Maximum speed limit

Question

Hi,can you tell me what is the difference between ' the maximum speed limit in London is 13 km an hour' and'he maximum speed limit in London is 13 km per hour' ?BTW...when we list different options and we ask somebody to choose, if the choice is between more than 2 options can I still use 'between' or shall I use 'among' ?thank you.

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

can you tell me what is the difference between ' the maximum speed limit in London is 13 km an hour' and
'the maximum speed limit in London is 13 km per hour' ?--None, obviously.

BTW...when we list different options and we ask somebody to choose, if the choice is between more than 2 options can I still use 'between' or shall I use 'among' ?- Among.

Diotima · Answer

Thank you M.M. for your help.
With regard to the first point , I have found it on an exercise. The second sentence was presented as the correct version of the first (student book with key). Is 'per/km' more formal and hence deemed 'more correct'?

Khoff · Answer

Mr. M. -- he's asking about the difference between "13 km an hour" and "13 km per hour." (I thought the two sentences were identical on first reading.)

Awence · Answer

Well, I hardly come across 13km an hour in whichever level of my Cambridge ESOL syallabus, so if selections are given, I'd certainly advise my student to choose 13km per hour which has been widely used in news report worldwide.

Though, regional usage of English might differ, I'd advise any beginner language learner to stick to the Queen's English no matter how obsolete it might be deemed.

MalRey · Answer

diotima the maximum speed limit in London is 13 km an hour' and'he maximum speed limit in London is 13 km per hour' ?

There is no difference in meaning but I would advise using "km per hour" as it sounds better (to my ear anyway) and is a bit more formal.

By the way, when you post questions with small differences like this it would be helpful if you would highlight the differences, either with italic, bold, or color to make them easier to see.

Rover_KE · Answer

When we list different options and we ask somebody to choose, if the choice is between more than 2 options can I still use 'between' or shall I use 'among' ?

Use between.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
between

?preposition& adverb
1 at, into, or across the space separating (two objects, places, or points).
2 in the period separating (two points in time).
3 [as prep.] indicating a connection or relationship involving two or more parties.
4 [as prep.] by combining the resources or actions of (two or more parties).

Mister Micawber · Answer

To follow up on Rover's mandate:

According to a widely repeated but unjustified tradition, "between is used for two, and among for more than two." It is true that between is the only choice when exactly two entities are specified: the choice between (notamong) good and evil, the rivalry between (not among) Great Britain and France. When more than two entities are involved, however, or when the number of entities is unspecified, the choice of one or the other word depends on the intended sense. Between is used when the entities are considered as distinct individuals; among, when they are considered as a mass or collectivity. Thus in the sentence The bomb landed between the houses, the houses are seen as points that define the boundaries of the area of impact (so that we presume that none of the individual houses was hit). InThe bomb landed among the houses, the area of impact is considered to be the general location of the houses, taken together (in which case it is left open whether any houses were hit). By the same token, we may speak of a series of wars between the Greek cities, which suggests that each city was an independent participant in the hostilities, or of a series of wars among the Greek cities, which allows for the possibility that the participants were shifting alliances of cities. For this reason, among is used to indicate inclusion in a group: She is among the best of our young sculptors. There is a spy among you. Use between when the entities are seen as determining the limits or endpoints of a range: They searched the area between the river, the farmhouse, and the woods. The truck driver had obviously been drinking between stops.
(Am Heritage Dictionary)

And you all were right: km an hour and km per hour are so synonymous in my mind that I did not notice the difference in the 2 sentences even after re-reading them!

Diotima · Answer

Thank you all for your thorough replies, they are all of great help!

Maximum speed limit

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