Do they mean the same?
Could someone please tell me if the following sentences mean the same? The second one sounds weird to me.
1) Not more than five mistakes were found in the essay.
2) More than five mistakes were not found in the essay.
Looking forward to your reply. Thank you in advance!
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Answers · 11
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The first expression is understandable. 'Not more than five mistakes were found in the essay' - for simplicity, we would most likely say 'Fewer than five mistakes were found in the essay'. 'Fewer' means 'not more than'.
The second sentence is too confusing. Nobody would use this wording.
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The second sentence is technically correct, but not how a native would speak.
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They mean the same thing! "No more than five mistakes were found in the essay" would be the most common way to say this. The second one is grammatically correct, but it's wording is confusing.
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the first sentence is correct
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Hello Araceli, thanks for your comment.
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