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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ

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generis
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   Updated on: 14 Jun 2020, 00:27
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
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C

Originally posted by generis on 14 Jun 2020, 00:06.
Last edited by chetan2u on 14 Jun 2020, 00:27, edited 1 time in total.
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 00:14
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OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

THE PROMPT
Quote:
Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


THE OPTIONS
Quote:
A) Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.

• had not faded (past perfect) is the wrong verb tense
• when a sentence describes two completed actions in the past, the past perfect (had not faded) is used to refer to the action that came first (earlier in time).
In this case, the action in question (fading) must have come second, a fact that is indicated by the phrase in more recent times
Eliminate A

Quote:
B) Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded.

• would acquire is weird. ("Would acquire" can be used as past tense of will, but that situation is not at hand.)
The term acquired, simple past tense, makes sense.
• of which must refer to the noun that immediately precedes it (50 years), and it does not make sense to say that ambiguity of 50 years has not faded.
• the ambiguity of the term "conscious" has not faded (again, the ambiguity of "50 years" is nonsensical and cannot have faded)
Eliminate B

Quote:
C) Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded.

• the use of simple past tense acquired correctly refers to the first action (the term's acquisition of at least five definitions). That first action is rooted firmly in the past
• the use of the present perfect tense (has not faded) to refer to second action (not fading) is also logical, indicating that the action is continuing into the present
KEEP

Quote:
D) Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade.

• the plural pronoun their does not agree with its singular antecedent term
• the only plural noun is 50 years, and logically, the pronoun their cannot refer to that noun
Eliminate D

Quote:
E) Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading.

• its ambiguity not fading should be and its ambiguity has not faded
• the gerund (not fading) is awkward and less precise than the present perfect in option C
Eliminate E

The best answer is C

COMMENTS

manikmehta95 and popcornninja (great username :lol: ) , welcome to SC Butler.

As always, I am glad to see all of you.

Well, when an expert gives you the answer before the OA—a practice not in keeping with the spirit of my Butler threads—I am likely to read accurate answers.

Still, you all have done well to put your own spin on analysis.
Here and there, we have a few errors that I have tried to correct in my POE above.

Kudos to all.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 00:19
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Hi generis, I think the sentence should be underlined as follows. Also, the option A should be changed.

Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquiredat least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times
in the space of is wordy. We can easily use within.. its refer to concious and hence we can use its instead of their.- CONTENDER.

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded
definitions are already acquired and not would

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded
Seems like a correct Option. Changing from A to C as IMO.

D) acquired at least five [color=#ed1c24]differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade[/color]
differing from what? NO

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
ambiguity not fading?? In the past 5 definitions, the ambiguity has either faded or not faded. Fading is present continuous tense.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 00:31
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sambitspm wrote:
Hi generis, I think the sentence should be underlined as follows. Also, the option A should be changed.

Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquiredat least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times
in the space of is wordy. We can easily use within.. its refer to concious and hence we can use its instead of their.- CONTENDER.

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded
definitions are already acquired and not would

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded
Seems like a correct Option. Changing from A to C as IMO.

D) acquired at least five [color=#ed1c24]differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade[/color]
differing from what? NO

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
ambiguity not fading?? In the past 5 definitions, the ambiguity has either faded or not faded. Fading is present continuous tense.


You are correct on the underlined part, and the same is edited.

However, A is not a contender and can be easily eliminated for using past perfect 'had'.
The sentence clearly talks of the ongoing ambiguity, so 'has' is correct.

C corrects the verb error and also makes it more concise by discarding ' in more recent times'.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 01:24
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.

POE:
Stop sign: 'had', we not using double past here. Eliminate (A) & (B).
(C) seems good; hold it.
Eliminate (D) - 'differing is a verb'
Eliminate (E) - change of meaning
CORRECT (C)

A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded - CORRECT

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 02:16
chetan2u wrote:
sambitspm wrote:
Hi generis, I think the sentence should be underlined as follows. Also, the option A should be changed.

Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquiredat least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times
in the space of is wordy. We can easily use within.. its refer to concious and hence we can use its instead of their.- CONTENDER.

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded
definitions are already acquired and not would

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded
Seems like a correct Option. Changing from A to C as IMO.

D) acquired at least five [color=#ed1c24]differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade[/color]
differing from what? NO

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
ambiguity not fading?? In the past 5 definitions, the ambiguity has either faded or not faded. Fading is present continuous tense.


You are correct on the underlined part, and the same is edited.

However, A is not a contender and can be easily eliminated for using past perfect 'had'.
The sentence clearly talks of the ongoing ambiguity, so 'has' is correct.

C corrects the verb error and also makes it more concise by discarding ' in more recent times'.


