Not dissimilar 1

[Thadeus]

[Bob] has not dissimilar, smarter thoughts"

Why "not dissimilar"? Why bother with the negative "not" if you are gonna use a negatively suffixed word? Doesn't that just play with your readers' heads?

"[Bob] has similar, smarter thoughts"

~Thadeus

 

[MakeItSo]

You definitely misundersetimate Bob!

[blue]An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. - "Mahatma" Mohandas K. Gandhi[/blue]

 

[MakeItSo]

Arglll. misunderestimate.I hate having dyslexic fingers...

[blue]An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. - "Mahatma" Mohandas K. Gandhi[/blue]

 

[tsdragon]

Although technically "not dissimilar" means the same as "similar", the common use of "not dissimilar" is to imply a state of "not exactly similar either". Confused?
Me too.


Tracy Dryden

Meddle not in the affairs of dragons,
For you are crunchy, and good with mustard.

 

[SkipVought]

Is that anything not dissimilar to the...

exact same thing?

Skip,

_{[red]Be advised:[/red]When Viscounts were guillotined just as they were disclosing where their jewels were hidden, it shows to go that you should...
Never hatchet your Counts before they chicken!}

 

[CajunCenturion]

Not at all. The use of negating of a negative term is called a litotes. It is generally used to understate the affirmative position.

To say they are 'not dissimilar' means to me that they have a lot in common, but aren't quite close enough to considered similar. Close, but not quite there. Another commonly used litotes is 'not uncommon'. It's not uncommon for people to use the phrase 'not uncommon'.

Good Luck
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[SantaMufasa]

MakeItSo,

Where your use of the term "misundersetimate" was unintentional, does that mean it was "artificial insetimation"?

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)

http://www.dasages.com

Do you use Oracle and live or work in Utah, USA?
Then click here to join Utah Oracle Users Group on Tek-Tips.

 

[MakeItSo]

Inseti..setini..imitation?

Sorry, I don't get it - been in office since 5:30 a.m...

I think I'm booboo for today...

[blue]An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. - "Mahatma" Mohandas K. Gandhi[/blue]

 

[SantaMufasa]

Sorry, MakeItSo, while you are 10 minutes away from your end of day, my day is just beginning. My reference to "artificial insetimation" was a lame attempt at a little humour, creating a Spoonerism on "artifician insemination". It is a "stretch" at humour even for native English speakers, not to mention those for which English is a second language. My apologies.

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)

http://www.dasages.com

Do you use Oracle and live or work in Utah, USA?
Then click here to join Utah Oracle Users Group on Tek-Tips.

 

[Lightning]

..."artificial insetimation"

<groan> That's a bad pun, and a terrible way to start the day!

 

[MakeItSo]

At least thanks to this "stretch", I could start today with a grin!


[blue]An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. - "Mahatma" Mohandas K. Gandhi[/blue]