Will you not open the door?
That could be a request for the listener to open the door. But could it also be a request for the listener not to open the door?
-
I think as written & without inflection from a spoken sentence it could be either a request to open it, or a request to never open it. One cannot absolutely decide which from the text alone. Comments below suggest there may be a cultural bias towards one or the other, but we also don't have a cultural reference, so we cannot say.– DoneWithThis.Commented May 24, 2022 at 12:43
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
The question will be interpreted by English speakers as a politely-framed request for the door to be opened.
More often, people would say: "Won't you (please) open the door?" as "will you not" sounds rather formal.
Anyone who wanted the door to remain shut would usually say: "Please don't open the door" or "Please leave the door shut/closed".
So while the request is capable of being interpreted differently, in practice it is unlikely to be.
answered May 24, 2022 at 7:30
-
Thank you so much. But if I said 'Will you not smoke" then the likeliest interpretation would be that I am asking the addressee not to smoke, right?– azzCommented May 24, 2022 at 7:40
-
2I'm sure I have heard people say "Will you not do that?" meaning "Stop doing that" (some irritating repeated action). However, as Ronald says, it's unlikely to be used as a request not to perform a single action. Commented May 24, 2022 at 7:41
-
2@KateBunting - I have also heard people say something like 'Will you not open the door?' meaning 'Why haven't you bloody well opened the door yet?' Commented May 24, 2022 at 8:10
-
1This may be a US/UK split - in the US, the sentence would be considered a little odd; the only way I think it would naturally be interpreted is like @KateBunting says - an exasperated "Would you NOT do that, please?!"– stangdonCommented May 24, 2022 at 11:55