or because they're trying to be silly.
anonymousHe did not know
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