Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation, is the

Question

Competition Mode Question

Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation,  is the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company.

A. is the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company
B. is the most direct way for participating in the fortunes of a company.
C. is the most direct way of participating in the fortunes of a company.
D. are the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company.
E. are the most direct way for participating in the fortunes of a company.

eakabuah · Answer

The right answer is D in my view.

The subject of the sentence is  Common Stocks , which is plural, hence a plural verb form is required to ensure subject-verb agreement. We can eliminate A, B, and C because their verbs are singular  is . A plural verb  are  is required.

Between D and E, the choice is between  to participate  vs  for participating . To participate is correct in the context because it expresses explicit purpose, and the context requires an explicit purpose, rather than for participating which connotes implied purpose.

unraveled · Answer

Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation,  is the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company .

Leaving aside modifier 'which ... corporation' the sentence is 'Common stocks  is  ... company'. Here the subject 'Common stocks' is plural and associated verb 'is' is singular. Another difference in options is 'to participate' and 'for participating' which is unidiomatic.

Only 'D' rectifies the issues hence CORRECT.

A. is the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company
B. is the most direct way for participating in the fortunes of a company.
C. is the most direct way of participating in the fortunes of a company.
D. are the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company. - CORRECT. Meaning wise as well infinitive is required since sentence is talking in generic manner.
E. are the most direct way for participating in the fortunes of a company.

IMO Answer D.

madgmat2019 · Answer

Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation,  is  the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company.

SV pair number agreement error.

stocks - subj for which 'are' should be the verb.

A. is the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company
B. is the most direct way for participating in the fortunes of a company.
C. is the most direct way of participating in the fortunes of a company.
 D. are the most direct way to participate in the fortunes of a company ...............correct
E. are the most direct way  for participating  in the fortunes of a company.

BeingHan · Answer

D. 
As A, B, C, all are singular. 
And to participate is better use than for participating. So eliminate E

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk

exc4libur · Answer

MEANING: common stocks  … are   the most direct way TO PARTICIPATE.

Answer (D)

ParamjitDasGMAT · Answer

The first split is between "is" and "are"- i.e., singular vs plural. So, the first thing to determine is whether "Common stocks" is being treated in a singular or plural context. In such cases - i.e., for collective nouns - always check the non-underlined portion for clues. Here, in the non-underlined portion contains the plural reference "which.. are .." to refer to "Common stocks". Hence the subject is being treated as a plural noun, and the verb must be plural. This eliminates A, B, and C

Between D and E - the main split is between "to participate" and "for participating". In general, all things being equal, whenever we have a split between to+verb form and   + "-ing" form, we prefer to go with the to+verb form, especially when we want to indicate a purpose/intent. This is because the "for + -ing" construction does not indicate purpose as precisely and/or directly as the to+verb form.

For example, consider this sentence:

John went to the office  to complete/for completing  his task : the to+verb form automatically sounds more intuitive and direct.

This eliminates option E, and leaves us with option D as the best answer.

Bunuel · Answer

Official Explanation

Correct Answer: D

The sentence has a plural subject, common stocks, therefore it needs the plural form of the verb: are.

VerbalBot · Answer

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Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation, is the

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Common stocks, which are shares of ownership in a corporation, is the

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