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555-605 Level|   Idioms/Diction/Redundancy|                  
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 17 Jul 2022, 02:35
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Amit05
In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets.


(A) rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(B) rising of the moon for a massive Soviet missile attack

(C) moon rising to a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(D) moon as it was rising for a massive Soviet missile attack

(E) rise of the moon as a massive Soviet missile attack
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Dear experts,
What is different between “ the rise of “ and “ the rising of”?

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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 24 Oct 2022, 10:39
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I was between B and D but ended up going with D. I was able to justify D as it talks about moon (as it was performing an action) being mistaken for a missile attack, whereas B puts forth the idea that the rising of the moon (an action) was mistaken for a missile attack. Not sure if I'm making a whole lot of sense, but I'd appreciate your wise perspective!
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 27 Oct 2022, 06:30
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Dear Expert,

May I ask whether "moon rising" and "rising of the moon" are interchangeable? Thanks!
Let's start with this simple example:

  • "Bob's fur is brown." - "fur" is a noun, so we use the possessive "Bob's" to qualify that noun

Now consider these two options:

  • "Bob barking is keeping me awake."
  • "Bob's barking is keeping me awake."

Which is correct? Well, in this case, "barking" is acting like a noun (it's a gerund, if you like the jargon). Just as we need the possessive form when we write, "Bob's fur," we need a possessive to qualify "barking". So the first option is incorrect. "Moon rising" in (C) has the same problem.

And if you're looking for another reason to give (C) the boot, it uses an illogical idiom: "A newly installed radar warning system mistook the moon rising to a massive missile attack..." I can mistake one item for another, but I can't mistake one item to another. You don't have to memorize the idiom; you just need to recognize that the construction in (C) makes it sound as though the warning system is incorrectly transporting the "moon rising" to a "missile attack," which is utter nonsense.

I hope that helps!
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What if in place of 'moon rising', there was ' moon-rising' , would that be right ?
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 27 Oct 2022, 06:55
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What if in place of 'moon rising', there was ' moon-rising' , would that be right ?
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Hello Rumadi,

Thank you for the query. :)
I will be glad to help you with this one.

When two words are connected through a hyphen, they act as an adjective and are followed by a noun. For example, a three-step process, a razor-sharp answer, etc.

So, we can understand that the expression "moon-rising" will certainly not work in this sentence.


Hope this helps. :)
Thanks.
Shraddha
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 27 Oct 2022, 07:07
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shabuzen102
Dear Expert,

May I ask whether "moon rising" and "rising of the moon" are interchangeable? Thanks!
Let's start with this simple example:

  • "Bob's fur is brown." - "fur" is a noun, so we use the possessive "Bob's" to qualify that noun

Now consider these two options:

  • "Bob barking is keeping me awake."
  • "Bob's barking is keeping me awake."

Which is correct? Well, in this case, "barking" is acting like a noun (it's a gerund, if you like the jargon). Just as we need the possessive form when we write, "Bob's fur," we need a possessive to qualify "barking". So the first option is incorrect. "Moon rising" in (C) has the same problem.

And if you're looking for another reason to give (C) the boot, it uses an illogical idiom: "A newly installed radar warning system mistook the moon rising to a massive missile attack..." I can mistake one item for another, but I can't mistake one item to another. You don't have to memorize the idiom; you just need to recognize that the construction in (C) makes it sound as though the warning system is incorrectly transporting the "moon rising" to a "missile attack," which is utter nonsense.

I hope that helps!

What if in place of 'moon rising', there was ' moon-rising' , would that be right ?
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Not really.

Reason -> The use of hyphen (-) is justified in the cases in which the hyphen connected word are modifying some other element.
For example -> dog-friendly hotel, rock-hard cake etc.

Hence, in this case "moon-rising" will not make any difference and won't be correct.

Moreover, bigger problem is the unidiomatic construction and it cannot be argued at all on GMAT :(:)

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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 08 Jan 2023, 23:04
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Amit05
In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets.


(A) rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(B) rising of the moon for a massive Soviet missile attack

(C) moon rising to a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(D) moon as it was rising for a massive Soviet missile attack

(E) rise of the moon as a massive Soviet missile attack
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Why is E incorrect other than the idiom??
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 09 Jan 2023, 06:28
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Amit05
In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets.


(A) rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(B) rising of the moon for a massive Soviet missile attack

(C) moon rising to a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(D) moon as it was rising for a massive Soviet missile attack

(E) rise of the moon as a massive Soviet missile attack

Why is E incorrect other than the idiom??
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Hello nik256,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, the phrase "rise of the moon" is awkward and does not clearly convey the intended meaning of the sentence.

We hope this helps.
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 09 Jan 2023, 07:34
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Amit05
In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets.


(A) rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(B) rising of the moon for a massive Soviet missile attack

(C) moon rising to a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(D) moon as it was rising for a massive Soviet missile attack

(E) rise of the moon as a massive Soviet missile attack

Why is E incorrect other than the idiom??

Hello nik256,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, the phrase "rise of the moon" is awkward and does not clearly convey the intended meaning of the sentence.

We hope this helps.
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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So is the rise of the moon having 2 meanings the reason the answer choice is discarded ??
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 09 Jan 2023, 17:06
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So is the rise of the moon having 2 meanings the reason the answer choice is discarded ??
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Hello nik256,

Hope you are doing well. I will be glad to help you with this one. :)


Choice E says that the system mistook the action of the rising (of the moon) for the massive missile attack. However, this meaning does not make a lot of sense because the system detected the rising moon itself as a missile and hence the alarm. Therefore, in the context of the sentence, the logical meaning is presented through the correct structure "the rising moon".


Hope this helps. :)
Thanks.
Shraddha
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 09 Jan 2023, 21:23
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can anybody show the differnve between A and B?
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 09 Jan 2023, 22:46
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nik256

So is the rise of the moon having 2 meanings the reason the answer choice is discarded ??


Hello nik256,

Hope you are doing well. I will be glad to help you with this one. :)


Choice E says that the system mistook the action of the rising (of the moon) for the massive missile attack. However, this meaning does not make a lot of sense because the system detected the rising moon itself as a missile and hence the alarm. Therefore, in the context of the sentence, the logical meaning is presented through the correct structure "the rising moon".


Hope this helps. :)
Thanks.
Shraddha
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Got it cleared. Thank you so much
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 10 Jan 2023, 06:06
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can anybody show the differnve between A and B?
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Hello raaajx,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, Option A incorrectly uses the unidiomatic construction "mistook A as B"; the idiomatic construction i "mistook A for B".

We hope this helps.
All the best!
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In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the 02 Mar 2023, 00:04
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Amit05
In the mid-1960's a newly installed radar warning system mistook the rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets.


(A) rising of the moon as a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(B) rising of the moon for a massive Soviet missile attack

(C) moon rising to a massive missile attack by the Soviets

(D) moon as it was rising for a massive Soviet missile attack

(E) rise of the moon as a massive Soviet missile attack
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Complex Gerunds can be parallel to Action nouns as in B
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