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Ipodmini Posted 20 years ago
Vocabulary

twice as well as / better than

Hi:-)

This new material retains heat twice better than the previous one.

This new material retains heat twice as well as the previous one.

Which one sound correct to you, and how about the other one?

Is it that "comparative adj" cannot go with "multiples"? (I really want to confirm it)
  

Top answer

This is part of a wider problem. If Mr Brown has a million dollars and Mr Smith has 4 million, we can say that Mr Smith is four times as rich as Mr Brown. If we want to use a comparative adjective, then strictly speaking we should say that Mr Smith is three times richer , because we're talking about the difference, but this is often ignored.

— J Lewis

  • This is part of a wider problem.
  • If Mr Brown has a million dollars and Mr Smith has 4 million, we can say that Mr Smith is four times as rich as Mr Brown.
  • If we want to use a comparative adjective, then strictly speaking we should say that Mr Smith is three times richer , because we're talking about the difference, but this is often ignored.
  • By this principle you can say "five times better" or "five times as well", taking account of the difference in meaning, but "twice better" certainly doesn't sound right to me.
  • The problem is that I don't really know why not!
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5 Answers
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This is part of a wider problem. If Mr Brown has a million dollars and Mr Smith has 4 million, we can say that Mr Smith is four times as rich as Mr Brown. If we want to use a comparative adjective, then strictly speaking we should say that Mr Smith is three times richer, because we're talking about the difference, but this is often ignored. By this principle you can say "five times
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So, if Mr Smith has 2 million, one should say "Mr Smith is twice as rich as Mr Brown" (one time richer?)

If Mr Smith has 3 million. I can say "He is three times as rich as Mr Brown" (two times richer?)

I wonder which is used more frequently or more directly between "as..as" and "times".

:-)
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In my opinion, "twice as well as" is both logically correct and more widely accepted.
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the 2nd is much more freuqunt, and better for this context
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