usage of at best/at worst

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Chinn_asama: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 77; Joined: Sat Jun 02, 2012 7:14 pm; Thanked: 1 times

by Chinn_asama » Sat Aug 31, 2013 6:53 am

Hi there

Can anyone shed light on the usage of at best/at worst?

"you can try to retrieve it from others accounts which are functional. It is at best a one hour's work for even a D grade computer expert". Is the sentence right if the intended meaning is the maximum time it would take is 1 hour?

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Sentence Correction | Sat Aug 31, 2013 6:53 am

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by [email protected] » Sat Aug 31, 2013 2:11 pm

Hi Chinn_asama,

The phrases "at best" and "at worst" are usually meant to define an "extreme" possibility. When using these phrases, it's important to think about the "intent" of what the sentence is trying to communicate:

The sentence "It is, AT BEST, one hour's work for a D grade computer expert." does NOT sound correct, because the sentence appears to define the FASTEST that an expert could work, but doesn't define what is likely to happen.

The sentence "It is, AT WORST, one hour's work for a D grade computer expert." makes more sense, in that it defines the worst case scenario (one hour of work), but implies that the expert could probably do the job faster.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

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