Admit/Submit/Permit/Commit

[Jin akashini]

Hi every one,

I would like to ask you which word is suitbale in the following sentence.

All employees are encouraged to ..... a percentage of their earings to the retirement fund.

A. Admit
B. Submit
C. Permit
D. Commit

I think I will choose "commit"..but I'm not sure.

Thanks,

 

[Barque]

It could be either B or D but the answer they are probably expecting is B (submit).

"Commit" refers to promising to put some money in the fund. "Submit" refers to actually putting in the money.

("Submit" isn't really a natural word in the context though it fits the intended meaning.)

 

[Jin akashini]

Thanks, Barque !

 

[boozer]

I agree it could be either but I would choose D. Submitting may refer to a one-off payment and that is not what usually happens when you pay social security...

 

[Andygc]

I don't agree that it could be either. As I see it the only appropriate answer is 'commit', on the basis of both meaning and context. The verb 'submit' does not have a meaning of 'pay money to'. The context - a retirement fund - implies regular payments, as boozer said.

 

[Barque]

Yes, which is why I suggested "submit". It doesn't have the meaning of "pay money to" but it implies "handing over" or "giving", while "commit" only refers to a promise. The person who set the test could have chosen a different word, perhaps "deposit" but that would have required "in the retirement fund".

 

[Jin akashini]

Dear Barque, Andygc and Boozer, I understand. So we should choose "commit", right ? Because, actually, the employees are just encouraged to do this ( deposit a percentage of their earings to the retirement fund), it doesn't mean that they will/or have to do it, they can deny if they don't want.

 

[Andygc]

When I said it doesn't have a meaning of 'to pay money to' I meant that it is not used in a context that involves making a payment. I have never seen 'submit' used in that way. In the context, 'commit' means to undertake to pay money into the fund. Once the commitment is made the deduction from earnings will be taken automatically. To me the sentence "All employees are encouraged to commit a percentage of their earnings to the retirement fund." is wholly unremarkable and I see no reason to suggest rewording the test question.

 

[Andygc]

it doesn't mean that they will/or have to do it, they can deny if they don't want.

It does mean that they will, if they follow the employer's advice. Although at some future date they might well withdraw from the arrangement.

 

[boozer]

Actually, on reflection, what worries me about submitting money is that it sounds as though they might want to inspect it, and this did not sit well with me from the very beginning.

 

[Barque]

I have never seen 'submit' used in that way.

We can't be sure the person who set the question speaks English as well as you. The OP is not from an English speaking country.

Once the commitment is made the deduction from earnings will be taken automatically.

We don't know that for sure.

 

[Andygc]

We can't be sure the person who set the question speaks English as well as you.

It's supposed to be a test of English.

While I was away from the keyboard a usage of 'submit' with payment came to mind. "He submitted his application form and payment to the admissions office." But that doesn't fit the usage in this question which would be 'submit a sum of money to the retirement fund'.

We don't know that for sure.

No, of course we don't, but this is a pretty straightforward sentence, and the concept is a familiar one - an employer encouraging an employee to contribute to a pension fund - which implies a regular commitment - there won't be much of a pension otherwise.

 

[Barque]

It's supposed to be a test of English.

That doesn't mean much. We've seen quite a few test questions on this forum with ambiguous and confusing answers. Perhaps the OP will come back and tell us which was the examiner's preferred answer later.

 

[Scott AM]

The problem with this question (it seems to me) is that it was likely written by someone who might not have an understanding of how pension plans work, if at all. Then others, who have more experience with this kind of thing, look at the question and get confused.

Commit makes more sense to me in terms of a company pension plan, that needs regular contributions so retired beneficiaries can keep getting paid. On the other hand, the wording makes it sounds like everything is optional - employees can pick the percentage they contribute, and the phrase employees are encouraged implies that they can opt out entirely. This sounds odd to me, as I belong to a company pension plan. I have no choice in the matter - my contributions are mandatory, and are a fixed percentage of my salary.

Submit makes sense in the case of one's own retirement plan. A friend of mine has a private registered pension fund, which her employer contributes to, as a benefit. She can choose to contribute a percentage of her salary every year, and the company matches a portion of that. Submit makes sense here, but then again, she isn't submitting funds to the (in general) retirement fund; it's her (specific) retirement fund.

 

[Myridon]

the wording makes it sounds like everything is optional - employees can pick the percentage they contribute, and the phrase employees are encouraged implies that they can opt out entirely.

This is exactly how 401k plans work for US employees.

 

[Andygc]

Submit makes sense in the case of one's own retirement plan. A friend of mine has a private registered pension fund, which her employer contributes to, as a benefit. She can choose to contribute a percentage of her salary every year, and the company matches a portion of that. Submit makes sense here, but then again, she isn't submitting funds to the (in general) retirement fund; it's her (specific) retirement fund.

I'm troubled by your use of "submit" here. I've looked in both AE and BE dictionaries, but I can't identify an accepted meaning of the word that fits. She 'contributes' to her pension fund and 'remits' her contributions, but in what way is her money 'submitted'?

 

[Scott AM]

I'm troubled by your use of "submit" here. I've looked in both AE and BE dictionaries, but I can't identify an accepted meaning of the word that fits. She 'contributes' to her pension fund and 'remits' her contributions, but in what way is her money 'submitted'?

Guess what - I dug deeper and you are correct. I fell into the trap of seeing something misused so often, that I assumed it was correct. Money is "remitted", not "submitted". I'd try and argue that it's misused so often that it basically means the same thing, but as you point out, no dictionaries list that meaning. So I'm changing my mind and agreeing that "commit" is the best answer here.

submit = present something for decision, consideration, etc.
remit = send in a payment
commit = pledge to take a certain course of action

 

[Jin akashini]

Thanks Scott AM, Andygc, Myridon, Barque, Andygc and Boozer...thank for your answers, I understand what you mean !

 

[Barque]

Jin Akashini, I don't know if this gives you an unfair advantage, but I found a variant of this question here: Word Test For TOEIC Part 18 and it seems the answer is "commit". (Click on "next" a couple of times if the link takes you to a different question.)

For some reason I'd got it into my head that it might have been a non-native who set the question and, having seen similar usage of "submit" in my own country, decided that it was the answer that he expected.

 

[Jin akashini]

Jin Akashini, I don't know if this gives you an unfair advantage, but I found a variant of this question here: Word Test For TOEIC Part 18 and it seems the answer is "commit". (Click on "next" a couple of times if the link takes you to a different question.)

For some reason I'd got it into my head that it might have been a non-native who set the question and, having seen similar usage of "submit" in my own country, decided that it was the answer that he expected.

Thanks Barque Have a nice day,