What's the single word for “if not for intervening circumstances”











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The sentence I'm trying to make is,



She would have done [this] without interceding circumstances;


or,



[this] is what she would have done if not for intervening circumstances.


The circumstances were forced on her, and outside her control.
What I'm using now ("If not for external/intervening circumstances") works, but the sentence feels clumsy. Is there a single word that work for this situation?










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    up vote
    0
    down vote

    favorite












    The sentence I'm trying to make is,



    She would have done [this] without interceding circumstances;


    or,



    [this] is what she would have done if not for intervening circumstances.


    The circumstances were forced on her, and outside her control.
    What I'm using now ("If not for external/intervening circumstances") works, but the sentence feels clumsy. Is there a single word that work for this situation?










    share|improve this question
























      up vote
      0
      down vote

      favorite









      up vote
      0
      down vote

      favorite











      The sentence I'm trying to make is,



      She would have done [this] without interceding circumstances;


      or,



      [this] is what she would have done if not for intervening circumstances.


      The circumstances were forced on her, and outside her control.
      What I'm using now ("If not for external/intervening circumstances") works, but the sentence feels clumsy. Is there a single word that work for this situation?










      share|improve this question













      The sentence I'm trying to make is,



      She would have done [this] without interceding circumstances;


      or,



      [this] is what she would have done if not for intervening circumstances.


      The circumstances were forced on her, and outside her control.
      What I'm using now ("If not for external/intervening circumstances") works, but the sentence feels clumsy. Is there a single word that work for this situation?







      single-word-requests






      share|improve this question













      share|improve this question











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      share|improve this question










      asked Oct 15 at 10:53









      Bumble Bee

      282




      282






















          5 Answers
          5






          active

          oldest

          votes

















          up vote
          2
          down vote



          accepted










          One possible thing to do is to mention what those circumstances are, so the reader knows exactly what the conditions are absent which she would have acted differently, then use the word "otherwise". So in the lead-up sentence you can do something like:




          "She had been under intense pressure to keep quiet about the
          matter."




          then:




          "Otherwise she would have raised her voice and let everyone know."




          In other words, in keeping with your example:



          Mention the "intervening circumstances"



          then:




          [this] is what she would have done "otherwise"




          or




          "otherwise" [this] is what she would have done.




          "otherwise" can mean "had the circumstances been different", however the presence of such circumstances will need to be at least mentioned beforehand because "otherwise" obviously only makes sense with contrast to another statement or fact.




          I can't afford it. Otherwise I'd buy it.

          ^^^^^^^^^^ Imagine omitting this first part.




          If you're specifically looking for one word to mean either:




          without interceding circumstances.




          or




          if not for intervening circumstances.




          as opposed to my suggestion, I'm sorry I don't know any way. The only way I can think of is along the lines of:




          There were intervening circumstances. Otherwise she would have
          done [whatever].




          Maybe there's a Latin term or something that can do this, but I really doubt it would be one word anyway.






          share|improve this answer




























            up vote
            0
            down vote













            The word complications can be so defined and seems to cover "intervening circumstances".




            [this] is what she would have done if not for complications.




            She would have done [this] without (had it not been for) complications.



            https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Complications






            share|improve this answer




























              up vote
              0
              down vote













              Not an exact answer, but if the underlying issue is the "clumsy sounding" you might want to consider the use of "extenuating" circumstances instead of "interceding" or "intervening" since that's pretty much the exact idea you're trying to get across, is a common term, and sounds fine.



              A situation or condition that provides an excuse for an action, as in Although Nancy missed three crucial rehearsals, there were extenuating circumstances, so she was not dismissed. This expression was originally legal terminology, denoting circumstances that partly excuse a crime and therefore call for less punishment or damages.


              Other common usages would be:
              "Due to extenuating circumstances, Nancy did [this]" meaning that Nancy did [this], but would have done something different if not for the circumstances.



              You could also trying using the verb form (extenuate) but it's less common.



              To extenuate is to make less of something or try to minimize its importance. The fact that you walked your little sister to school because she missed the bus might extenuate your teacher's response when you show up late.


              See also "mitigating factors"






              share|improve this answer






























                up vote
                0
                down vote













                I don't know of a single word, some good idioms in this circumstance would be "all being well she would have.." or "if everything had gone smoothly she would have..."






                share|improve this answer




























                  up vote
                  0
                  down vote













                  I found this word that might work here -



                  perforce adverb

                  per·​force | pər-ˈfȯrs



                  1 : by force of circumstances or of necessity

                  2 obsolete : by physical coercion



                  Here are a few example sentences:




                  For a time Montrose retired, perforce, from public life.

                  The kings of England became perforce much more home-keeping sovereigns after 1204.

