 But it should be noted that some philosophers use “proposition” or “structured proposition” (Soames 2010) to refer to what are here called “states of affairs” and that some philosophers do not distinguish between properties and concepts. Furthermore, it should be borne in mind that in ordinary English the expression “state of affairs” is not normally used to refer to something which obtains or fails to obtain. It is used to refer to what is the case. Philosophers who talk of “states of affairs” as obtaining or failing to obtain are employing the term as a technical term, often as a translation of the German word “Sachverhalt”. Finally, states of affairs, unlike facts, are commonly said to last or endure, whereas “Sachverhalte” do not last or endure.