not so as not to ?????

Forums: Grammar, Esl, English
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Please help me string this sentence together.

So the situation is - You're sick but not too sick. So you can still work today.

The person who asked me this question mentioned the phrase 'not ~ so as not to ~'. I'm not sure if this is appropriate in this case. I'm not familiar with it. Basically he was asking if it's okay to say:

"I'm not so sick as not to work today"

It doesn't feel quite right. But then again I just have no idea >.< I've never said anything like this before. I was always too sick to work.

I don't think 'I'm not too sick to work today' is correct either.

Any suggestions?

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View best answer, chosen by Jaqen

@Jaqen,

If I had to use this structure, I would say "I'm not so sick as to not work today". I prefer "I'm not so sick that I can't work."

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@engineer,

Thanks, Engineer!

Aha, so it's 'so as to not' instead of 'so as not to'.

Since 'I'm not so sick as to not work' doesn't have the 'can/be able to' element, unless you go with:

'I'm not so sick as to not be able to work today'

which is kinda long, you prefer:

'I'm not so sick that I can't work' ... Right?

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@Jaqen,

Quote:

Aha, so it's 'so as to not' instead of 'so as not to'.

You can use either.

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@Tes yeux noirs,

Oh, ok. Thanks!

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not so as not to ?????

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