Lest vs Unless - What's the difference?
lest | unless |
For fear that; that . . . not; in order that . . . not; in case.
* '>citation
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-07-27, volume=408, issue=8846, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= That (without the negative particle); – after certain expressions denoting fear or apprehension.
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=4
, passage=Mr. Cooke at once began a tirade against the residents of Asquith for permitting a sandy and generally disgraceful condition of the roads. So roundly did he vituperate the inn management in particular, and with such a loud flow of words, that I trembled lest he should be heard on the veranda.}}
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Except on a specified condition; if not.
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* 1839 , Denison Olmsted, A Compendium of Astronomy Page 95
As conjunctions the difference between lest and unless
is that lest is for fear that; that . . . not; in order that . . . not; in case while unless is except on a specified condition; if not.lest
English
Conjunction
(English Conjunctions)Lunacy?, passage=Lest any astrologer reading this result get cocky, Dr Cajochen does not believe that what he has found is directly influenced by the Moon through, say, some tidal effect. What he thinks he has discovered is an additional hand on the body’s clock-face.}}
Usage notes
The word lest is always followed by the , usually in either the present or future tense. For example: Lest they be captured, the soldiers fled from the battlefield. The future subjunctive would simply employ the auxiliary word should .Synonyms
* (for fear that) (informal)See also
* judge not lest ye be judged * in case * lest we forgetAnagrams
* * *References
unless
English
Alternative forms
* unlesse (obsolete)Conjunction
(English Conjunctions)- I’m leaving unless I get a pay rise (AmE: raise).
- Secondly, When a body is once in motion it will continue to move forever, unless something stops it. When a ball is struck on the surface of the earth, the friction of the earth and the resistance of the air soon stop its motion.
