Rocket7 wrote:
Can anyone give reasoning for each answer choice. Appreciate it.
Also
arun6765 can you please clarify the following please:
1. In your explanations above in regards to parallelism, what are the two elements that are parallel? Are they both prepositional phrases or do they both have a verb?
2. Can the idiom "Not X but Y" have a comma in the middle such as John is not a student, but a professor. -> is this correct?
Rocket71. According to mathematical scholars, the ancient conception of the number zero was
not the same as the numerical quantity we know today, but was more likely to arise as a type of placeholder to differentiate numbers like ten and one hundred from one another.
The coloured part is the part which requires parallelism in the original sentence after not
the same as.....but
more likely arose as.So after evaluating choices only A & B are the one which has
as in the end. Since this sentence talks about some event in the past so past (arose) is correctly used in B.
C is wrong because it is using present continuous
D is wrong because it has used third form of arise which is used which perfect tenses.
E is nonsensical seems like it arose a type of placeholder but instead it should mean it arose as a type of placeholder( as is used as role played by the ancient conception).
2. Not an expert, but regarding use of comma this is not a make or break error as both forms are correct. You will have other obvious errorrs to arrive at correct ans.@