A qualified ‘yes’?_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

A qualified ‘yes’?

Come to think of it, if you go bungee jumping, you may ask the operator, Will I hit the floor?

A silly question to be sure. I’m certain no-one asks this question out loud but it must be in the back of your mind sometimes. And so, just for the sake of argument if you do ask, Will I hit the floor if you let me go?

The operator, I’m sure, will give you an emphatic “No” for reply. However, the correct answer must be a qualified “No”. That is, under normal circumstances, you’ll be safe. However, you will hit the floor if the bungee rope snaps!

A terrible example, I know. Sorry about that.

You get the idea, though, I hope.

To sum up, a qualified “yes” is a qualified answer, as is a qualified “no”.

The difference between the two, by the way, is that a qualified “yes” is much in favor of a positive answer, i.e. in most cases the answer is yes. A qualified “no”, on the other hand, means usually no, but only occasionally (under special conditions) yes.

Alright, media examples of both qualified “yes” and “no”:

1. Could it work? That’s the question being asked about President Barack Obama's big new jobs plan.

Independent experts answered Friday with a qualified yes.

The American Jobs Act would create jobs and help keep a struggling economy moving forward, said a number of economists. But they cautioned that it wouldn't shift the nation's business gears into overdrive, and it offers only modest benefits, given the headwinds the economy faces from a moribund housing sector and growing financial turmoil in Europe.