Billionaire Nakamichi Ren’s WorldBank Group said it would sell a $10

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION



THE PROMPT


• adverb placement
→ The key issue in this question is the placement of the adverb eventually.

→ The steps taken by the company are intended to eventually or finally bolster its balance sheet, so eventually needs to be placed next to bolster.

THE OPTIONS

• idiom
→ Attempt at is not idiomatic. We attempt TO do something.
Dictionaries are often reasonably good places to find information, but until I see a few official questions in which "attempt at" is correct, I'll believe GMAC.

• placement of eventually
→ Although adverbs can often be placed at the end of a sentence, in this case, eventually should be placed right next to the word it modifies ("bolster") because the point of the question is to test whether you can spot effective adverb usage and meaning.

This adverb, eventually, is an adverb of time, but it emphasizes one verb.
It emphasizes one verb in the sentence and as such, should be placed close to the verb.
Eventually is too far from its target, bolstering.
ELIMINATE A


• I do not see any errors

• the important adverb eventually is well-placed, right after attempt to bolster.

Use logic to think about eventually.
The prompt tells us that a billionaire is trying to sell assets.
His balance sheet is bad; it's overleveraged.
The asset sales will not immediately help or bolster the balance sheet.
[Did you watch the placement of "immediately"? Like "eventually," it is an adverb of time that in this context goes in mid-position.]
The asset sales are intended to eventually bolster the balance sheet.
Just one problem with what I wrote: the phrase is a split infinitive.

GMAC will not test you on split infinitives, but at the same time you will almost never see a split infinitive—not even in incorrect answers. (I do not recall having seen a single split infinitive in any official question, anywhere.)

What do we do when we do not want to split an infinitive but we want to modify its main verb?
We place the adverb right before or right after the infinitive.

Eventually is an adverb of time.
If they strongly modify a verb, adverbs of time are usually placed before that verb.
But some phrasing prevents such placement, including infinitives.
Eventually should modify bolster.
It does so in this option in a clear manner. No guessing.
KEEP


• wrong meaning - "eventual" is misplaced
→ the attempt is not eventual. The bolstering is so.
From context, we can tell that over time (eventually), the company's balance sheet will be bolstered.

• idiom: attempt at is not idiomatic; attempt to is correct
ELIMINATE C


• meaning is ridiculous: what on earth is an "eventually overleveraged" balance sheet?

The balance sheet is overleveraged now. Not eventually. Now.

• In the future, the billionaire hopes that he will eventually bolster the balance sheet. Eventually should modify bolster, not overleveraged.
ELIMINATE D



• wrong meaning - the attempt is not eventual. The result of the attempt, i.e., bolstering, is eventual.
In this option, eventual is modifying the attempt—not the intended meaning of the sentence

Notes

Although we have much more freedom with adverb placement than we do with adjective placement, adverb placement is not a free for all.

We know that this question tests the placement of the adverb. (The word eventual or eventually hops all over the place.)

Logically, the string of asset sales will, in the future and over time, bolster (improve, or start to repair the damage to) the company's overleveraged balance sheet.
In the future and over time = eventually

I explained under option B why eventually is placed as it is.

COMMENTS

Amandhanani2627 , I try to avoid hazarding a guess about the level of a question if it's not official.
Even difficulty levels of official questions get skewed.

Would GMAC write such a question? Probably not exactly.

If this question frustrates anyone, try not to worry.
Adverb placement is tested but seems not to be a huge concern—and understandably so, because adverb placement is heavily dependent on style, and style is fraught with controversy.

Tough question, I think.
Kudos for bravery or correct answers or both.