                  These images are perforce in black and white because there is no color at x-ray wavelengths.







                  share|improve this answer





















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                    5 Answers
                    5






                    active

                    oldest

                    votes








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                    active

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                    up vote
                    2
                    down vote



                    accepted










                    One possible thing to do is to mention what those circumstances are, so the reader knows exactly what the conditions are absent which she would have acted differently, then use the word "otherwise". So in the lead-up sentence you can do something like:




                    "She had been under intense pressure to keep quiet about the
                    matter."




                    then:




                    "Otherwise she would have raised her voice and let everyone know."




                    In other words, in keeping with your example:



                    Mention the "intervening circumstances"



                    then:




                    [this] is what she would have done "otherwise"




                    or




                    "otherwise" [this] is what she would have done.




                    "otherwise" can mean "had the circumstances been different", however the presence of such circumstances will need to be at least mentioned beforehand because "otherwise" obviously only makes sense with contrast to another statement or fact.




                    I can't afford it. Otherwise I'd buy it.

                    ^^^^^^^^^^ Imagine omitting this first part.




                    If you're specifically looking for one word to mean either:




                    without interceding circumstances.




                    or




                    if not for intervening circumstances.




                    as opposed to my suggestion, I'm sorry I don't know any way. The only way I can think of is along the lines of:




                    There were intervening circumstances. Otherwise she would have
                    done [whatever].




                    Maybe there's a Latin term or something that can do this, but I really doubt it would be one word anyway.






                    share|improve this answer

























                      up vote
                      2
                      down vote



                      accepted










                      One possible thing to do is to mention what those circumstances are, so the reader knows exactly what the conditions are absent which she would have acted differently, then use the word "otherwise". So in the lead-up sentence you can do something like:




                      "She had been under intense pressure to keep quiet about the
                      matter."




                      then:




                      "Otherwise she would have raised her voice and let everyone know."




                      In other words, in keeping with your example:



                      Mention the "intervening circumstances"



                      then:




                      [this] is what she would have done "otherwise"




                      or




                      "otherwise" [this] is what she would have done.




                      "otherwise" can mean "had the circumstances been different", however the presence of such circumstances will need to be at least mentioned beforehand because "otherwise" obviously only makes sense with contrast to another statement or fact.




                      I can't afford it. Otherwise I'd buy it.

                      ^^^^^^^^^^ Imagine omitting this first part.




                      If you're specifically looking for one word to mean either:




                      without interceding circumstances.




                      or




                      if not for intervening circumstances.




                      as opposed to my suggestion, I'm sorry I don't know any way. The only way I can think of is along the lines of:




                      There were intervening circumstances. Otherwise she would have
                      done [whatever].




                      Maybe there's a Latin term or something that can do this, but I really doubt it would be one word anyway.






                      share|improve this answer























                        up vote
                        2
                        down vote



                        accepted







                        up vote
                        2
                        down vote



                        accepted






                        One possible thing to do is to mention what those circumstances are, so the reader knows exactly what the conditions are absent which she would have acted differently, then use the word "otherwise". So in the lead-up sentence you can do something like:




                        "She had been under intense pressure to keep quiet about the
                        matter."




                        then:




                        "Otherwise she would have raised her voice and let everyone know."




                        In other words, in keeping with your example:



                        Mention the "intervening circumstances"



                        then:




                        [this] is what she would have done "otherwise"




                        or




                        "otherwise" [this] is what she would have done.




                        "otherwise" can mean "had the circumstances been different", however the presence of such circumstances will need to be at least mentioned beforehand because "otherwise" obviously only makes sense with contrast to another statement or fact.




                        I can't afford it. Otherwise I'd buy it.

                        ^^^^^^^^^^ Imagine omitting this first part.




                        If you're specifically looking for one word to mean either:




                        without interceding circumstances.




                        or




                        if not for intervening circumstances.




                        as opposed to my suggestion, I'm sorry I don't know any way. The only way I can think of is along the lines of:




                        There were intervening circumstances. Otherwise she would have
                        done [whatever].




                        Maybe there's a Latin term or something that can do this, but I really doubt it would be one word anyway.






                        share|improve this answer












                        One possible thing to do is to mention what those circumstances are, so the reader knows exactly what the conditions are absent which she would have acted differently, then use the word "otherwise". So in the lead-up sentence you can do something like:




                        "She had been under intense pressure to keep quiet about the
                        matter."




                        then:




                        "Otherwise she would have raised her voice and let everyone know."




                        In other words, in keeping with your example:



                        Mention the "intervening circumstances"



                        then:




                        [this] is what she would have done "otherwise"




                        or




                        "otherwise" [this] is what she would have done.




