comparatives+ a grammar teacher

[daisy1352]

X is not as salty as Y.
X is less salty than Y.
Can we also say X is not saltier than Y. I mean is this structure correct ,or we should necessarily use less?
Thanks

 

[bhaisahab]

X is not as salty as Y.
X is less salty than Y.
Can we also say X is not saltier than Y. I mean is this structure correct ,or we should necessarily use less?
Thanks

If you say that x is not saltier than y, you are saying that they are equally salty.

 

[tedtmc]

If you say that x is not saltier than y, you are saying that they are equally salty.

Equally or less salty.

 

[bhaisahab]

Equally or less salty.

Why less?

 

[tedtmc]

If I say I am not taller than you, I may be as tall if not shorter than you. No?

 

[bhaisahab]

If I say I am not taller than you, I may be as tall if not shorter than you. No?

Perhaps, but why not simply say: "I am shorter than/not as tall as you".

 

[tedtmc]

Well, this is something you can't be sure of until you do the measurement to be exact.

 

[bhaisahab]

Well, this is something you can't be sure of until you do the measurement to be exact.

Let's take the OP's original example of saltiness. If I taste x and y and I find that x is less salty, I will say that it is less salty. If I taste and say that it is not saltier (I wouldn't say that), it means that it is equally salty.

 

[Raymott]

Equally or less salty.

That's correct.
It's quite simple logic. For example, if an integer is not greater than 10, it is either 10 or less than ten.
While language is not necessarily logical, I can't see why "not saltier than" doesn't include "less salty" along with "equally salty".