Like the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, also an inland lake connect

Hello Everyone!

Let's tackle this question, one thing at a time, and narrow down our options quickly so we know how to answer questions like this when they pop up on the GMAT! To begin, let's take a quick look at the question and highlight any major differences between the options in orange:

Like the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”

(A) Like the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”
(B) Inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster” similar to the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, which, like Lake Champlain, is an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river.
(C) Inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster” similar to Loch Ness’s, which, like Lake Champlain, is an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river.
(D) Like Loch Ness’ reputed monster, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”
(E) Similar to that reputed to live in Loch Ness, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”

After a quick glance over the options, we have a couple areas we can focus on:

1. How to compare the Lake Champlain & Loch Ness "sea monsters"
2. How to compare Lake Champlain & Loch Ness as inland lakes

Remember that whenever you see an entire sentence underlined (especially one this long), there is one grammar issue you can almost guarantee on:

MODIFIERS!

We need to make sure the phrases used to compare the monsters and the lakes are placed directly next to what they're modifying without changing the overall meaning. Let's take a closer look by highlighting the modifiers in blue and the antecedents in green or red:

(A) Like the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”

This is INCORRECT because both modifier phrases are located directly before "inhabitants," which is not the correct antecedent. The inhabitants are not "like the one reputed to live in Loch Ness" - that would mean the inhabitants are the same as the sea monster? The phrase "also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river" should also be paired up with Lake Champlain, not Loch Ness. Let's rule this one out.


(B) Inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster” similar to the one reputed to live in Loch Ness, which, like Lake Champlain, is an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river.

This seems OKAY for now. The phrase used to compare the Loch Ness monster with the Lake Champlain "sea monster" are next to each other. The phrase showing similarities between Lake Champlain and Loch Ness are also next to each other. Let's save this one for now.


(C) Inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster” similar to Loch Ness’s, which, like Lake Champlain, is an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river.

This is INCORRECT because it is trying to say BOTH the Lake Champlain "sea monster" AND Lake Champlain are "similar to the Loch Ness's." It makes sense to pair up the phrase "similar to the Loch Ness's" to the sea monster, but it does NOT work to say that the Loch Ness's monster is similar to Lake Champlain. Let's rule this one out.


(D) Like Loch Ness’ reputed monster, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”

This is INCORRECT because the modifier "Like Loch Ness's reputed monster" is directly before "inhabitants." This means that the writer thinks that the Loch Ness monster and the inhabitants are similar?? That doesn't make sense. Let's rule this one out too.


(E) Similar to that reputed to live in Loch Ness, inhabitants of the area around Lake Champlain, also an inland lake connected to the ocean by a river, claim sightings of a long and narrow “sea monster.”

This is INCORRECT because, just like in option D, this sentence is trying to say that the Loch Ness monster and the inhabitants are similar, which isn't the meaning we're going for.


There you have it - option B is the only one that places the modifier phrases directly before/after what they're modifying. By knowing the trick about GMAT SC questions that are completely underlined, you can focus on modifiers first to eliminate a few (or all) of the wrong choices!


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