The sentence:
The House bill makes the most important improvement
in terms of additional supplies and the ability to produce more oil in this country.
I cannot figure out what 'in terms of' means here and what type of logical link is there between the parts before and after 'in terms of'.
--------
I think there may be something wrong my usual understanding of the phrase.
I can understand sentences like
The savings, both in terms of time and money, could be considerable.
The state was a late developer in terms of commerce.
because I view 'in terms of' as an adverb limiting another adjective. In the first sentence, I would understand it in this way:
The savings could be in-terms-of-time-and-money-ly considerable. If we are not talking about time or money but, say, space, we would not say it is considerable
Similarly, in the second sentence, I would understand it this way:
The state was a late developer. But it is only in terms of commerce that it is late. The state could well be a early developer in terms of education.
However, when it comes to the sentence at the top of this thread, I find it troubling: I can't find the adjective, and it seems that 'in terms of' cannot be viewed as a adverb.
Would you please help me understand that sentence?
Many thanks
