[etni] Cannot vs. Can not
- From: Rivka Lewenstein <rlewen@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 25 Nov 2010 08:40:42 -0800 (PST)
A teacher asked me a question which has left me stumped. He said that he had
seen a rule, and also seen papers where teachers took off points for breaking
the supposed rule, that the only correct negative forms of "can" are "can't"
and
"cannot." According to this rule, "can not" is unacceptable.
I had never heard of such a rule, and according to the Merriam-Webster's
dictionary, both "cannot" and "can not" are acceptable, although "cannot" is
more commonly used. However, this teacher wondered if this was a rule somehow
specific to Israel - in other words, whether it's something that the English
Inspectorate insists on regardless of what Merriam-Webster's and others say.
So now I'm turning to you: Have any of you heard of this rule? If so, what are
its origins? Is there anyone on ETNI land who would take off points if a
student
wrote "can not?" Why?
Thanks,
Rivka
-----------------------------------------------
** Etni homepage - http://www.etni.org
** for help - ask@xxxxxxxx **
** to post to this list - etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx **
-----------------------------------------------
Other related posts:
