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You should've known better than



 
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ESL Forum | English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
what does 'witty fabrics' mean? | This(Thus) far and no further
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You should've known better than #1 (permalink) Thu Mar 18, 2010 12:47 pm   You should've known better than
 

Hello,

I couldn't find an explanation for this expression with Google.
From what I've seen, it is followed by something undesirable, a negative outcome, and the meaning is "you shouldn't have done that".
And still, from a paper dictionary I've learned that it means something like "you should've known that it would be better to (do something)", so it would be followed by a desirable outcome.
Could someone please explain how can I use it correctly?

Thanks in advance.
Baubau
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You should've known better than #2 (permalink) Thu Mar 18, 2010 13:48 pm   You should've known better than
 

Search for assumption and deduction. This is a deduction sentence with meaning: It's a pity that you didn't know it better.
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You should've known better than #3 (permalink) Thu Mar 18, 2010 20:18 pm   You should've known better than
 

Thanks for the answer, Vietanhpham_Winter, but unfortunately I don't follow you.
Vietanhpham_Winter wrote:
It's a pity that you didn't know it better.

I don't think this is the meaning of this expression.
Could you please elaborate further? Anyone else?
Baubau
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You should've known better than #4 (permalink) Thu Mar 18, 2010 21:30 pm   You should've known better than
 

You should've known it better. It means I wanted you to know it better but in fact, you didn't. One more example, You should've gone to the party means it was advisable that you go to the party(should implies that the party is very good for you) but because of an indefensible reason, you couldn't go to the party.
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Nothing's impossible! Never say never! They're what I've been following. Hope you to follow them too!
Vietanhpham_Winter
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Location: No.Unknown Molao Residential area, Hadong District, Hanoi City, Vietnam

You should've known better than #5 (permalink) Mon Mar 22, 2010 6:53 am   You should've known better than
 

"You should've known better than"

Example: You should've known better than to invest with Madoff.

The returns were to good to be true, yet you invested your money anyway because you were greedy.

It's making a moral judgement on the past actions of the other person.
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You should've known better than #6 (permalink) Mon Mar 22, 2010 9:54 am   You should've known better than
 

Thank you kindly.
Baubau
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Joined: 07 Feb 2010
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