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Yoyoimut Posted 17 years ago
Grammar

Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?

Hello all,

I want to make sure whether or not my understanding is correct.

Assume I have a statement as follows.

"Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?"

Which one is the corrct understanding?

Option 1:
"Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?"
If Bob has 10 pens then Andy has 40 pens.
(calculation: The excess is obtained from "3 times the number of Bob's". The number of Andy's is equal to the number of Bob's plus the excess.)

Option 2:
"Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?"
If Bob has 10 pens then Andy has 30 pens.
(calculation: The number of Andy's is obtained from "3 times the number of Bob's".)

Thank you in advance.
  

Top answer

I hate to be a jackass, but I don't think it means anything. I've always avoided that expression like the plague!

— Avangi

  • I hate to be a jackass, but I don't think it means anything.
  • I've always avoided that expression like the plague!
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25 Answers
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I hate to be a jackass, but I don't think it means anything. I've always avoided that expression like the plague!
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We'd be more likely to say "Three times as many." If the first person has 10, the other has 30.

If you say "he has three times again as mamy" then it could be 10 plus the 30, for a total of 40.
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@grammar geek.

Thanks for replying.

Just need a confirmation:

According to your comment.

Case 1.
"Andy has three times as many pens as Bob has" --> If Bob has x pens then Andy has 3x pens.

Case 2.
"Andy has three times again as many pens as Bob has" --> If Bob has x pens then Andy has 4x (=x+3x) pens.

Other things to discuss:
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AvangiI hate to be a jackass, but I don't think it means anything. I've always avoided that expression like the plague!

@avangi,

I hate to be a jackass too. So I asked it here.
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Yoyoimut"Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?"
I'd assume "times more" meant "times as many".

Andy Bob
3 1
60 20
12 4

And so on.

CJ
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CalifJim
Yoyoimut"Andy has 3 times more pens than Bob has. What does it mean?"
I'd assume "times more" meant "times as many".

Andy Bob
3 1
60 20
12 4

And so on.

CJ

Can I say like this for the same interpretation?

There are three time
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Sort of. Your example of "Bob's pens" doesn't work naturally though.

There are three times as many pens as pencils is fine though. 30 pens, 10 pencils.
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Grammar GeekSort of. Your example of "Bob's pens" doesn't work naturally though.

There are three times as many pens as pencils is fine though. 30 pens, 10 pencils.

Oh my ***.

I had interpreted "There are three times as many pens as pencils." as there are 10 pens and 30 pencils.
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Okay, how about this one:

In this class, there are twice as many boys as there are girls.

If there are 10 girls, how many boys are there?
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<< EDIT: It wasn't a question for the native speakers, A. It was for the Original Poster, to make sure he understood the phrasing.
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