Unless and until: Difference between revisions

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A cretinous expression that means simply “until”, because “until” ''implies'' “unless”.  
A cretinous expression that means simply “until”, because “until” ''implies'' “unless”. Inevitably couched as a [[double negative]], you may see, from the nib of a {{lawyer|fastidious wordsmith}}:


But don’t let that stream of irresistible logic stop you {{tag|flannel}}ling aeay to your heart’s content.
“''Party A [[shall]] not be [[obligated]] to do any such thing [[unless and until]] state of affairs X [[shall have occurred]].”
 
*“[[Until]] X” means “[[at any time]] up to the point at which X happens”.
*“[[Unless]] X” means “except if X has happened”.
 
At the point in time at which X happens, then X must have happened. [[Q.E.D.]]
 
But don’t let that stream of irresistible logic stop you {{tag|flannel}}ling away to your heart’s content.


{{plainenglish}}
{{plainenglish}}

Revision as of 15:00, 31 October 2016

A cretinous expression that means simply “until”, because “until” implies “unless”. Inevitably couched as a double negative, you may see, from the nib of a fastidious wordsmith:

Party A shall not be obligated to do any such thing unless and until state of affairs X shall have occurred.”

  • Until X” means “at any time up to the point at which X happens”.
  • Unless X” means “except if X has happened”.

At the point in time at which X happens, then X must have happened. Q.E.D.

But don’t let that stream of irresistible logic stop you flannelling away to your heart’s content.

Plain English Anatomy™ Noun | Verb | Adjective | Adverb | Preposition | Conjunction | Latin | Germany | Flannel | Legal triplicate | Nominalisation | Murder your darlings