English Usage Question

[vroomsplat]

I'm not looking for the right answer here, but I'd like to know what everyone's first instinct is when you hear this phrase.

"To my knowledge, it snowed twice last winter."

A: The speaker knows for certain that it snowed exactly two times.

B: As far as the speaker knows, it snowed twice (that is, there are two occasions that she knows about when it

Comments

[rowena_zane]

I generally think of "B" when I hear that. I occasionally use the phrase when I'm unsure about my own knowledge.

I think "to the best of my knowledge" and "to my knowledge" are the same thing, the latter's just truncated.

[vroomsplat]

Thanks! That seems to be the consensus - two out of two respondents said "B."

I came across the phrase recently and wasn't sure how to interpret it -- was it truncated from "to the best of my knowledge" or from the equally in that context plausible "to my certain knowledge"? Turns out the author also meant B, so that's 3 votes I suppose. Still, I'll probably not use the truncated version myself, just to avoid possible confusion.

[archivecats]

B.

I don't think I've ever heard someone say "to my knowledge"; I am more familiar with/comfortable with "to the best of my knowledge", and might actually say the less-formal-sounding phrase "as far as I know". But usually I just fill my speech with lots of "apparently"'s that fulfill the same hedging function.

[vroomsplat]

Thanks! I came across the phrase recently and wasn't sure which one the writer meant - probably a good enough reason to avoid using it when "as far as I know" or "apparently" are good alternatives.

[uzbradistan]

I agree with the other two people and the author you were reading, for the record.