[Ads-l] to "question"

[Laurence Horn]

> On Mar 30, 2015, at 4:46 PM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
>> I find blend analyses more appealing for one-off structures.
> 
> But every structure was a one-off at one time. Or a bunch of one-offs.

True, timing is all.  
> 
> Or maybe "that" is coming to mean "whether" in cases like this.
> 
> JL

It does remind me a bit of the case of "(not) know that" (used non-factively), which approaches but is not identical to "(not) know whether":

I don't know that I can trust you.  
I don't know whether I can trust you.

The former, but not the latter, is compatible with knowing that you can't be trusted, and so can serve as a kind of euphemism.  

LH


> 
> On Mon, Mar 30, 2015 at 3:52 PM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
>> Subject:      Re: to "question"
>> 
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> 
>> To put it another way, it's bad writing.
>> On Mar 30, 2015 2:34 PM, "Laurence Horn" <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
>> 
>>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>> -----------------------
>>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>> Poster:       Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
>>> Subject:      Re: to "question"
>>> 
>>> 
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> 
>>>> On Mar 30, 2015, at 11:56 AM, Cohen, Gerald Leonard <gcohen at MST.EDU> =
>>> wrote:
>>>> =20
>>>> =20
>>>> Looks like a blend: "The government does not question the accuracy of =
>>> the information"
>>> 
>>> But why not "The government does not question whether the information is
>> =
>>> accurate", which is a lot closer to the syntax of the sentence uttered?
>> =
>>> And if it's a blend, it's a well-established one; examples of "X do(es) =
>>> not question that Y" with exactly this sense (expressing doubts as to =
>>> whether Y is the case, not necessarily denying, or attempting to deny, =
>>> that Y is the case) are very easy to attest.  I find blend analyses more
>> =
>>> appealing for one-off structures. =20
>>> 
>>> LH
>>> 
>>>> + "The government does not deny that the information is accurate."
>>>> =20
>>>> Gerald Cohen=20
>>>> ________________________________________
>>>> Jonathan Lighter wrote, Monday, March 30, 2015 6:29 AM
>>>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>>>> Subject: to "question"
>>>> =20
>>>> 'To attempt to deny (that)' :
>>>> =20
>>>> CNN reports that the French government has criticized the release of
>>>> cockpit recordings from the Germanwings flight, "but does not question
>> =
>>> that
>>>> the information is accurate."
>>>> =20
>>>> Some OED defs. come close, but definitely no cigar.
>>>> =20
>>>> JL
>>>> =20
>>>> =20
>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>>>> The American Dialect Society - =
>>> 
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=3Dhttp-3A__www.americandialect.=
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>> org&d=3DAwIFAg&c=3D-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=3DwFp3X4Mu39hB2bf13gtz0ZpW1TsS=
>>> 
>> xPIWYiZRsMFFaLQ&m=3DzNQpl5ndO2pz0Tb7b2EAwnyAsdpEBouj5F3R9X5kjJA&s=3DIHaZWm=
>>> PkdA0yLFWzDkyfwbFoKbxj0ATUb8VbHjhBWXU&e=3D=20
>>> 
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>>> 
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> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
> 
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