Grammar-Quizzes › Connectors › Coordinators › But not vs. Except (for)
But not vs. Except
State an exception
But not / Except
| BUT NOT — COORDINATOR |
|---|
But not, a coordinator with a negative, is used to exclude something after stating a generalization, using words such as all, every, everything, everybody, etc. (In contrast, negative words such as no, any, nothing, nobody are used with except and but.) |
| BEFORE A NOUN |
He likes all vegetables but not carrots. (coordinator)
|
Everyone in our family likes vegetables but not him.
|
*Nobody eats liver² but not Teresa. Avoid a double negative. |
Everyone avoids¹ liver but not Teresa. Rephrase the verb. |
| BEFORE A PREPOSITION, CONJUNCTION OR CLAUSE |
He usually eats sweets but not when someone is looking. |
Everyone in our family likes coffee but not at night. |
We have a sugary treat everyday but not during Lent. |
He likes honey but not as a sweetener in his tea. (He likes it for other purposes). |
*Teresa likes candy but not that she can't eat it because of her diabetes. (that-clause) Teresa likes candy, but she can't eat it because of her diabetes. |
| EXCEPT / BUT — PREPOSITION |
|---|
Except and but, in the examples below, express exclusion after a positive or negative generalization is made. They are both prepositions in this usage. An object pronoun (him, her, them, us,me) is used after except for. And for can be omitted before a noun or a noun phrase. |
| BEFORE A NOUN |
He likes all vegetables except (for) carrots. (PP) He likes all vegetables but carrots. (PP) |
Everyone in our family likes vegetables except (for) him. (PP) Everyone but Jack likes carrots. (PP) |
Nobody eats liver except (for) Teresa. Nobody eats liver but Teresa. |
Everyone avoids¹ liver except (for) Teresa. Everyone avoids liver except (for) Teresa. |
| BEFORE A PREPOSITION, CONJUNCTION OR CLAUSE |
He usually eats sweets except when someone is looking. He often eats sweets. |
Everyone in our family likes coffee except at night. They drink it day time. |
We have a sugary treat everyday except during Lent. |
He likes honey except as a sweetener in his tea. (He likes it for all other purposes.) |
Teresa likes candy except that she can't eat it because of her diabetes. |
*not used / ~borderline usage
¹avoid (V) — the verb carries a negative meaning: tries not to eat or not be near something
Lent (N) – a period before Easter when Western Christians give up eating a favorite food
liver (N) – an organ in an animal that cleans blood
Also see Besides vs. Except for (setting aside information–including or excluding it)
But / Except
Before "Do" or Verb + Preposition Phrases
Do nothing but / Interested in nothing but
| DO NOTHING BUT + BASE VERB | |
|---|---|
After do/does/did [everything / nothing / anything] except, a bare infinitive is used (but not after progressive "do"). |
|
| DO NOTHING | BUT + BARE INFINIITE |
Jack does nothing all day |
except [to] run and play. but [to] run and play. |
Jack doesn't do anything |
except [to] have a good time. but [to] have a good time. |
Jack did everything
|
except [to] finish his homework. but [to] finish his homework. |
Jack is doing everything (progressive)
|
except finishing his homework. but finishing his home work. |
| INTERESTED IN NOTHING BUT + VERB+ING | |
|---|---|
After a verb and preposition phrase [everything / nothing / anything] + except, a gerund is used. |
|
| VERB + PREP | BUT + GERUND |
Jack is interested in nothing |
except running and playing. but running and playing. |
Jack doesn't worry about anything |
except having a good time! but having a good time! |
Jack looks forward to everything |
except finishing his homework. but finishing his homework. |
Jack engages in everything |
except finishing his homework. but finishing his home work. |
bare infinitive — an infinitive in which "to" is not included.
engage in (verbal phrase) — occupy the attention or efforts of person; occupy oneself
Verb + Prep Phrase— see Participial Adj & Prep and Verbs Paired w/ Prepositions Before Gerunds.
But
Expressions
| NOTHING BUT |
|---|
Nothing but is an expression meaning "only". It emphasizes the noun after it. |
|
There was nothing but sugar in the "energy bar". only sugar, lots of it |
He was nothing but trouble. only trouble, lots of it |
Jack eats | ALL BUT |
|---|
All but expresses an exception or only this is left. (one, two or little); also very nearly. |
|
They sold all but two energy bars. except |
The food is all but finished. adverb of degree – very nearly Eating this seems all but impossible. adverb of degree – very nearly |
He ate
| IF NOT FOR |
|---|
If not for expresses the idea of "if something had not existed/happened" |
If not for traffic, I would have been home an hour ago. |
If not for your help, I would never have finished on time. |
| BUT FOR |
|---|
But for expresses the idea of "if something had not existed/happened". |
But for traffic, I would have been home an hour ago. |
But for your help, I would never have finished on time. |
| BUT FOR |
|---|
But for expresses the idea of "if something had not existed/happened". |
I was walking down the street, and unexpectedly I saw Jack. |
I looked down the street, and luckily I found a parking space! |
| WHO…BUT |
|---|
Who / What should...but is used to express surprise at a chance meeting or finding. |
I was walking down the street, and who should I see but Jack. a chance meeting |
I looked down the street, and what should I find but a parking space! a lucky find |
| CANNOT HELP + VERB-ING |
|---|
A gerund is used after can't help. Can't help means cannot avoid or cannot stop from doing. |
We can't help admiring his courage. |
Jack can't help drinking. . |
| CANNOT BUT + VERB |
|---|
Cannot but expresses the idea of "we can do nothing except ..." (formal). The expression cannot help but is a combination of can't help and cannot but. It is informal. |
We admire his courage very much. We cannot but admire his courage. very formal We cannot help but admire his courage. very informal (Omit help.) |
We saw clearly that he was drunk. We could not but see that he was drunk. We couldn't help but see he was drunk. (Omit help.) |
"A lot has been written about these phrases. To put as charitable a light on the matter as possible, most of what you may read is out of date. We have hundreds of citations for these phrases, and we can tell you two things for certain: these phrases all mean the same thing — "to be unable to do otherwise than" — and they are all standard." (Merriam Webster 220)
"cannot but, cannot help, cannot help but" (MWEEU)
"can't help" (Swan 116.3)
Common Mistakes
Errors and Solutions
Error and Solution
| ERROR |
|---|
*Bill Clinton is committed to a plant-based diet except for he eats an occasional fish. |
*I would have failed except for your help. |
What else have you done today? *Except going to school, I did my homework, went to football practice, cooked dinner and watched TV. |
| SOLUTION |
|---|
Bill Clinton is committed to a plant-based diet except for eating an occasional fish dish. (some fish occasionally.) |
Nobody helped me except (for) you. |
Besides going to school, I did my homework… Not including going to school, I did my homework… Other than going to school, I did my homework… |
See Pop-Q "Except for"
Practice 1
Dietary Choices
Complete the sentence with an exception or generalization.
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your responses to the feedback by clicking the "Check" or "Check 1-8" button.
Practice 2
Expressions for exceptions
Complete the sentence with an exception expression.
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your responses to the feedback by clicking the "Check" or "Check 9-14" button.