Thanks for pointing that out. I stopped reading the statement on space itself and missed the second part.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 02:26
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times // the use of past perfect tense is not warranted. The perfect tense sounds much better here. i.e. its ambiguity has not faded in more recent times p.s. in the space of time is correct.

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded // "would" is not required here. There is no hypothetical situation.

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded // a perfect option in line with the analysis.

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade // different is the proper adjective here. The perfect tense, rather than the simple past tense, sounds much better here. "their" does not refer to any noun logically and should be replaced with "its", which suits properly. i.e. its ambiguity has not faded

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading // the absolute phrase, its ambiguity not fading, is very short and does not convey the proper meaning. it is much better to emphasize the perfect tense here, as in option C.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 02:43
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.

* Subject Verb Agreement

[ "the term - acquired" ; "its ambiguity - had not faded"]
-All pair agree with subject verb agreement .

* Tense Form

[Past Tense]
- Past tense used that conveys the intended meaning but usage of " had" totally changed the meaning and makes redundant. Incorrect

* If-then condition

- not used

* Subjunctive Verb

- not used

* Pronoun

[ "its" has the antecedent " term"]
- the pronoun has proper antecedent.

* Modifier

[ "Introduced in 1678" properly modifies "the term "conscious" ]
- properly modifies the terms

* Parallelism

[ "and"]
-parallelism marker connected two sentence. seems okay

* Comparison

- not used

* Idioms

- not used

While analyzing the sentence , only tense form error identified.

A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times

- usage of "had" makes sentence logically incorrect

-Incorrect

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded

1. "would" pertains to uncertainty which not requires in this sentence
2. usage of "of which" is in appropriately.
3. usage of "had" is incorrect.

- Incorrect

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded

- usage of "has" conveys intended meaning.

- Correct

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade

- pronoun error ; "their" is inappropriate.

-Incorrect

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading

- Subject verb agreement error; "its " not have any verb

- Incorrect

IMO(C)
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 03:23
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading



The question is trying to test the concept of tenses. The term acquired is perfect, because the definitions have already been acquired in the past. So we start off by eliminating B.

On to the next split - ambiguity had not faded versus ambiguity has not faded versus ambiguity did not fade - we go with AMBIGUITY HAS NOT FADED since the current situation is that the definition is still vague and ambiguous. Accordingly C is the best choice.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 03:34
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.

ANALYSIS: The problem in the underlined portion is that of Tenses. Introduced is the verb-ed modifier modifying 'the term'. So we will look at: acquired- simple past. The Sentence in the second clause: ambiguity had not faded uses past perfect tense but mentions the word 'recent times'. The is incorrect and present perfect is suited here.

A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times Rejected for reasons mentioned above

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded reject: same reason as for A)

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded Use of present perfect correctly represents that the event happened in the past and its effect continues in the present.

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade introduces new subject verb number error.

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 03:44
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generis wrote:
Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading


Ans C , imo

Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.


A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times
-- use of past perfect tense is at issue . ambiguity is still present . so present perfect will be correct ..

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded
-- "would" is creating a meaning issue .. There is no hypothetical / subjunctive / prediction here .

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded
-- correct

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade
-- tense error.. differing is not correct .. pronoun their is prob as well /..
E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading
-- no verb .. out
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   14 Jun 2020, 22:39
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Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times.

A) acquired at least five different definitions in the space of 50 years, and its ambiguity had not faded in more recent times - ''...had not faded'' is in the past perfect tense, whereas the intended meaning is to attribute the action/event of fading to the present moment.

B) would acquire at least five different definitions within 50 years, of which the ambiguity had not faded - "Introduced....would'' contradict each other in the timeline sense: "Introduced" highlights a past event, whereas ''would'' is used to describe an event that is expected to occur in the future.

C) acquired at least five different definitions within 50 years, and its ambiguity has not faded - has no error. Hence, (C) is the right answer choice.

D) acquired at least five differing definitions within 50 years, and their ambiguity did not fade - the singular subject ''the term'' cannot take the plural pronoun ''their''.

E) acquired within 50 years at least five separate definitions, its ambiguity not fading - the present progressive verb tense ''fading'' does not match the overall tense of the passage: the sentence implies that
(i) the term ''conscious'' had been introduced in 1678 - (an event of the past)
(ii) this term acquired 5 different definitions within 50 years - (an other event of the past)
(iii) the ambiguity introduced by the term still exists - (a situation that is still present and hence must be described in the present tense).

Hence, the present progressive tense ''fading'' does not fit in this passage.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink] New post   17 Jun 2020, 05:26
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The official explanation is here.
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Re: Introduced in 1678, the term "conscious" acquired at least five differ [#permalink]
17 Jun 2020, 05:26
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