Seagull Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
'Must' as estimations
Which of the following sentences sound natural to a native speaker, and which do not?
#1 You may be taller than Sue, but you are not so tall as Nancy.
#2 You must be taller than Sue, but you are not so tall as Nancy.
#3 His mother may be well over eighty, but she is quite fit and healthy.
#4 His mother must be well over eighty, but she is quite fit and healthy.
Part of #2 and #4 are from "Meaning and the English Verb" by Leech. In the book, he cited "You must be taller than Sue." and "His mother must be well over eighty." as two examples of the modal verb 'must' being used as 'estimations.' I would like to know if this type of 'must' can be used in this context.
#1 You may be taller than Sue, but you are not so tall as Nancy.
#2 You must be taller than Sue, but you are not so tall as Nancy.
#3 His mother may be well over eighty, but she is quite fit and healthy.
#4 His mother must be well over eighty, but she is quite fit and healthy.
Part of #2 and #4 are from "Meaning and the English Verb" by Leech. In the book, he cited "You must be taller than Sue." and "His mother must be well over eighty." as two examples of the modal verb 'must' being used as 'estimations.' I would like to know if this type of 'must' can be used in this context.
Top answer
Yes. For example, "His mother must be well over eighty" = "I'm pretty certain (based on the evidence that I know) that his mother is well over eighty".
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Yes. For example, "His mother must be well over eighty" = "I'm pretty certain (based on the evidence that I know) that his mother is well over eighty".
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Thank you very much, GPY.
Before, I thought that this usage of 'must' is fairly confusing, but now I feel certain about it.
Before, I thought that this usage of 'must' is fairly confusing, but now I feel certain about it.
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