results/result

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What's the difference in meaning between

-Results of Okinawa School students compared to that of Japanese Candidates in the AL exam have been released.
-Results of Okinawa School students compared to those of Japanese Candidates in the AL exam have been released.

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@WBYeats,

There is no "difference" in meaning. Only one sentence (the second) has meaning. The first sentence is simply wrong. The word "results" is plural therefore "that" is incorrect.

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@Tes yeux noirs,

Thank you.

What do you think is the reason that 'those' (=results, not 'result') is the only correct form?

1. There is more than one student forming 'Japanese candidates', so each student has one result, and they altogether have 'results'.

2. One student has one result in one subject; Japanese candidates each take more than one subject, so they have 'results'.

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@WBYeats,

A plural subject needs a plural verb, and a plural pronoun where required.

results - those

0 Replies

@WBYeats,

It's called number agreement. Subjects and verbs have to agree in number, and pronouns and antecedents have to, also.

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Thank you for your replies, but I still haven't solved this problem.

What's the difference between result and results generally speaking, disregarding the question I asked first.

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@WBYeats,

WBYeats wrote:

What's the difference in meaning between

-Results of Okinawa School students compared to that of Japanese Candidates in the AL exam have been released.

Plural 'results' doesn't match singular 'that.' Grammar error.

Quote:

-Results of Okinawa School students compared to those of Japanese Candidates in the AL exam have been released.

Plural 'results' match plural 'those.'

It's not that the meaning changes. The reader will understand the message, even in the one with the grammatical flaw. If this were spoken in dialog, nobody would even notice it. Or, if they did, they wouldn't go to the trouble of correcting you.

On the other hand, if you're doing academic writing, then this is exactly the kind of issue that you should be focusing on. Number agreement between pronouns and antecedents.

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@WBYeats,

Quote:

What's the difference between result and results generally speaking, disregarding the question I asked first.

result = general outcome (pass/fail, win/lose)
results = individual marks (enabling a comparison in individual subjects)

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@McTag,

Do you mean even when we are talking about one subject, only 'results' is possible, and 'result' is wrong?

eg I took the physics exam last week, and the result will be announced tomorrow.
eg I took the physics exam last week, and the results will be announced tomorrow.

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@WBYeats,

No. Why are you so awkward?

It depends what the intended meaning of the statement is:

My result will be announced tomorrow.
My results (if there are more than one) will be announced tomorrow.
Everyone's results will be announced tomorrow.

1 Reply

@McTag,

By 'if there are more than one', do you mean 'more than one subject(=discipline, not a term of grammar)'?

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@WBYeats,

More than one subject/ discipline, and hence more than one result/ mark.

1 Reply

@McTag,

Based on your explanation or definition, is this correct?

-Tom's and Peter's results compared to that of mine will be released tomorrow.

Here we go back to the question I asked in the first post; here I think 'that' is the only correct form, and 'those' would be wrong, because I took the exam of one subject only; do you agree?

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@WBYeats,

WBYeats wrote:

s this correct?

-Tom's and Peter's results compared to that of mine will be released tomorrow.

That doesn't even make sense.

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@WBYeats,

Quote:

Here we go back to the question I asked in the first post; here I think 'that' is the only correct form, and 'those' would be wrong, because I took the exam of one subject only; do you agree?

This is nothing like the question you asked in the first post, but yes.

To go back to a question I asked earlier: why are you so awkward?

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@McTag,

Um...what's the meaning of 'why are you so awkward? '

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@Tes yeux noirs,

Thank you for the reply; then could I use the singular here?

-The result of the physics exam will be released tomorrow.(one subject, so result, not results)

What unsettles me is, even after consulting dictionaries, there's no way I can know the difference between 'results' and 'result'; according to Mctag, if I take one subject, then I have one result. But in non-native printed material I've seen the singular like the sentence above. Do you think it's wong? Logically we took one exam, but there's more than one candidate, so there must be more than one result, but language isn't something you can understand by logic always.

1 Reply

@WBYeats,

If there were multiple candidates sitting the exam, I would always use "results" in that case.
Each candidate has his own result.

1 Reply

@McTag,

The result if the exam was an increase in the suicide rate among students, as they considered their unacceptable results.
Smile

1 Reply

@McTag,

Is it a typo? Do you mean 'of (the exam)'?

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