Dear Mun,

I'm happy to help with this.

Here's a blog post I wrote on this very topic:
http://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/active-verbs-on-the-gmat/

You see, first of all, grammar is only one of the considerations on the SC. Both (B) & (D) are grammatically correct. The problem with them ---- they are clunky, wordy, indirect, weak. By contrast, (C) is sleek, powerful, and direct. This questions falls under a rubric known as "Rhetorical Construction" --- this is actually one of the most tested topics on the GMAT SC. Even if an answer choice is grammatically correct, in order to be correct on the sentence correction, it must be clear, concise, direct, and powerful.

One of biggest hints for achieving this --- whenever you have a split between the noun & verb & adjective of the same verb (as we have in this question), choose the verb. Writing a word in its verb form instead of in its noun or adjective form almost always makes the sentence more concise and more direct.

Does all this make sense?

Mike
_________________

C it is
seem + to do--> idiom
and we should use that which is followed by a clause

Cheers

TN

seem + infinitive
seem to be
seem to indicate.

OA is C

the question is from OG,and it says that option D is incorrect because "indicative of " cant introduce a clause .
Which clause is being talked about here and why cant indicative of introduce a clause

hi alwaysudit,
75.Along with the drop in producer prices announced yesterday, the strong retail sales figures released today seem like it is indicative that the economy, although growing slowly, is not nearing a recession.

(A) like it is indicative that
(B) as if to indicate
(C) to indicate that
(D) indicative of
(E) like an indication of

in the second half of non underlined portion "the economy, although growing slowly, is not nearing a recession"....the economy is not nearing a recession is a clause....sub:economy verb: is
now if you choose C "indicative of "..the whole sentence will become like this
Along with the drop in producer prices announced yesterday, the strong retail sales figures released today seem indicative of the economy, although growing slowly, is not nearing a recession.......in this sentence there is one clause and one is fragment
clause:Along with the drop in producer prices announced yesterday, the strong retail sales figures released today seem indicative of the economy
fragment:is not nearing a recession

so this will be wrong
more to say that seem should always be followed by infinitive.

kudos if it helps.

SKM

Hi,
Can someone please explain the usage of although here in non-underlined part.
As far as I know although should be followed by a clause .
What is the function of the modifier "although growing slowly" in grammatical terms.

Dear Abid,

Thank you for posting your question here.

This is a case of ellipsis, and you can find it discussed in our concept file on the use of "as". Ellipsis refers to the omission of words that are already implied by the context of the sentence. Sometimes, such words can be left out to make the sentence more concise. You are correct that "although" should be followed by a clause, but when ellipsis is applied, the subject and the verb of the clause can be left out when it's already clear what they are.

So, the clause here is "although it is growing slowly". It is already obvious from the context of the sentence that the economy is growing slowly. So, "it is" can be dropped without affecting the meaning of the sentence.

Here are a couple more examples:

Although small, my house meets my needs. (Meaning: Although my house is small, it meets my needs.)
The project, although vast, needs to be completed by the end of the week. (Meaning: Although the project is vast, it needs to be completed by the end of the week.)

I hope this helps to clarify your doubt!

Regards,
Meghna
_________________

Why a clause cannot follow 'of'?
Because 'of' is a preposition and can be only be followed by a noun or noun-phrase without a verb.
Why a clause always follows 'that'?
Because 'that' is subordinating conjunction here and can only be followed by a clause with a verb.
_________________

GMAT has put the although part in the un-underlined part and thus has made its intention clear that 'although' need not be followed by a clause. The matter should rest there, but still, the following tips might be handy.

1. If although starts a sentence, then although part can be either a verbed clause or a verb - less modifier.

Examples:
A. Although I didn't do well in my GMAT, I got 700 -- A verbed clause started by the conjunction although.
B. Although tired at the end of the Quants section, I did the verbal spiritedly and got a score of V42. --- Although part as a verb-less adjectival modifier. Tired is a past participle and not a verb.

2. If although part intervened in the middle of a sentence, then it can only be a verb-less modifier.
Example:
The economy, although growing slowly, is not nearing a recession.

3. If although part completes a sentence, then it can only be a verbed clause

Example: I did the verbal spiritedly and got a score of V42 although I became tired at the end of the Quants section --Verbed clause after although
Please note we cannot say: I did the verbal spiritedly and got a score of V42 although tired at the end of the Quants section. This is wrong.

I remember to have seen or heard these tips from RON although I can't remember where and when.
_________________

Hi all,
Could anyone explain whether seem like is correct here?
I mean seem like is quite informal for me which is often used in daily conversation. Though I'm not sure whether GMAT considers it correct
Thanks a lot

Use To+Verb to indicate intension in a sentence.

C "seem to indicate" is the correct idiom

A) like it is indicative that ( A Clause cannot follow Like)
(B) as if to indicate ( Wrong Idiom- As + clause / As + Noun (in case of role)
(C) to indicate that
(D) indicative of ( 1) Adjective used incorrectly there's no noun 2) Breaks the clause structure
(E) like an indication of ( Breaks the clause following clause "economy... recession"

can you please confirm, If my reasons to eliminate are right or wrong.

Hello devil.rocx,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, your reasoning here is indeed accurate.

Kudos.
We hope this helps.
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
_________________

Option (B) uses the conjunction 'as if', not 'as'.
'seem' and 'as if' have similar meanings in this context - something that is likely to be true but not necessary
So using both is redundant. Also to connect to the clause after 'to indicate', we need 'that'.
_________________

KarishmaB ma'am

I eliminated option E because we have a clause after "like".
Are there any other errors in option E?
In option B
Seems-as if is redundant in this scenario only or in general

Note that we have an option that gives "seem to indicate". The "as if" in "seem as if to indicate" doesn't add anything to it and just clutters it up.

(E) is incorrect. 'like' is followed by a noun with a preposition so that is alright. Look at the following sentences with 'like'

Like his father, who was a decent man, he is also well behaved.
Like the book on the third shelf, which is covered with a transparent sheet, the book on the fourth shelf is also interesting.

Prepositions are followed by a noun. 'Like' is a preposition and should be followed by a noun. Though we can modify the noun with prepositional phrases, relative clauses etc.
The problem with (E) is that the preposition 'of' is followed not by a noun, but by a clause. This is not correct.

(E) ... the strong retail sales figures released today seem like an indication of the economy is not nearing a recession.
_________________

KarishmaB Ma'am,

I understood your first point of "Seem as if to indicate".
The construction would be better if we just had a "seem to indicate that...".

I understood your second point too that "like" must be followed by a noun. We can modify the noun with a prepositional phrase and relative clauses.
So if the sentence would have been
Like an indication of the economy that is not nearing recession.
or
Like an indication of the economy, which is not nearing recession.


Please evaluate keeping other errors out. I am asking with the perspective of understanding the usage of "like".