A more "advanced" question regarding derived meaning

[Apokalupsis]

Is the statement: "Domesticated house cats are one of the largest mammals (physically) in the world." an accurate statement? I would wager no, of course not.

But someone else stated that it was accurate, because there are many smaller mammals in the world. And all that is necessary for this statement ot be true/accurate, is that it belong in a group "larger/largest".

If we have 2 groups "All mammals the size of a cat or larger" and "All mammals smaller than a cat", then the former group is the "largest" set of mammals, and therefore true.

Other statements that must be accurate then would be:

* A BB Gun is one of the most powerful weapons in the world.
* Grey Tabbies are one of the largest mammals in the world.
* A Tri-Cycle is one of the fastest vehicles on the planet.
* A 1960's TV remote, is one of the most technologically advanced devices in modern history.
* The African tribe of Mursi (population of around 7,000 people), is one of the largest tribes in the world.

To me, this is absurd and lacks any value as a way to communicate an idea.

However, I am unaware of any "official" rule that disqualifies the statement from being "accurate". Is there some standard that should be employed here? Or is it purely subjective?

[Milanya]

Come again? (Can you rephrase your question please. )
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning.

[Skrej]

I think this is more of a philosophical question than an English grammar one, and it sounds like a fallacious inductive argument.

I'm assuming this is some kind of spam....
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[Apokalupsis]

lol, it is not spam.

I was in a discussion with another person. I believed he rendered a statement incorrectly to convey his meaning. He disagreed. I wanted to know if there was any rule "governing" the use of subjects/objects here.

For instance, is it true: "A BB Gun is one of the most powerful weapons in the world."? I would say of course not. My friend would say yes, because we have two groups here...powerful weapons and not so powerful weapons. Since there is no objective measurement between the two groups...you can put ANY object into either (label it as such), and the statement would be correct.

That is, as long as there are weapons that are less dangerous than a BB Gun, then it's correct/accurate to say that the BB Gun is ONE of the most dangerous weapons in the world.

The problem is, this seems like "spin". I don't think most English speakers would accept the message that he is trying to convey from that statement.

And I'm trying to find a "rule" or precedent, to prove him wrong. Unfortunately, I cannot find any. As it stands right now, it would seem that nearly any sentence like this, could be taken to mean anything. IMO, this would seem to be a weakness in the English language (unless there is some sort of rule or precedent which says that the BB Gun cannot be placed into the category of "most powerful" and belongs instead, in the "less powerful").

Thanks for your help in this "non-spam" query.

[Apokalupsis]

No one knows?

[Apokalupsis]

Aren't there any educators here?