2021-02-20
ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด U – unless & unless and until
แนะนำการใช้ ตามที่ส่วนใหญ่ใช้ แต่ละท้องถิ่น
ความหมาย อาจผันแปร ตาม ตำแหน่ง/หน้าที่ ในประโยค
Dictionary.com
ออกเสียง unless = ‘uhn-LES’
ออกเสียง until = ‘uhn-TIL’
Collins COBUILD English Usage
Unless
You usually use unless to say that
something can only happen or be true in particular circumstances.
For example,
instead of saying'I will go to France only if the firm pays my expenses',
you can say'I will not go to France unless the firm pays my expenses'.
When you are talking about the future,
you use the present simple after unless.
We cannot understand disease unless we understand the person who has the disease.
When you are talking about a situation in the past,
you use the past simple after unless.
She wouldn't go with him unless I came too.
Be Careful!
Don't use a future form after unless.
Don't say, for example, 'I will not go to France unless the firm will pay my expenses'.
You also use unless to mention the only circumstances
in which something will not happen or be true.
For example,
instead ofsaying 'If we are not told to stop, we will carry on selling the furniture',
you can say'We will carry on selling the furniture unless we are told to stop'.
The mail will go by air unless it is quicker by other means.
We might as well stop unless you've got something else you want to talk about.
Be Careful!
Don't use 'unless' to say that
something would happen or be true if particular circumstances did not exist.
For example, if you have a cold,
don't say'I would go to the party unless I had this cold'.
You say 'I would go to the party if I didn't have this cold'.
She'd be pretty if she didn't wear so much make-up.
Collins English Dictionary
Until
Usage:
The use of until such time as
(as in industrial action will continue until such time as our demands are met)
is unnecessaryand should be avoided:
industrial action will continue until our demands are met
Collins COBUILD English Usage
Until & till
Until and till can be prepositionsor conjunctions.
There is no difference in meaning between until and till.
Till is more common in conversation, and is not used in formal writing.
1. used as prepositions
If you do something until or till a particular time,
you stop doing it at that time.
He continued to teach until his death in 1960.
I said I'd work till 4 p.m.
If you want to emphasize that
something does not stop before the time you mention,
you can use up until, up till, or up to.
Up until 1950 coal provided over 90% of our energy needs.
Eleanor had not up till then taken part in the discussion.
Up to now they've had very little money.
If something does not happen until or till a particular time,
it does not happen before that time.
Details will not be available until January.
We didn't get back till two.
2. used with 'after'
You can use until or till with phrases beginning with after.
He decided to wait until after Christmas to propose to Gertrude.
We didn't get home till after midnight.
Be Careful!
Don't use 'until' or 'till' to say that something will have happened before a particular time.
Don't say, for example, 'The work will be finished until four o'clock'.
You say 'The work will be finished by four o'clock'.
By 8.05 the groups were ready.
Total sales reached 1 million by 2010.
3. used with 'from'
From is often used with until or till
to say when something finishes and ends.
The ticket office will be open from 10.00am until 1.00pm.
They worked from dawn till dusk.
In sentences like these, you can use to
instead of 'until' or 'till'.
Some American speakersalso use through.
Open daily 1000-1700 from 23rd March to 3rd November.
I was in college from 1985 through 1990.
Be Careful!
You only use until or till
when you are talking about time.
Don't usethese words to talk about position.
Don't say, for example, 'She walked until the post office'.
You say 'She walked as far as the post office'.
They drove as far as the Cantabrian mountains.
4. used as conjunctions
Instead of a noun phrase,
you can use a subordinate clause after until or till.
You often use the present simple in the subordinate clause.
They concentrate on one language until they go to university.
Stay here with me till help comes.
You can also use the present perfect in the subordinate clause.
I'll wait here until you have had your breakfast.
When you are talking about events in the past,
you use the past simple or the past perfect in the subordinate clause.
The plan remained secret until it was exposed by the press.
He continued watching until I had driven off in my car.
Be Careful!
Don't use a future form in the subordinate clause.
Don't say, for example 'Stay here with me till help will come'
or 'I'll wait here until you will have had your breakfast'.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
till, 'til, or 'till?
