| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. |
A Practical and Authoritative Guide to Contemporary English. 1996.
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3. Word Choice: New Uses, Common Confusion, and Constraints
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| § 4. not about to |
| When followed by an infinitive, about to means “presently going to, on the verge of,” as in I’m about to go downtown. The construction not about to may be simply the negative of this, especially in response to questions: I’m not about to go downtown. I’m about to go to the park. But in most instances not about to expresses intention or determination, as in We are not about to negotiate with terrorists. A majority of the Usage Panel considers this usage acceptable in speech but not in formal writing. | 1 |
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| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. Copyright © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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