It is ironic that while the word “perfect” is considered to be the hig

generis The sentence employs a very unusual use of "as anything but". Usually, the phrase is followed by the adjective, e.g., "anything but new". Are there any similar questions out there? Thanks!

mykrasovski , what does "out there" mean?
Non-official GMAT prep books that contain SC questions?

Any kind of publication?

Official questions?
No, no official sentence that I have ever seen ends with the two words anything but.
I am happy to stand corrected.

Have I seen non-GMAT sources use the phrase that way? Yep.
Using the phrase to end a sentence abruptly is more common than you might think.

The phrase is unusually emphatic.

You could try what I just did. Google these words in the manner that I did: "anything but" meaning definition

Among other resources, you will find these three, all of which give examples in which sentences end abruptly with anything but.

Oxford Online Dictionary (scroll down to phrase "anything but") lists examples that end with anything but here.
Oxford Online Learner's Dictionary does the same thing,HERE.
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary does the same thing HERE.

The phrase "anything but" can be followed by more than just adjectives.
This lopsided clay pot is anything but a masterpiece.

I'm sure that I have not seen an official question in which the phrase is used at the end of the sentence by itself.

Further, I do not recall ever having seen the phrase in any question, a hunch I confirmed with a not-perfect but very good search HERE.**
As I suspected, I cannot find an official question that employs the phrase at all, let alone at the end of a sentence by itself.

Is anything but at the end of a sentence grammatical? Yes.
Are you likely to see it on the GMAT? No.

I'm not exactly sure what your concern is, but I hope I addressed it.


**You could run a search, too, using that search engine on this site.
1) Type two words, no quotation marks, this way: anything but
2) select 'exact match"
3) select "Sentence Correction" on the right
4) scroll down and click "Search."

generis thank you, you totally addressed the question!

"out there" meant the OG questions, so, again, you answered the question.

can anyone please explain how to eliminate choices in this question...?

OE
Look for differences across the answer options to identify what is being tested in the sentence. Do a quick vertical scan of the answer options to get a handle on what is tested.

Some of the options use the word “someone” and some use “a person”.

The placement of words"possible" and "compliment" varies across the options.

Step 2 of solving this GMAT Sentence Correction Question: Understand the Sentence
The sentence is comparing the perception of people to the words “perfect” and “perfectionist”.

The word “considered” does not take a preposition after it. “Considered as” and “considered to be” are incorrect constructions.

The intent of the sentence is that calling someone a perfectionist is perceived as something negative. The correct construction would therefore be “anything but” and not “nothing much”.

Step 3 of solving this GMAT Sentence Correction Question: Eliminate Answer Options
Options (A) can be eliminated for using “considered to be”.

Options (C) can be eliminated for using "considered as".

“nothing much” implies “nothing of significance”. Option (E) can be eliminated as well.

Who has the perception? “many” people. “perceived by many” is the correct ordering of the information. Also, “possible” refers to the compliment and should be placed before the word. “Highest possible compliment” is the right usage. Option (D) can be eliminated.

Choice B is the correct answer.

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