People often ask which is the correct synonymof until: till, ’til, or ’till?
Many assume that till is an abbreviated form of until.
Actually, it is a distinctive word
that existed in English at least a century before until,
both as a prepositionmeaning “to”
and a conjunction meaning “until.”
It has seen continuous use in English since the 12th century
and is a perfectly legitimate synonym of until.
’Til and ’till are much newer words,
having appeared in the language only in the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively.
Both are variant spellings, either of until or of till.
Writers of usage guides have roundly condemned ’till as a barbarism
(apparently because it seems to have added a superfluous l to the end of until).
’Til,for its part, has been deemed inappropriate in formal writing.
To sum up:
until and till can be used freely and interchangeably,
but you will probably want to avoid ’till and use ’til advisedly.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Usage Notes
Until, Till, 'Til, or 'Till?
Or should you give up and find another word?
Until, till, and 'til
are all used in modern English to denote when something will happen.
Until and till are both standard,
but what might be surprising is that till is the older word.
'Til,with one L, is an informal and poetic shortening of until.
The form 'till,with an additional L, is rarely if ever used today.
We often find that people will ask how they shouldwrite until
if they don’t want to use that actual word;
should it instead be till or ’til?
Or, for the orthographically adventurous, is ’till a reasonable choice?
'Till' is Older Than 'Until'
One reason for the confusionin this area is that
many people assume that till is a misshapen abbreviation of until,
a mistaken form in which the apprehensive spellers among us
tack on an extra L at the end
in order to make their word look a bit more balanced
and give it some additional heft.
However, till is not a shortening of until.
It actually predates the longer word.
Till has been in use in English since the 9th century;
the earliest senseof the word was the same as the preposition to.
It has been used as a conjunction meaning "until"since the 12th century.
Until has been in use as both a preposition and a conjunction
for almost as long.
Both of these words are acceptable;
you may send a text to your misbehaving child stating
either “U R grounded till 4ever” or “U R grounded until 4ever.”
One 'L' or Two?
Now what of ’til and ’till?
These are viewed as somewhat more problematic.
’Till is entirely shunned by the writers of usage guides,
when they see fit to mention it at all.
Bryan Garner, in his Modern American Usage, refers to it as “abominable,”
which is rather polite when compared to Harper’s Dictionary of Contemporary Usage, which says “the formation ’till is a bastard word and is substandard.”
You would do well to avoid using ’till,unless you are trying to annoy some portion of your readers.
’Til is still viewed askance by many people, at least in formal writing.
Although it had previously been thought to have begun being used in the middle of the 20th century a closer look at the historical record
shows that this particular variant is quite a bit older than that.
Til occurs on occasion in the early 19th century,
but it is difficult to say whether or not this is simply a variant spelling of till
(which was often written with a single L in Middle English).
But by the late 19th century
an apostrophe has been added to the beginning of the word,
and it is found in widespread use
(especially when a writer is attempting to replicate colloquial speech).
”Yes we will, Watty; we’re only going to wait ‘til they’ve got the house and furniture—and oh! Watty. What do you think?”
—The New York Observer and Chronicle, 22 Aug. 1872
”Wait ‘til you’ve been in a town like I have for some time,” said Eve.
—Temple Bar: A London Magazine for Town and Country Readers, Sept. 1880
Master-Workman Shaw was found this morning on the street, whistling “Wait ‘Til the Clouds Roll by,” and was tapped by the reporter for the latest developments on the strike situation.
—The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 2 Aug. 1883
So, there you have it:
you will probably wish to avoid ’till, use ’til advisedly,
and use both until and till freely.
And if you use till in writing and someone tells you that you have made an error, simply take the extra L off the end of the word and poke them in the eye with it.
Dictionary of Problem Words and Expressions
unless & unless and until
Unless means “excepton the condition that.”
Its use as a synonym for withoutis nonstandard.
Say “I will not go unless you go with me,”
not “I will not go without you go with me.”
Unless and until is a nonstandard phrase; the terms overlap.
Do not say “I will not write unless and until you write me.”
Either word will convey the full meaning intended.
See also IF AND WHEN
