second largest and other similar comparisons often lead writers astray: 'Japan is the second largest drugs market in the world after the United States' {The Times}. Not quite. It is the largest drugs market in the world after the United States or it is the second largest drugs market in the world. The sentence above could be fixed by placing a comma after 'world'.
( Bill Bryson )
[ Troublesome Words ]
www.QuoteSweet.com