# Little facts people get wrong **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 15, 2016, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575 "2016-10-15T02:48:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/161 "2016-10-19T20:28:08Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Obama and potentially Hillary can appoint justices to the Supreme Court, but that doesn’t mean they automatically get in. See that seat that Scalia sat in? Still vacant. Which is why you should say “nominate” instead, since “appoint” might mean “automatic selection” in many settings. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/162 "2016-10-19T20:41:28Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > \*cannot \*and _can not_ mean exactly the same. Both are acceptable. I have no idea of why you’re wasting electrons to correct a non-error. > [Oxford Languages | The Home of Language Data](https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/usage/cannot-or-can-not) “There is no such word as ‘cannot’” is certainly an error. And as my waste of electrons proves, “cannot” removes doubt that “can not” raises. ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/163 "2016-10-19T21:00:15Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > But…this DEFCON goes to 11. > > (I have the same problem remembering whether first-degree or third-degree burns are worse.) Yet no one seems to have any confusion distinguishing a first-rate performance from a third-rate performance. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/164 "2016-10-19T21:03:29Z")
I disagree (with **DrDeth** ) that they mean exactly the same. “I **cannot** go to work today” = “I am unable to go to work today.” “I **can not** go to work today” = “I have the option (or the ability) to avoid going to work today.” Admittedly, it’s a quirk of English that “cannot” is all one word while “are not,” “will not,” “should not,” “do not” etc. are two-word phrases. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/165 "2016-10-19T21:03:47Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > “There is no such word as ‘cannot’” is certainly an error. And as my waste of electrons proves, “cannot” removes doubt that “can not” raises. I never claimed that. And no it doesn’t since the two have identical meanings, it’s just two different spellings. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/166 "2016-10-19T21:12:11Z")
For what very little it’s worth, I side with **Thudlow** and against **DrDeth** on this one. IMO “cannot” and “can not” are two very, very different concepts. As **Thudlow** ’s examples make perfectly clear. At least to me. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/167 "2016-10-19T21:19:27Z")
> **[Definition of cannot | Dictionary.com](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/cannot)** > > Cannot definition, a form of can not. See more. _verb 1. a form of ·can not._ > **[Definition of CANNOT](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cannot)** > > can not… See the full definition \*Definition of cannot : can not \* > **[Oxford Languages | The Home of Language Data](https://languages.oup.com/)** > > Explore Oxford Languages, the home of world-renowned language data. \*cannot Pronunciation: /ˈkanɒt//kaˈnɒt/ CONTRACTION Can not. Example sentences Usage Both the one-word form cannot and the two-word form can not are acceptable, but cannot is more common (in the Oxford English Corpus, three times as common). The two-word form is better only in a construction in which not is part of a set phrase, such as ‘not only … but (also)’: Paul can not only sing well, he also paints brilliantly\* I can go on, but every dictionary I have found sez that cannot= can not. A “form of” a “contraction” etc. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/168 "2016-10-19T22:20:50Z")
I know that cannot means can not or can’t. However, can not does not always mean cannot. So, to prevent confusion over what is meant, cannot is far superior. Your cite loses credibility when it uses this sentence as an example: **The two-word form is better only in a construction in which not is part of a set phrase, such as ‘not only … but (also)’: Paul can not only sing well, he also paints brilliantly** In that case, the verb is _ **can** _ and the “can” followed by “not” being used isn’t even the equivalent of “can not” or “cannot”. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/169 "2016-10-19T22:22:43Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > As **Acsenray** mentioned, ‘stay’ definitely means ‘reside on a permanent basis’ in Scotland - it caused me slight confusion the first time I encountered it, because I was _Staying_ (in the England-English sense of the word) in a hotel nearby (i.e. in Scotland) - when I replied about the hotel, the person I was talking to said “no, but where do you _stay?_”. > > So if it can mean that in Scotland, why not in other English dialects? Words mean what people accept that they mean (also, it seems wrong that ‘stay’ cannot imply permanence, because in a literal sense, that’s exactly what it \*does \*mean - it’s the opposite of ‘go’). > [@doreen](#): > > I’m not saying it _can’t_- I’m saying in my experience in the US it _doesn’t_. On the other hand, I _have_ heard it used in exactly this way, by African-American co-workers. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/170 "2016-10-19T22:22:54Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > . > Your cite loses credibility when it uses this sentence as an example: If you think you are more credible than Oxford, then … well… I have no words. :rolleyes: Enuf of this hijack. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/171 "2016-10-19T23:06:49Z")
Written another way, that sentence is: Not only can Paul sing well, he also paints brilliantly. It is not an illustration of the definition of cannot/can’t/can not. I’m a fan of the OED too, but this is not valid. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2016, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/172 "2016-10-19T23:25:33Z")
