What does "not that I know of" mean in your opinion?

Question:Meaning.... When you ask someone a question regarding themselves or their actions and they Respond with "not that I know of", What do you precieve they mean.

Do you consider it a "No" , a "Yes by ommission" , a "Maybe"
or Do you even consider it a response at all.

I've always thought "Maybe", but I would prefer a broader opinion than just my own.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Meaning.... When you ask someone a question regarding themselves or their actions and they Respond with "not that I know of", What do you precieve they mean.

Do you consider it a "No" , a "Yes by ommission" , a "Maybe"
or Do you even consider it a response at all.

I've always thought "Maybe", but I would prefer a broader opinion than just my own.

I think the context of the response depends more on the question that was aked to begin with. Depending on the question, it could mean any of the above. For example, if a person asks me as a mechanic, 'Have there been any recalls on my car?' a response on 'Not that I know of' really means 'I am not aware of any at this moment, but there may be some.' In this case a 'maybe'. I would then follow up with 'but I can check for you.'
If I am a cop and someone walks up and asks me 'Is it illegal to walk around in a chicken suit all day?" and my response is 'Not that I know of,' then I have indicated a solid 'No response. I would then follow up with 'But you will get talked to by other officers because it is out of the normal.' (or something like that.)
I personally take the 'not that I know of' response as one of 'no, but I may be wrong, ask someone else who is better qualified to answer your question.'
Of course with the ever changing vernacular in this nation, what this means to my generation may mean something else to the next generation.......

When I say it I usually mean maybe. I think people say it because they are pretty sure the answer is no but they don't want it to come back to them if they were wrong. At least that's why I say it!

it means that to this person's knowledge, such thing hasn't occurred...if they're saying it about something they did, then they're implying (sp?) that they might have done it, but it would have been through another personality, wherein they wouldn't remember....hence, they're crazy...

I also think it means "Maybe".

NO...

~~ I take it to mean they're being evasive. Or maybe they don't think you can handle the truth. Or else they can't remember & it isn't important enough to them to dredge up memories. It's also a good indication that the subject is closed. ~~

To me, it means no, I do not know of this, but I do know that...blah blah blah... That's how I see it as.

I think it's a way of saying "I don't know that to be true, but I don't know enough about it to have that mean that it's probably false, either." It differentiates a negative with the implication that we'd know if it were so, from a negative without that implication.