                        "otherwise" can mean "had the circumstances been different", however the presence of such circumstances will need to be at least mentioned beforehand because "otherwise" obviously only makes sense with contrast to another statement or fact.




                        I can't afford it. Otherwise I'd buy it.

                        ^^^^^^^^^^ Imagine omitting this first part.




                        If you're specifically looking for one word to mean either:




                        without interceding circumstances.




                        or




                        if not for intervening circumstances.




                        as opposed to my suggestion, I'm sorry I don't know any way. The only way I can think of is along the lines of:




                        There were intervening circumstances. Otherwise she would have
                        done [whatever].




                        Maybe there's a Latin term or something that can do this, but I really doubt it would be one word anyway.







                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered Oct 15 at 12:04









                        Zebrafish

                        8,64421332




                        8,64421332
























                            up vote
                            0
                            down vote













                            The word complications can be so defined and seems to cover "intervening circumstances".




                            [this] is what she would have done if not for complications.




                            She would have done [this] without (had it not been for) complications.



                            https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Complications






                            share|improve this answer

























                              up vote
                              0
                              down vote













                              The word complications can be so defined and seems to cover "intervening circumstances".




                              [this] is what she would have done if not for complications.




                              She would have done [this] without (had it not been for) complications.



                              https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Complications






                              share|improve this answer























                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote










                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote









                                The word complications can be so defined and seems to cover "intervening circumstances".




                                [this] is what she would have done if not for complications.




                                She would have done [this] without (had it not been for) complications.



                                https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Complications






                                share|improve this answer












                                The word complications can be so defined and seems to cover "intervening circumstances".




                                [this] is what she would have done if not for complications.




                                She would have done [this] without (had it not been for) complications.



                                https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Complications







                                share|improve this answer












                                share|improve this answer



                                share|improve this answer










                                answered Oct 15 at 13:05









                                user22542

                                1,92539




                                1,92539






















                                    up vote
                                    0
                                    down vote













                                    Not an exact answer, but if the underlying issue is the "clumsy sounding" you might want to consider the use of "extenuating" circumstances instead of "interceding" or "intervening" since that's pretty much the exact idea you're trying to get across, is a common term, and sounds fine.



                                    A situation or condition that provides an excuse for an action, as in Although Nancy missed three crucial rehearsals, there were extenuating circumstances, so she was not dismissed. This expression was originally legal terminology, denoting circumstances that partly excuse a crime and therefore call for less punishment or damages.


                                    Other common usages would be:
                                    "Due to extenuating circumstances, Nancy did [this]" meaning that Nancy did [this], but would have done something different if not for the circumstances.



                                    You could also trying using the verb form (extenuate) but it's less common.



                                    To extenuate is to make less of something or try to minimize its importance. The fact that you walked your little sister to school because she missed the bus might extenuate your teacher's response when you show up late.


                                    See also "mitigating factors"






                                    share|improve this answer



























                                      up vote
                                      0
                                      down vote













                                      Not an exact answer, but if the underlying issue is the "clumsy sounding" you might want to consider the use of "extenuating" circumstances instead of "interceding" or "intervening" since that's pretty much the exact idea you're trying to get across, is a common term, and sounds fine.



                                      A situation or condition that provides an excuse for an action, as in Although Nancy missed three crucial rehearsals, there were extenuating circumstances, so she was not dismissed. This expression was originally legal terminology, denoting circumstances that partly excuse a crime and therefore call for less punishment or damages.


                                      Other common usages would be:
                                      "Due to extenuating circumstances, Nancy did [this]" meaning that Nancy did [this], but would have done something different if not for the circumstances.



                                      You could also trying using the verb form (extenuate) but it's less common.



                                      To extenuate is to make less of something or try to minimize its importance. The fact that you walked your little sister to school because she missed the bus might extenuate your teacher's response when you show up late.


                                      See also "mitigating factors"






                                      share|improve this answer

























                                        up vote
                                        0
                                        down vote










                                        up vote
                                        0
                                        down vote









                                        Not an exact answer, but if the underlying issue is the "clumsy sounding" you might want to consider the use of "extenuating" circumstances instead of "interceding" or "intervening" since that's pretty much the exact idea you're trying to get across, is a common term, and sounds fine.



                                        A situation or condition that provides an excuse for an action, as in Although Nancy missed three crucial rehearsals, there were extenuating circumstances, so she was not dismissed. This expression was originally legal terminology, denoting circumstances that partly excuse a crime and therefore call for less punishment or damages.


                                        Other common usages would be:
                                        "Due to extenuating circumstances, Nancy did [this]" meaning that Nancy did [this], but would have done something different if not for the circumstances.



                                        You could also trying using the verb form (extenuate) but it's less common.



