Do we use 'nearly' or 'hardly'?
Here's the sentence:
"As the year was coming to an end, NEARLY anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second."
I don't see why we use 'nearly' in it, I suggest 'hardly'.
Please help me with this, I'm really puzzled.
Thank you.
word-usage differences
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
add a comment |
Here's the sentence:
"As the year was coming to an end, NEARLY anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second."
I don't see why we use 'nearly' in it, I suggest 'hardly'.
Please help me with this, I'm really puzzled.
Thank you.
word-usage differences
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01
add a comment |
Here's the sentence:
"As the year was coming to an end, NEARLY anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second."
I don't see why we use 'nearly' in it, I suggest 'hardly'.
Please help me with this, I'm really puzzled.
Thank you.
word-usage differences
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
Here's the sentence:
"As the year was coming to an end, NEARLY anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second."
I don't see why we use 'nearly' in it, I suggest 'hardly'.
Please help me with this, I'm really puzzled.
Thank you.
word-usage differences
word-usage differences
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
asked Sep 19 '15 at 9:58
Paprikash LiPaprikash Li
18116
18116
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01
add a comment |
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
You're right, Hardly is probably the better word to use here. I don't even believe it's a proper use of nearly.
"As the year was coming to an end, hardly anyone doubted that either
William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in
second."
Nearly suggests "close to," or "near to." The context in which the word is being used is not typical. Saying we are "nearly there" suggests that we are very close while "hardly there" suggest barely there, or "only just slightly there." While one says we have almost arrived the other says we're not even close.
"I was nearly asleep" as opposed to "I was hardly asleep." They're quite different.
They are nearly opposite words, and hardly the same.
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
add a comment |
The two words those are 'hardly' and 'nearly' are near antonyms although they aren't that antonymous. Although in an unusual situation, 'hardly' and 'nearly' are the two adverbs which are complete and/or absolute antonyms. Do you know why they are hardly synonymous? If you say that you hardly finish something, you almost never finish something. If you say that you nearly finish something, it's extraneous to do much more.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "97"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f274891%2fdo-we-use-nearly-or-hardly%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
You're right, Hardly is probably the better word to use here. I don't even believe it's a proper use of nearly.
"As the year was coming to an end, hardly anyone doubted that either
William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in
second."
Nearly suggests "close to," or "near to." The context in which the word is being used is not typical. Saying we are "nearly there" suggests that we are very close while "hardly there" suggest barely there, or "only just slightly there." While one says we have almost arrived the other says we're not even close.
"I was nearly asleep" as opposed to "I was hardly asleep." They're quite different.
They are nearly opposite words, and hardly the same.
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
add a comment |
You're right, Hardly is probably the better word to use here. I don't even believe it's a proper use of nearly.
"As the year was coming to an end, hardly anyone doubted that either
William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in
second."
Nearly suggests "close to," or "near to." The context in which the word is being used is not typical. Saying we are "nearly there" suggests that we are very close while "hardly there" suggest barely there, or "only just slightly there." While one says we have almost arrived the other says we're not even close.
"I was nearly asleep" as opposed to "I was hardly asleep." They're quite different.
They are nearly opposite words, and hardly the same.
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
add a comment |
You're right, Hardly is probably the better word to use here. I don't even believe it's a proper use of nearly.
"As the year was coming to an end, hardly anyone doubted that either
William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in
second."
Nearly suggests "close to," or "near to." The context in which the word is being used is not typical. Saying we are "nearly there" suggests that we are very close while "hardly there" suggest barely there, or "only just slightly there." While one says we have almost arrived the other says we're not even close.
"I was nearly asleep" as opposed to "I was hardly asleep." They're quite different.
They are nearly opposite words, and hardly the same.
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
You're right, Hardly is probably the better word to use here. I don't even believe it's a proper use of nearly.
"As the year was coming to an end, hardly anyone doubted that either
William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in
second."
Nearly suggests "close to," or "near to." The context in which the word is being used is not typical. Saying we are "nearly there" suggests that we are very close while "hardly there" suggest barely there, or "only just slightly there." While one says we have almost arrived the other says we're not even close.
"I was nearly asleep" as opposed to "I was hardly asleep." They're quite different.
They are nearly opposite words, and hardly the same.
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
edited Sep 19 '15 at 10:27
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
answered Sep 19 '15 at 10:21
Michael RaderMichael Rader
957620
957620
add a comment |
add a comment |
The two words those are 'hardly' and 'nearly' are near antonyms although they aren't that antonymous. Although in an unusual situation, 'hardly' and 'nearly' are the two adverbs which are complete and/or absolute antonyms. Do you know why they are hardly synonymous? If you say that you hardly finish something, you almost never finish something. If you say that you nearly finish something, it's extraneous to do much more.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
The two words those are 'hardly' and 'nearly' are near antonyms although they aren't that antonymous. Although in an unusual situation, 'hardly' and 'nearly' are the two adverbs which are complete and/or absolute antonyms. Do you know why they are hardly synonymous? If you say that you hardly finish something, you almost never finish something. If you say that you nearly finish something, it's extraneous to do much more.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
The two words those are 'hardly' and 'nearly' are near antonyms although they aren't that antonymous. Although in an unusual situation, 'hardly' and 'nearly' are the two adverbs which are complete and/or absolute antonyms. Do you know why they are hardly synonymous? If you say that you hardly finish something, you almost never finish something. If you say that you nearly finish something, it's extraneous to do much more.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
The two words those are 'hardly' and 'nearly' are near antonyms although they aren't that antonymous. Although in an unusual situation, 'hardly' and 'nearly' are the two adverbs which are complete and/or absolute antonyms. Do you know why they are hardly synonymous? If you say that you hardly finish something, you almost never finish something. If you say that you nearly finish something, it's extraneous to do much more.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
answered yesterday
Asim AhmedAsim Ahmed
1
1
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Asim Ahmed is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to English Language & Usage Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fenglish.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f274891%2fdo-we-use-nearly-or-hardly%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Who's the 'we' who uses 'nearly' in this context? I agree: it's wrong, sounds odd, and 'hardly' makes sense.
– David Garner
Sep 19 '15 at 10:03
I expect this sentence was created when somebody tried to change "nearly no one" to "hardly anyone", and only partly succeeded.
– Peter Shor
Sep 19 '15 at 10:59
It's from an exercise book; 'nearly' stands as the right answer. I don't remember the other choices in this particular exercise (there are 4 of them), but between 'hardly' and 'nearly' I would definitely choose 'hardly'.
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 18:57
"...The chosen theme for the prize essay that year was “Satire in Shakespeare”. Troilus and Cressida clearly called for the most attention, but both students managed to find satirical nuances in almost every play by Shakespeare. As the year was coming to an end, __ anyone doubted that either William or Philippa would win the prize while the other would come in second. However, no one was willing to express an opinion as to who the victor would be." Here's a bit of context, if it's important
– Paprikash Li
Sep 22 '15 at 19:01