I hate it when people say, “To be honest with you” because it means that sometimes they are not … Donald Trump says that a lot … “To be honest with you” ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2016, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/173 "2016-10-20T00:03:51Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > On the other hand, I _have_ heard it used in exactly this way, by African-American co-workers. I’m hearing it from African-Americans as well, and I’ve never heard it used about a house or apartment that the speaker owns or is renting - it’s always someone else’s house or apartment they’re “staying” at. And not their spouse’s or SO’s - those people always use “live”. Maybe my examples made it unclear, but when people tell me they’re “staying” at someone else’s place, there’s an unspoken or sometimes a spoken “until” - until I get my own place, until I get a job, until my sister gets tired of me and I go stay with my cousin. It may be for months , it could even turn out to be years - but it’s not intended to be a permanent situation from the get-go. Perhaps it’s a regional difference. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2016, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/174 "2016-10-20T01:11:40Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > I hate it when people say, “To be honest with you” > because it means that sometimes they are not … > > Donald Trump says that a lot … “To be honest with you” Actually it’s a marker phrase that for most speakers most times means “I’m about to start lying, so listen up.” ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2016, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/175 "2016-10-20T16:08:37Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Admitting to making a simple mistake for 20 years is the first step towards getting better. What a remarkably wrong and condescending response. The % in C is called “mod”. That’s what it’s called. If I’m reading C code out loud for some reason and I come upon a % I will call it “mod”. Whether the actual arithmetic result it has when applied to negative numbers is more accurately referred to as “remainder” instead of “mod” is irrelevant to what the operator itself is called, in general parlance. Now, if you want to start a campaign to rename it to something else which you think will protect poor innocent programmers from the ravages of incorrect code, knock yourself out. But don’t act like calling it by its common name is a “fact” that people “get wrong”. Dick. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2016, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/176 "2016-10-20T17:48:00Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Now, if you want to start a campaign to rename it to something else which you think will protect poor innocent programmers from the ravages of incorrect code, knock yourself out. But don’t act like calling it by its common name is a “fact” that people “get wrong”. > > Dick. Leave the name-calling out of this thread and forum, please. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2016, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/177 "2016-10-20T18:32:02Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Many Americans don’t understand the tax code. They talk anxiously about their fear of “moving up into the next tax bracket,” thinking that they will \*lose \*money overall, when in fact the tax rates are _marginal_, meaning you will never take home less money by earning a higher salary. A higher salary will always be in your favor. This is a weird misconception in Canada, too. I suspect it’s universal to countries with progressive income tax brackets. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/178 "2016-10-23T18:49:26Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > People who ask “can you borrow me 5 bucks” rather than asking if I’ll loan them 5 bucks. (either way the answer is no! ) I tend to get more pedantic about lending objects, rather than money. “Can I borrow your Kleenex?” Absolutely not! You may take a tissue and I’d rather you throw it away when you’re done. Please don’t give it back to me. :eek: > [@pkbites](#): > > Saying “I could care less” when you mean “I couldn’t care less”. I _could_ care less, but doing so would require greater effort and I’m not inclined to do more than utter the first phrase of this sentence. 😉 > [@aceplace57](#): > > People that use stay for live. > “I _stay_ at a house on Elm Street.” > No you don’t. You _live_ in a house on Elm Street. ## No, no: I’m eating cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; the roof leaks, the walls are cracked; the wife does nothing but nag me, the kids are always screaming and fighting, the dog uses the main hallway for its toilet, and not a night goes by without hearing a gunshot in the neighborhood. Nobody in their right mind would call that **living**! :mad: My irritation is the increasing use of \*purposefully \*when intentionally is the correct term. Jane intentionally left the car lights on throughout Tuesday night because she didn’t want to go to work on Wednesday morning. [COLOR=Navy] Therefore the battery drainage was not accidental; she let the battery die on-purpose so the car wouldn’t start in the morning. [/COLOR]Then on Thursday, when he was striding _purposefully_ into the HR manager’s office, we all knew she was filing a long-overdue greivance against her manager, Carl. [While on-purpose is a coloquial equivalent of intentional, it is erroneous to make the next shift to _purposeful_, which has a different meaning.] I realize, however, that the dictionary is updating (or has updated) _purposeful_ to follow popular misusage. ☹ –G! ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/179 "2016-10-24T04:37:35Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > People who ask “can you borrow me 5 bucks” rather than asking if I’ll loan them 5 bucks. (either way the answer is no! 😉 ) When I was in school, our English teachers drilled into us the fact that “lend” is a verb, and “loan” is always a noun. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575/180 "2016-10-24T14:32:19Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > When I was in school, our English teachers drilled into us the fact that “lend” is a verb, and “loan” is always a noun. That’s a good example of a little fact your teachers got wrong, since loan is often a verb. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-facts-people-get-wrong/768575.md?page=10)