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I read a question which I misunderstood in one specific way (it was, I believe, a legitimate interpretation) and answered it. Turns out, it was meant in another way, after discussion with the OP. Do I delete my answer? Others may read the OP's message in the same way as I did and the answer may be useful to them.

What's the best practice here?

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Reset to default
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Have two distinct questions, one for each interpretation. Delete all answers that do not match their question and repost them to the other question. Link the questions to each other to highlight the differences and make them easier to find.

Usually, it’s best to ask a new question for your interpretation, but if there are already many answers and similar based on your interpretation, it may be better to encourage the OP to ask a new question.

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  • Your second case already happened. The second answer understood it the same way I did, so, obviously, my interpretation was not so foolish.
    – Captain Emacs
    Commented Dec 20, 2015 at 12:36
  • In that case and if there are no further answers, I suggest editing the question to your interpretation and encourage the OP to ask a new question and hope that the OP is fine with this. Unfortunately, this is always a delicate situation.
    – Wrzlprmft Mod
    Commented Dec 20, 2015 at 12:47

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