Dear Friends,
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
r019h wrote:
According to public health officials, in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which more babies were born to women over the age of thirty than under it.
(A) than
(B) than born
(C) than they were
(D) than there had been
(E) than had been born
Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended core meaning of this sentence is that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born to women under it.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Tenses + Pronouns• The simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past.
• The past perfect tense (marked by the use of helping verb "had") is used when a sentence contains two actions in the past; the helping verb "had" is used with the action in the "greater past".
A: Correct. The sentence formed by this answer choice uses the phrase "than under it", conveying the intended meaning - that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
to women under the age of 30. Further, Option A correctly uses the simple past tense verb "were born" to refer to an action that concluded in the past. Additionally, Option A avoids the pronoun error seen in Option C, as it uses no pronouns.
B: The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "than born under it"; the construction of this phrase illogically conveys that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
under the age of 30; the intended meaning is that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
to women under the age of 30.
C: This answer choice suffers from a pronoun error, as the pronoun "they" lacks a clear and logical referent.
D: The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "than there had been under it"; the construction of this phrase illogically conveys that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
under the age of 30; the intended meaning is that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
to women under the age of 30. Further, Option D incorrectly uses the past perfect tense verb "had been (born)" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; please remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past, and the past perfect tense (marked by the use of helping verb "had") is used when a sentence contains two actions in the past; the helping verb "had" is used with the action in the "greater past".
E: The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "than had been born under it"; the construction of this phrase illogically conveys that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
under the age of 30; the intended meaning is that in 1998 Massachusetts became the first state in which the number of babies born to women over the age of thirty was greater than the number of babies born
to women under the age of 30. Further, Option E incorrectly uses the past perfect tense verb "had been born" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; please remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past, and the past perfect tense (marked by the use of helping verb "had") is used when a sentence contains two actions in the past; the helping verb "had" is used with the action in the "greater past".
Hence, E is the best answer choice.To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):
To understand the concept of "Past Perfect Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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