Quote:
Originally Posted by Teia  Hi Riverkid
Thank you very much for answering my question so fast. |
You're welcome, Teia. You replied before I was able to edit.
I beeeelieve that this collocation occupies the same range of certainty as a 'very likely' to an 'almost certainly'.
Of course, 'almost certainly' occupies the same range as a 'must' but I think that this is a good example of a situation where a 'must' of certainty could not be used. 'must' is ['almost certainly' + deductive reasoning] that leaves the speaker only one rational choice.
For pure speculation without the "facts that provide the fodder for deductive reasoning, we'd choose 'almost certainly' or in the 'should' range, 'likely/probably' 'very likely'.