for I do not know the answer vs because I do not know the answer

[anhnha]

1. I shan't try to answer your question, for I do not know the answer.
2. I shan't try to answer your question because I do not know the answer.
Is there any difference in meaning between #1 and #2? Which sentence is better?

[emsr2d2]

There is no difference in meaning.
The second sentence is more natural. Using "for" to mean "because" sounds somewhat old-fashioned.

[ComputerMoses]

for and because. The former is subjective ('Don't swear, for I dislike swearing'), the latter objective (They did that, because events compelled them'); the former may represent the writer's own view, the latter the immediate and explicit cause. Quote from 'Usage And Abusage' by Eric Partridge.

[5jj]

Partridge wrote those words seventy years ago. I don't think anybody would feel that difference today. As ems said, 'for' sounds somewhat old-fashioned nowadays.

[Rover_KE]

for and because. The former is subjective ('Don't swear, for I dislike swearing'), the latter objective (They did that, because events compelled them'); the former may represent the writer's own view, the latter the immediate and explicit cause. Quote from 'Usage And Abusage' by Eric Partridge.

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Rover