"More Likely Than Not" as a Probability-Judgment Marker
10 exercises — how "more likely than not" frames a probability judgment above 50% without claiming certainty.
Quick reference
More likely than not: frames a probability judgment above 50%, short of certainty
Fixed form: "than," not "then" — a common spelling trap
Close synonym: "probably"
Contrast: unlike "definitely," it doesn't claim full certainty
Register: neutral-to-formal, common in spoken incident calls and written risk assessments
0 / 10 completed
1 / 10
A postmortem draft reads: "The root cause is ___ a stale cache entry, though we haven't fully confirmed it yet." Which phrase best signals that something is probable but not certain?
More likely than not is a fixed idiom meaning "probably true" (over 50% likely). It uses "than," not "then," and needs no extra verb tacked on. "More likely then not" misspells the comparative "than," and the other options add unnecessary words.
2 / 10
Which sentence uses "more likely than not" correctly?
"More likely than not, the outage was triggered by the config change we shipped an hour earlier" correctly frames a probable, but not certain, explanation. It cannot introduce a confident future plan, an instruction, or a scheduled event.
3 / 10
Fill the blank: "If the deploy fails again with the same stack trace, it's ___ an environment variable that's missing in production but present in staging."
More likely than not has a fixed word order: "more" + "likely" + "than" + "not." The other options scramble this into invalid, meaningless sequences.
4 / 10
Which pair correctly distinguishes "more likely than not" from "definitely"?
"More likely than not, the leak is in the connection pool" is a probability judgment, not a guarantee. "Definitely the leak is in the connection pool" claims certainty the speaker may not actually have.
5 / 10
A capacity-planning doc reads: "Given current growth rates, we will ___ need to reshard the database within the next two quarters." Which best completes the sentence?
More likely than not is the correct, fixed form. The other options scramble the required word order into invalid phrases.
6 / 10
Which sentence contains an error in the use of "more likely than not"?
"More likely than not that the QA team suspects, the regression was introduced last sprint" incorrectly attaches a relative clause to the fixed idiom, which cannot be modified this way. The other three sentences use it correctly as a standalone probability marker.
7 / 10
Choose the sentence where "more likely than not" is best replaced by "probably" without changing the meaning.
"Probably, this bug has existed since the initial implementation, not since the recent refactor" preserves the meaning exactly. The other options misuse the phrase as an urgency marker, an unrelated construction, or a pairing with a specific future date.
8 / 10
A risk assessment states: "If we don't add retries, transient network errors will ___ cause visible failures for end users." Which best fits?
More likely than not is the correct, standard form. Option A misspells "than" as "then." Option B inserts an incorrect comma. Option D is a homophone error, swapping "not" for "knot."
9 / 10
Which register note about "more likely than not" is accurate?
"More likely than not" works equally well in a spoken incident call ("More likely than not, it's the same root cause as last time") and a written risk assessment. It always signals a probability judgment above 50%, without claiming certainty.
10 / 10
Which sentence best demonstrates "more likely than not" framing a probable, but not certain, technical explanation?
"...the deployment is more likely than not the cause of the spike in error rates, though we're still waiting on the full trace data to confirm" is the textbook use: a probability judgment paired with an acknowledgment that full confirmation is pending. The other options misuse the phrase as a command intensifier, insert it awkwardly mid-clause, or pair it incorrectly with a future date.
What will I practise in ""More Likely Than Not" as a Probability-Judgment Marker — IT English Grammar"?
Practice using "more likely than not" to frame a probable, but not certain, technical explanation in postmortems and risk assessments.
How many exercises are in this module?
This module has 10 multiple-choice exercises, each with instant feedback and a full explanation of the correct answer.
Is this exercise free to use?
Yes. Every exercise on CoderSlingo, including this one, is free to use with no account, sign-up, or paywall.
Do I need to create an account to do these exercises?
No account is required. Just click an option to answer — your score for this session is tracked automatically in the progress bar above.
What happens if I choose the wrong answer?
You'll immediately see which answer was correct, plus a full explanation covering the grammar rule and reasoning behind it — mistakes are where most of the learning happens.
Can I retry the exercises if I want a higher score?
Yes — use the "Try again" button on the results screen to reset and go through all the questions again.
Is my progress saved if I close the page?
No. Progress is tracked only for your current visit; reloading or leaving the page resets the counter. This keeps the exercise simple and account-free.
Where can I find more Grammar exercises?
Browse the full Grammar hub for related drills, or check the "Next up" link below to continue with a connected topic.
How is this different from reading an article on the same topic?
Articles explain grammar rules in prose; this exercise tests and reinforces those rules through active recall with immediate feedback — the two work best together.
Who writes these exercises?
Every exercise is written by the CoderSlingo team, drawing on real workplace English used in IT roles, then reviewed for accuracy and clarity.