a. Every day, she didn't speak about her children.
b. Every day, she didn't mention her children.
Are these sentences grammatically correct?
Are they natural?
Many thanks.
every day
Re: every day
Can't say about grammatical, but not natural. "She never mentioned (or spoke of) her children."
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Re: every day
Absolutely, Bonnie!
I don't think it has much to do with grammar. There is a logical disconnect between "every" and a negative.
Every Wednesday, my dog, Sheba, spends the day with a dog walker and a bunch of other dogs, which has done wonders for her behaviour. It also gives me time to do other things. But I can't say:
"Every Wednesday, I don't walk the dog"
Instead, I have to say something like "I never walk the dog on Wednesdays."
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I don't think it has much to do with grammar. There is a logical disconnect between "every" and a negative.
Every Wednesday, my dog, Sheba, spends the day with a dog walker and a bunch of other dogs, which has done wonders for her behaviour. It also gives me time to do other things. But I can't say:
"Every Wednesday, I don't walk the dog"
Instead, I have to say something like "I never walk the dog on Wednesdays."
Signature: Phil White
Non sum felix lepus
Non sum felix lepus
Re: every day
The statement "Every xxx, I didn't xxx..." may not mean that you never do a particular thing. You might do it every second day or every week or once a year. In Phil's example, the background information makes it clear that he nevers walks Sheba on Wednesdays.Those kids, however, may be mentioned...just not everyday. I am always suspicious of statements that seem deliberatley ambiguous. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Nothing good can come from forcing people to read between the lines.
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Re: every day
Apart from the Wordwizard Clubhouse...
Signature: Phil White
Non sum felix lepus
Non sum felix lepus
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