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Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity

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ExpertsGlobal5
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Re: Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   06 Jan 2022, 06:49
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shipra2205 wrote:
I need more explantion on the placement of lately in option D? what is the adverb modifying and what is it placed close to?


Hello shipra2205,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, in Option D "lately" modifies the present participle ("verb+ing" - "making" in this case) phrase "Making things even more difficult", which immediately precedes it.

We hope this helps.
All the best!
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Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   23 Dec 2022, 22:51
AbdurRakib wrote:
Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity lately, if not paralysis, which has provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

(A) has been general market inactivity lately, if not paralysis, which has provided
(B) there is general market inactivity, if not paralysis, lately it has provided
(C) general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has lately provided
(D) lately, general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has provided
(E) is that lately general market inactivity, if not paralysis, which provides


I would like to share my thoughts on the above question -

Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity lately, if not paralysis, which has provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

I have a issue with option A. "which" what does that refer to ?? Confusing.

Option B "it" ...what does it refer ?? Same issue as A.

Option C Read the complete sentence.... Making things even more difficult general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has lately provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

This doesn't make any sense. C is out.

Option D Making things even more difficult lately, general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

"Making things even more difficult lately" is modifying "General market inactivity"..."if not paralysis"...describing "inactivity". If we read the main clause it seems alright. General market inactivity has provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

Hold on to Option D. :thumbsup:

Option E
Read the whole sentence

Making things even more difficult is that lately general market inactivity, if not paralysis, which provides little in the way of pricing guidance. Way too bad when compared to option D. Hence E is out.

Hence, D is the best answer.

GMATNinja can you please review my explanation of the same?
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Re: Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   31 Jan 2023, 05:16
Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity lately, if not paralysis, which has provided little in the way of pricing guidance.

(A) has been general market inactivity lately, if not paralysis, which has provided
(B) there is general market inactivity, if not paralysis, lately it has provided
(C) general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has lately provided
(D) lately, general market inactivity, if not paralysis, has provided
(E) is that lately general market inactivity, if not paralysis, which provides

Hi Experts

GMATNinja KarishmaB EducationAisle ChrisLele mikemcgarry AjiteshArun egmat sayantanc2k RonPurewal DmitryFarber MagooshExpert avigutman EMPOWERgmatVerbal MartyTargetTestPrep ExpertsGlobal5 IanStewart
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Why we have used "If not Paralysis" in this sentence? What's the need of it? To show cause and effect?
And also what's the meaning of the sentence?
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Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   31 Jan 2023, 05:52
MartyTargetTestPrep wrote:
Vatsal7794 wrote:
Hi Experts

Why we have used "If not Paralysis" in this sentence? What's the need of it? To show cause and effect?

The subject of the sentence is "general market inactivity, if not paralysis."

The point of using the wording "if not paralysis" is to is to communicate that the "general market inactivity" may even be so extreme as to be considered "paralysis."

So, "general market inactivity, if not paralysis," means something along the lines of "general market inactivity, or maybe it's even paralysis."

Quote:
And also what's the meaning of the sentence?

The meaning of the sentence is that, lately, general market inactivity, or maybe it's even paralysis, has been making some things difficult because the market is so inactive that people can't tell where market prices stand.


Hi MartyTargetTestPrep

Thanks for the explanation
"If" is used to show the cause and effect mostly . I want to know in what other cases can we use "if"

Also Lately is adverb? If yes then how it's modifying noun (Difficult)
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Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   31 Jan 2023, 07:08
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Vatsal7794 wrote:
MartyTargetTestPrep wrote:
Vatsal7794 wrote:
Hi Experts

Why we have used "If not Paralysis" in this sentence? What's the need of it? To show cause and effect?

The subject of the sentence is "general market inactivity, if not paralysis."

The point of using the wording "if not paralysis" is to is to communicate that the "general market inactivity" may even be so extreme as to be considered "paralysis."

So, "general market inactivity, if not paralysis," means something along the lines of "general market inactivity, or maybe it's even paralysis."

Quote:
And also what's the meaning of the sentence?

The meaning of the sentence is that, lately, general market inactivity, or maybe it's even paralysis, has been making some things difficult because the market is so inactive that people can't tell where market prices stand.


Hi MartyTargetTestPrep

Thanks for the explanation
"If" is used to show the cause and effect mostly . I want to know in what other cases can we use "if"

"If" is always used to present conditions.

Even in this case, "if not paralysis" in a way presents a condition to express the meaning "if it is not paralysis, then it is general market inactivity."

Quote:
Also Lately is adverb? If yes then how it's modifying noun (Difficult)

"Lately" is an adverb, and it modifies the action "making things more difficult."
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Re: Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   15 Jun 2023, 01:58
Correct answer is d)
a) referent of which is paralysis makes no sense at all
e)referent of which is paralysis makes no sense at all
b) there usually refers to a place. No need of there in this sentence
c) ING modifier (Making things even more difficult general market inactivity) is modifying what? who is making things difficult?
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Re: Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink] New post   21 Jun 2023, 09:40
The "which" in the original sentence modifies "general market activity" or "paralysis"?

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Re: Making things even more difficult has been general market inactivity [#permalink]
21 Jun 2023, 09:40
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