                                        To extenuate is to make less of something or try to minimize its importance. The fact that you walked your little sister to school because she missed the bus might extenuate your teacher's response when you show up late.


                                        See also "mitigating factors"






                                        share|improve this answer














                                        Not an exact answer, but if the underlying issue is the "clumsy sounding" you might want to consider the use of "extenuating" circumstances instead of "interceding" or "intervening" since that's pretty much the exact idea you're trying to get across, is a common term, and sounds fine.



                                        A situation or condition that provides an excuse for an action, as in Although Nancy missed three crucial rehearsals, there were extenuating circumstances, so she was not dismissed. This expression was originally legal terminology, denoting circumstances that partly excuse a crime and therefore call for less punishment or damages.


                                        Other common usages would be:
                                        "Due to extenuating circumstances, Nancy did [this]" meaning that Nancy did [this], but would have done something different if not for the circumstances.



                                        You could also trying using the verb form (extenuate) but it's less common.



                                        To extenuate is to make less of something or try to minimize its importance. The fact that you walked your little sister to school because she missed the bus might extenuate your teacher's response when you show up late.


                                        See also "mitigating factors"







                                        share|improve this answer














                                        share|improve this answer



                                        share|improve this answer








                                        edited Oct 15 at 13:22

























                                        answered Oct 15 at 13:16









                                        WDO

                                        1814




                                        1814






















                                            up vote
                                            0
                                            down vote













                                            I don't know of a single word, some good idioms in this circumstance would be "all being well she would have.." or "if everything had gone smoothly she would have..."






                                            share|improve this answer

























                                              up vote
                                              0
                                              down vote













                                              I don't know of a single word, some good idioms in this circumstance would be "all being well she would have.." or "if everything had gone smoothly she would have..."






                                              share|improve this answer























                                                up vote
                                                0
                                                down vote










                                                up vote
                                                0
                                                down vote









                                                I don't know of a single word, some good idioms in this circumstance would be "all being well she would have.." or "if everything had gone smoothly she would have..."






                                                share|improve this answer












                                                I don't know of a single word, some good idioms in this circumstance would be "all being well she would have.." or "if everything had gone smoothly she would have..."







                                                share|improve this answer












                                                share|improve this answer



                                                share|improve this answer










                                                answered Oct 15 at 16:50









                                                JeffUK

                                                1,810211




                                                1,810211






















                                                    up vote
                                                    0
                                                    down vote













                                                    I found this word that might work here -



                                                    perforce adverb

                                                    per·​force | pər-ˈfȯrs



                                                    1 : by force of circumstances or of necessity

                                                    2 obsolete : by physical coercion



                                                    Here are a few example sentences:




                                                    For a time Montrose retired, perforce, from public life.

                                                    The kings of England became perforce much more home-keeping sovereigns after 1204.

                                                    These images are perforce in black and white because there is no color at x-ray wavelengths.







                                                    share|improve this answer

























                                                      up vote
                                                      0
                                                      down vote













                                                      I found this word that might work here -



                                                      perforce adverb

                                                      per·​force | pər-ˈfȯrs



                                                      1 : by force of circumstances or of necessity

                                                      2 obsolete : by physical coercion



                                                      Here are a few example sentences:




                                                      For a time Montrose retired, perforce, from public life.

                                                      The kings of England became perforce much more home-keeping sovereigns after 1204.

                                                      These images are perforce in black and white because there is no color at x-ray wavelengths.







                                                      share|improve this answer























                                                        up vote
                                                        0
                                                        down vote










                                                        up vote
                                                        0
                                                        down vote









                                                        I found this word that might work here -



                                                        perforce adverb

                                                        per·​force | pər-ˈfȯrs



                                                        1 : by force of circumstances or of necessity

                                                        2 obsolete : by physical coercion



                                                        Here are a few example sentences:




                                                        For a time Montrose retired, perforce, from public life.

                                                        The kings of England became perforce much more home-keeping sovereigns after 1204.

                                                        These images are perforce in black and white because there is no color at x-ray wavelengths.







                                                        share|improve this answer












                                                        I found this word that might work here -



                                                        perforce adverb

                                                        per·​force | pər-ˈfȯrs



                                                        1 : by force of circumstances or of necessity

                                                        2 obsolete : by physical coercion



                                                        Here are a few example sentences:




                                                        For a time Montrose retired, perforce, from public life.

                                                        The kings of England became perforce much more home-keeping sovereigns after 1204.

                                                        These images are perforce in black and white because there is no color at x-ray wavelengths.








                                                        share|improve this answer












                                                        share|improve this answer



                                                        share|improve this answer










                                                        answered 17 mins ago









                                                        Bumble Bee

                                                        282




                                                        282






























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