What's the difference between "I won't blame you" and "I wouldn't blame you"?
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won't = will not. wouldn't = would not– WottensprelsCommented Sep 29, 2015 at 8:57
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@Sprottenwels Although, I agree that they could have done a little more research, keep in mind they asked the difference between the statements, not just the words. Maybe there is some confusion stemming from them that only a english language learner experiences.– Lamar LatrellCommented Sep 29, 2015 at 10:24
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@LamarLatrell I didn't mean to scold the OP for his laziness. It rather was all I could contribute to the question, hence I chose to do a brief comment :)– WottensprelsCommented Sep 29, 2015 at 11:07
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1possible duplicate of "won't" vs. "wouldn't"– DavidPostillCommented Sep 29, 2015 at 14:42
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3 Answers
To my ear "I won't" is unconditional.
"I wouldn't" implies the possibility of unspoken/implied conditions:
I wouldn't ... (if such and such conditions are upheld.)
I won't is a step closer to I can't.
Wouldn't is a potential step in the direction of weasel words.
answered Sep 29, 2015 at 10:17
First is from will+not, second from would+not, as in:
I will not do it in a million years (ie. not a chance)
vs.
I would not do it if... (ie. there is some possibility).
That is at least my guess.
both sentences are nearly the same. The only difference between them is that would is sometimes used to give a more polite impression.
Source: https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/english-grammar/verbs/modal-verbs/will-or-would (See the uses of would)
Regards
answered Sep 29, 2015 at 9:34
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But from your own link, politeness is only one of several reasons one might use "would", and in fact the last one given. (And further, while I agree that we do sometimes use it for politeness, the example there is rather questionable.)– mattdmCommented Sep 30, 2015 at 12:09