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any more requests

anymore requests

Are these two the same? It seems that "any more requests" is grammatically correct while "anymore requests" is not. Am I right? Why are they different?

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4 Answers

up vote 13 down vote accepted

anymore is used, when you compare the status quo to the status quo ante: Something that was does no longer apply to the status quo, but it was thus earlier.

For instance:

I can't take it anymore.

Previously, you didn't very much or it just didn't bother you. But now, it has become too much to bear, and you cannot continue like that any longer.

any more are two words, where you can take the meaning of each word quite literal and it refers to more of something than you currently have/want.

In a question:

Are there any more surprises

You would be wondering, if there are additional surprises - thereby implying that there were already some.

anymore requests

I can't think of an example where this would be grammatically correct.

any more requests

This is correct.

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up vote 3 down vote

As this NGram shows, the single-word form is a relatively recent innovation... .

If in doubt, put the space in. I can't think of any sentence where that would actually be considered incorrect by anyone. But as OP indicates, there are definitely contexts where most if not all native speakers would object to the single-word form.

I don't really think it makes much sense to claim different meanings for the two forms, but here's someone making a good stab at it.

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+1, very nice ngram; note etymonline says: "one-word form by 1877" – Unreason Jun 23 '11 at 7:48
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I don't think an nGram is relevant here: both of these are valid expressions, they just mean completely different things. – Marthaª Jun 23 '11 at 22:18
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If you look at the actual uses of any more before 1960, a substantial fraction of them would be spelled anymore today. I believe the Ngram is actually telling us something, even though the one-word anymore has been around since the late 1800s. – Peter Shor Jun 30 '11 at 1:08
I think some people would like to tease out one very restricted meaning (something like hereafter/henceforth) and say that's the single-word version. I included a link to an attempted differentiation, but at the end of the day I don't buy the idea that only the single-word form is valid in certain contexts. I think the NGram is telling us something though - that an increasing number of people lately are moving in that direction. – FumbleFingers Jul 1 '11 at 1:18
up vote 3 down vote

They are very similar, but there is one difference:

Are there any more guests coming? The boat can't stand the weight anymore.

Any more is used to mean "additional", while anymore means 'any longer'

As you can see, there are instances when any more needs to be used to clarify from anymore.

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up vote 1 down vote

You are right, the second example, "anymore requests" is incorrect because anymore is an adverb. According to Dictionary.com, anymore carries a negative connotation, too, and also can mean "nowadays" in a non-negative way. I have heard it used that way here in SE USA.

For the negative connotation see also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THtX7H6ZJi8

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But "any more" is also an adverb - en.wiktionary.org/wiki/any_more – Peter Mortensen Jun 23 '11 at 14:13
@Peter Mortensen, that is right, but in the first example it is only "any" that is the adverb (modifying "more" which is an adjective modifying "requests"). – JeffSahol Jun 23 '11 at 14:18

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