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Question The house rent here must not be greater than the limit the local government sets.

hirashin

Sempai
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8 Apr 2004
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Dear native English speakers,

The passage below is from one of the textbooks we use.

"Home owners in the program can receive some financial help. However, the rent must not be greater than the limit we set."

Does the "greater" sound right here? Can you say "bigger" or "higher" instead?


Hirashin
 
It sounds ok, but "higher" is better. I also think "homeowners" is a single word.
 
Just my two cents--"greater" sounds a bit more like it was a regulation or rule. Maybe more legalistic?

"Higher" is okay; I would choose "bigger" for this sentence.
 
Thanks for the help, johnnyG.
Just my two cents--"greater" sounds a bit more like it was a regulation or rule. Maybe more legalistic?

Oh, that makes sense. That sentence was written by a locla civil servant.

"Higher" is okay; I would choose "bigger" for this sentence.

I'm glad to hear that both "higher" and "bigger" can be used.
 
Greater, higher ok.
Bigger might be ok but it doesn't sound natural in this case to me.

I'm not sure what the general rule is. My bank balance is bigger than yours. My salary is bigger than yours. Sound ok.
 
We can say, "I live in a high-rent district." We cannot say, "I live in a big-rent district" or "I live in a great-rent district."
 
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