Difference between "many and most"

[Basia W]

Good morning,

I have a general question about logical equivalents in parallel reasoning- when I am trying to match the same scope of reasoning is "many" equal to "most"? I know that most= majority, more than half, possibly all.

Thank you for your time!

Best,

Basia

[Nikki Siclunov]

Hi Basia,

"Many" and "most" are not logically equivalent. Whereas "most" means "more than half," "many" merely suggests "more than just a few." If we know that, say, "most professors have PhD's," we can confidently say that many of them do. The reverse, however, is not necessarily true. If "many professors have PhD's," then it is possible - but not certain - that most professors have PhD's.

In short, I would not parallel "many" with "most" (or vice versa), unless that were my only contender.

Hope this helps!