Is the phrase
"Are there any vegetables except for asparagus?"
equivalent to
"Are there any vegetables other than asparagus?"
The first feels wrong, and the second feels right, but I have no clear understanding of why that is, or when "except for" should be used rather than "other than", or if they are in fact completely interchangeable.
A second case:
Except for asparagus, I love vegetables.
Other than asparagus, I love vegetables.
These two phrases seem equivalent to me. Are they?
Best Answer
In your first set of sentences, except as a preposition means "with the exclusion of; excluding." So, in your example, you would be saying "Are there any vegetables excluding asparagus?" This is incorrect because you are not excluding asparagus; you're actually wanting to know if, in addition to asparagus, there are any other vegetables. You're including aspargus as a vegetable, not excluding it.
In your second sentence, other than means "different from or besides." It is correct. In fact, you could correctly say, "Are there any vegetables besides asparagus?"
Your last set of sentences have the same meaning: I love vegetables in general, but not asparagus. In those sentences, except for means "but for" and other than means "besides."