In the 1950s, Mortimer Wheeler brought archaeology to the masses as he
not only published several popular books, but also hosted television programs such as "Buried Treasure," for which he was named Britain's television personality of the year in 1954.
(A) not only published several popular books, but also hosted television programs such as "Buried Treasure," for which he was
(B) not only published several popular books, but also he hosted television programs such as "Buried Treasure," for which he was
(C) did not only publish several popular books, but also was the host of television programs such as "Buried Treasure," for that he was
(D) published not only several popular books, but also hosting television programs such as "Buried Treasure," for which he was
(E) did not only publish several popular books, but also in hosting television programs such as "Buried Treasure," was
This is today's Free "question of the day" by Jeff Sackmann
Jeff's answer :
As written, the sentence properly uses the idiom "not only...but also." The other four choices do so as well, so we'll need to look more carefully. A comparison such as this one requires that the items compared be parallel. In the original sentence, the words following "not only" and "but also" are "published" and "hosted," verbs of the same form.
Choice (B) places the word "he" before "hosted." "Published" and "he hosted" are not parallel. (C) changes "hosted" to "was the host," which is not parallel with "publish." Also, because the final clause of the sentence is background (it doesn't define Wheeler), "which" is correct and "that" is not.
Choice (D) is incorrect because it places "published" before "not only." This construction suggests that what follows both the "not only" and the "but also" are things he published, which does not turn out to be the case. Finally (E) is not parallel: note "publish" and "hosting." Choice (A) is correct.
I still cannot understand why he considered C wrong . Was and published are not parallel verbs?