Because both parents work full-time, they had a nanny who not only wat

Question

Because both parents work full-time, they had a nanny who not only watched the children  and also cleaned the house should it be  messy.

A) and also cleaned the house should it be
B) but also did the cleaning of the house if it were
C) and the house was cleaned if it were
D) but also cleaned the house if it was
E) and cleans the house if it were

1rohittiwari · Answer

The official answer is D. The reason given is that it is a simpler version of B. But I believe B also considers the subjunctive mood since the house not being clean is hypothetical. Need help with this.

akshayk · Answer

2 part idiom parallelism.
Not only... but also...

A - Breaks parallelism. Out.
B - Breaks parallelism, and wordy.
C - Not parallel and incorrect idiom
D - Parallel, and uses the indicative 'if' construction. Correct.
E - Out.

Not only watched.....
But also cleaned....

D is the answer.

1rohittiwari · Answer

How does B break parallelism? It satisfies :
 - Not only... but also..
 - Not only watched (verb past tense)... but also did (Verb past tense)..
Also B uses subjunctive mood. Since IF is used, which makes it hypothetical wouldn't it be apt to use WERE instead of WAS?
D violates rules for subjunctive mood.

Please help along these points.

phuongnina · Answer

Dear Expert,

I chose B and I thing D violates the rule of "if".

I am looking forward to receiving the explanation from GMAT expert.

Thank you

abhimahna · Answer

hey guys, D is actually not breaking the rule of 'if'. Let me explain you this. 1. Whenever we talk about hypothetical situation, we use plural verb with if. Example, If I were a child, I would have done everything to strengthen my profile for Harvard. This means I am not a child now. So, I am thinking about something that cannot be done now. For this to happen, I need to reborn.

2. Whenever we are talking about conditions, we do not use subjunctive mood of if. I used to miss my gym if it was raining. This means I am talking about the past and whenever there was a rain, I used to miss my gym. :cry:

Did you notice the singular verb I used with raining? There is no hypothetical situation here, hence, I am not supposed to use hypothetical form of if. The same applies to the current question. It says because both parents were working full time, the nanny usedto do two things 1. Watched the children 2. Cleaned the house if it was messy. There is no hypothetical situation here. In reality she used to clean the house. When did she used to clean it? Whenever she found it messy. hence, option D is a clear winner. I hope that makes sense.

phuongnina · Answer

Thank you so much for such a very detailed explanation

Posted from my mobile device

amarsinha · Answer

not only should be followed by but....
A, C, E eliminated.

Out of B, D, 
B - not only watched but also did cleaning is not parallel. 
D - not only watched but also cleaned the house is parallel.

GMATNinja · Answer

Just a friendly reminder to please please please include the source whenever you post a new question! This is really important.

As usual,  abhimahna  's explanation is spot-on, and (D) is clearly the best of the bunch... but for whatever it's worth, the verb tenses really don't make much sense, even in the correct answer. The parents currently  work  full-time, but they  had  a nanny in the past? That's either a typo, or a poorly written, non-official question.

So please take this one with a grain of salt!

Bunuel · Answer

MANHATTAN REVIEW OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

This question once again deals with idioms. In this case, the idiom you want is ‘not only x but also y’. The ‘not only’ adds a degree of emphasis that the simple conjunction ‘and’ cannot transmit. That leaves us with choices B and D as possible answers. D is shorter and simpler than B. ‘Was’ rather than ‘were’ should be used. Choice D is clearly the correct answer.

Because both parents work full-time, they had a nanny who not only wat

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Because both parents work full-time, they had a nanny who not only wat

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