hemant_rajput wrote:little mice wrote:Retail sales rose 8/10 of 1 percent in August,intensifying expectations that personal spending in the July-September quarter would more than double the 1.4 percent growth rate in personal spending for the previous quarter.
my question: I thought personal spending here can't compare with the growth rate, please correct me, because this sentence is actually correct.
Comparison is in between "personal spending in the July-September quarter" and "personal spending for the previous quarter". This comparison is apt in this sentence that is why it is correct. I guess you fumbled the elements compared here.
Thank you for your reply~~ although I don't agree with you,it did push me to think further somehow!
And here's my inspiration from your answer:
Firstly, "double" in this sentence is vt. and means "to cause sth. two times as great as many"(from learner's dictionary) and means "to become two times as great as" when used as a vi.
Secondly, as for spending and rate, they are both some concrete data, or let's say, numbers. So, they can be compared to each other.
examples from online dictionary:
1. It spends over 10% of GDP on defence, more than double the proportion spent by America.
2. The Horn of Africa is facing its worst drought in over 50 years; child malnutrition rates are more than double or triple the 15% emergency threshold and are expected to rise.
Thank you for your help, and further debate is appreciated ~~ Have a good day, maybe night, whatever, good mood is what counts!
