Dear Friends,
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
nick_sun wrote:
Chinese, the most ancient of living writing systems, consists of tens of thousands of ideographic characters, each character a miniature calligraphic composition inside its own square frame.
(A) each character a miniature calligraphic composition inside its
(B) all the characters a miniature calligraphic composition inside their
(C) all the characters a miniature calligraphic composition inside its
(D) every character a miniature calligraphic composition inside their
(E) each character a miniature calligraphic composition inside their
Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of the crucial part of this sentence is that each of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters is a miniature calligraphic composition that is inside its own square frame.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Pronouns• “every” has a stronger connotation than “each”; generally, “each” is preferred over “every”.
A: Correct. This answer choice uses the phrase 'each character", conveying the intended meaning - that
each of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters is a
separate miniature calligraphic composition that is inside its own square frame. Further, Option A correctly refers to the singular noun "composition" with the singular pronoun "its". Additionally, Option A uses the preferred term "each".
B: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "all the characters" the use of "all" incorrectly implies that
all of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters
collectively comprise a
single miniature calligraphic composition; the intended meaning is that
each of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters is a
separate miniature calligraphic composition that is inside its own square frame. Further, Option B incorrectly refers to the singular noun "composition" with the plural pronoun "their".
C: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "all the characters" the use of "all" incorrectly implies that
all of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters
collectively comprise a
single miniature calligraphic composition; the intended meaning is that
each of the tens of thousands of Chinese ideographic characters is a
separate miniature calligraphic composition that is inside its own square frame.
D: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the singular noun "composition" with the plural pronoun "their". Further, Option D uses "every" in place of "each"; remember, “every” has a stronger connotation than “each”; generally, “each” is preferred over “every”.
E: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the singular noun "composition" with the plural pronoun "their".
Hence, A is the best answer choice.All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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