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Ask for help > are not able or are unable
are not able or are unable
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gharbi2009
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are not able or are unable
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Hi everyone! I �m not sure which alternative fits better in the following sentence, Many children are unable / are not able to afford a meal during the day. Have a nice day |
12 Dec 2015
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cunliffe
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Well gharbi, I am going to risk an answer! Insofar as I know, both are perfectly fine and I �m not sure there is any difference in meaning - certainly not to the ordinary person in the street. I think it boils down to personal preference and I would use �aren �t able �. �Can �t � would also do, of course. Have a great day, Lynne
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12 Dec 2015
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Tapioca
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I agree with Lynne. Perhaps �unable � sounds a bit nicer, but the meaning is the same. Tap |
12 Dec 2015
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gharbi2009
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hi Tap and Lynne! Thanks for your help. The problem is that the sentence is suggested in an exam and I must justify the answer: why this or that. I read somewhere that �not able � refers to internal constraint whereas "unable" refers to external constraint. That �s why, I �m considering choosing " unable". Gharbi |
12 Dec 2015
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Tapioca
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I hadn �t heard of that distinction Gharbi, and I doubt it exists in the real world. There �s a discussion of this exactly on the StackExchange English website (thanks to Jayho for pointing me there). There are some very smart people who provide answers there so it �s a good place to check, though you don �t get the same sense of community (with the exception of a recent exchange here cough cough).  Tap |
12 Dec 2015
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gharbi2009
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thanks Tap, for the link. I �ll check it. By the way, I hope the recipe was quite clear (don �t add too much pepper, here we do. Gharbi |
12 Dec 2015
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