I want to say that A can never be better than the better one of B and C, i.e., A must be worse than B or C. Do the following sentences have the same and correct meaning?
- A can never be better than either B or C
- A can never be better than both B and C
- A can never be better than B or C
- Either B or C is always equal to or better than A
Do you have other suggested sentences? I mean a sentence that may cause the least misunderstanding among readers.
An example of A, B, and C:
B: method 1.
C: method 2.
A: mix of method 1 and method 2.
Does suggestion 2 has the problem of being misunderstood as:
A can never be better than B and A can never be better than C?
Best Answer
Your first and third phrasings are incorrect. To say "never better than either" means "always worse than both" (or, at best, equal to one of them).
#2 and #4 are both accurate, and logically equivalent, but #4 is convoluted—harder for the reader to parse.
So I would say use #2.
The "both" makes it explicit. Virtually all readers will take it to mean "A cannot simultaneously be better than B and better than C". Which is what you meant. (Actually, your introductory sentence is "clearer than both #2 and #4" but #2 is shortest.)