Please indulge this probably-needless poll.
Can’t do without it.
I always think of it in a negative context as “maybe”, i.e. “it won’t necessarily rain tomorrow,” meaning rain is a possibility. “It will necessarily rain tomorrow” would mean rain was definite, but I wouldn’t say it that way.
Please (later) indulge us with an explanation for this probably-needless poll.
As for my answer: you say “not necessarily” if you want to say “maybe.”
Neither word is a perfect match, but I don’t see how it could mean anything close to “maybe”. Saying “He definitely hates fishing.” is not the same as “He necessarily hates fishing.” Those are two distinct meanings. It’s closer to “must” or “has to” than to “definitely”.
I’m asking because for three semesters in a row, the majority of my students have, in an anonymous pop quiz, given me the wrong answer.
I just want to check to see whether this is a phenomenon widespread enough to affect even the Straight Dope. I suspected not, but I wanted to be sure. I’m basically just satisfying my own curiosity TBH.
I agree.
Can you give an example of how your students have been using it?
Well, the issue wasn’t how they were using it, it was how they answered a pop quiz question about what it means.
But in fact there is a bit to tell about how they were using it–in some exercises where students are supposed to determine (among other things) whether an author intends his conclusion to follow with certainty or else with mere probability, I have had students explain to me explicitly that they thought a passage that had “necessarily” in the conclusion was meant to follow with mere probability precisely because of the use of the word “necessarily.”
Sorry, bit of a runon but I’m in a rush atm.
But the “maybe” there is not meant by the “necessarily”, but by its negation. Not understanding that seems to be the same problem Frylock’s students have…
Truly, how often do you see that word when it’s not preceded by “not”?
Not often. I believe that is part of the confusion. But it surprised me that it caused confusion at all.
Not Necessarily == Not For Sure.
so…
Necessarily == For Sure.
(The “==” here should be read as “means something in the area of” of course…)
I would say it means something is a necessity or is a requirement as in “Good nutrition is necessary for infant health.” But to use the negataive “not necessarily” is the same as using 'maybe" leaning towards “probably not”.
It seems like it’'s not used much by itself People don’t say “I neccessarily have to read this book before the test”, where they would say “I don’t necessarily need to read this book before the test.”
Interesting that there have been respondants for both answers…
I’ve never heard of neccessarily to mean definitely. I couldn’t answer your poll. I think it’s the question that’s flawed.
Yeah, “definitely” doesn’t seem perhaps the best synonym, but given the choice between that and “maybe”…
Neccessarily, necessity, and necessary all have the meaning of required / compulsory, rather than optional, so “maybe” really doesn’t fit.
“Definitely” is closer than “maybe” but it’s still not quite right. “Necessarily” without the “not” implies inevitability and/or causation. I wouldn’t say “I will necessarily take my umbrella with me tomorrow if it’s raining”, but I might say “If A equals B and B equals C , it necessarily follows that A equals C.”
For me, “necessarily” induces universal quantification over possible worlds. YMMV.
