grammar - Meaning of “x is 35 times less than y"


I’m not sure of whether this is grammatically correct, although I've encountered the same expression many times before.



Most Google searches show it produces 35 times less carbon than the report suggested.



Does 35 times less have a precise meaning in this context, or is it ambiguous here? Does either of these two possibities apply?




  1. the original amount minus 35 times the original amount (35 times less than 100 units would be −3400 units)




  2. ¹⁄₃₅ of the original amount (35 times less than 100 units would be 2 ⁶⁄₇ units)






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