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I couldn't agree more with John.

I couldn't agree more with John.

I couldn't agree more with John.

(OP)
Someone said this the other day. What does it mean?

If I could not agree more with John, that must mean I could agree less with John. This mean I agree less with with John, does it not?

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."   
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

it means i agree with john, so much that i couldn't increase my agreement (ie i couldn't agree more).

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

No ... It means that you absolutely, 100%, without doubt,  agree with John.

The fact that you could agree less doesn't mean that you do.

cheers
Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

I cannot agree more with CorBlimeyLimey. Is it right?

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

Similar to the saying "I couldn't care less", which obviously means that I care so little about it that it is impossible to care any less.  However I have many times heard this saying incorrectly stated as "I could care less", which may have a definition as well (although I can't think of a practical use of that expression), and I doubt it is what the speaker intends to say, based on the context in which I have heard it used.

"I have had my results for a long time, but I do not yet know how I am to arrive at them."  Karl Friedrich Gauss

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

In speech, "I couldn't care less" has a sarcastic edge to it, which seems to get lost when written.

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

I completely agree with the fact that I couldn't agree more is correct.  But dare I get started on the idea of

"It's the least I could do"

If it is the least you could do why are you telling me and why don't you try doing a bit more?

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

If it is the least you could do why are you telling me and why don't you try doing a bit more?

Because the point was "you don't need to thank me so profusely for it."

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

For instance, when Sir Walter Raleigh laid his cloak across the puddle so Queen Elizabeth could walk across it, in the southern hemisphere, the conversation probably would have been:

QE : Thanks, cobber.

SW : No worries. Fancy a quickie later?

But in the northern hemisphere:

QE : Charmed, I'm sure

SW : It's the least I could do, Ma'am



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

I frequently use "I could care less, if I thought about it."

The general context is "I'm not very interested in what you are saying, so I'm not paying attention.  If I were, I would probably be even less interested."

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

(OP)
Greg, I don't get it. Can you explain.


Mint,

I would have thought "I couldn't agree more" to be equivalent to "I could care less". If you invert could to couldn't and less to more, logically, they are equivalent. However, other posters say the opposit.

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."   
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

which is straying into the same territory as "with all respect that's due under the circumstances,...."

A.

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

(OP)
zeusfaber,

What is the connection?

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."   
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

Ashereng,

No connection at all with your post - comparing insults with MintJulep - didn't notice you stepping into the crossfire while I was typing.

Think the sneaky bit about Mint's line is the "If I thought about it" tag - there's an implied personal insult along the lines of "Even without thinking about it, just because it came from you, I already know I'm not really interested.  I'm sure (again, because it's you)that if I did give it some thought, I'd be even less inspired." - which is pretty good going for nine simple words, none of which is in itself insulting.

A.

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

"I couldn't agree more" to be equivalent to "I could care less".

If you think about it as a scale going from agreeing or caring as little as possible to agreeing or caring as much as possible, then the statements above translate to:
(ALAP as little as possible, AMAP as much as possible)

Couldn't agree more: Agree ALAP -----------X Agree AMAP  (all the way to the "agree AMAP" side of the scale)

Could care less:  Care ALAP -XXXXXXXXXX Care AMAP
(anywhere on the scale except the "Care ALAP" end.

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

struth guys,
quit trying to apply logic to language ... ok, the english language.

whilst "I couldn't agree more" might be logically equivalent to "I could agree less" because if i completely agree with you then obviously i could agree with you less (as someone posted earlier) but that's not the point.

we all apreciate what "i agree with you" means ?
from there "i agree with you alot" follows (dare i say it) logically.
then in the extreme we have "i couldn't agree more" , which should be taken as it says, sort of like "i agree with you so much (100%, completely) that i can't agree with you more"

notice, however, the difference in "i can't agree with you anymore" which means something completely different !

RE: I couldn't agree more with John.

(OP)
"I can't agree with you anymore." means I no longer agree with you, or "I now disagree with you."

Isn't this going in the same direction as "I can't agree with you more."?

If you agree with someone 100%, is the phrase to be used "I agree with you 100%." or maybe "I agree with you completely."?

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."   
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

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