OFFICIAL EXPLANATIONProject SC Butler: Sentence Correction (SC2)
Quote:
Many successful startup companies have raised hundreds of millions of dollars, of which the majority must be repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before employees receive any funds.
• TIP: an amount or sum of money is almost always singular→
hundreds of millions of dollars refers to a quantity of money and is uncountable. That quantity of money is singular.
Correct:
Twenty million dollars is tied up in the stock market.Correct:
The majority of his twenty million dollars is tied up in the stock market.• if we were to ask a question, would we ask, "How much must be repaid?" Or would we ask, "How many must be repaid?"
→ If we use
How much to ask, we have a non-countable and singular noun.
(If we should use "How many?" then the noun is countable.)
• Another tip: a majority of/the majority of can be singular or plural→ Both
a majority of and
the majority of follow the noun that they quantify (
majority is a quantifier, similar to
half)
→ The noun in the OF-prepositional phrase will tell you whether the verb is singular or pluual
-- Correct:
The majority of Americans are Vitamin D deficient. [Americans are countable and plural.]
-- Correct:
The majority of the cake is gone. [cake is non-countable and singular]
THE OPTIONSQuote:
A) of which the majority must be repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before employees receive any funds
• I see no errors
→ the verb "must" hides the fact that a sum of money is usually uncountable and singular
•
of which the majority =
the
majority of which =
the majority of the hundreds of millions of dollars =
the majority of the sum of money =
singular• in
of which, the
which reaches back to modify
the majority of the hundreds of millions of dollars =
==> the amount (quantity) of money, which is non-count, singular noun.
The majority of which is a quantifier, very similar to SANAM pronouns, and very similar to
half.These phrases are common in English: some of which, none of which, any of which, half of which, a number of which, and the majority of which (SANAM pronouns + extras)
KEEP
Quote:
B) of which the majority must be repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before employees color=#ff0000]had received[/color] any funds
•
had received, past perfect, is incorrect
•
had received would be used to describe the
earlier of two events. Employees get their money second—later in time.
→ (1) majority of funds must be repaid to investors and preferred stockholders, then
→ (2) employees receive funds.
ELIMINATE B
Quote:
C) ; the majority of it must be repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before employees receive any funds
• this sentence is a comma splice: it needs a semicolon or a conjunction and has neither.
→ it impermissibly "sticks" two full, independent clauses together with only a comma.
Not okay.
We need a COMMA + AND (but, or)
or
a SEMICOLON.
We have nether.
The comma splice is fatal.
ELIMINATE C
Quote:
D) and the majority of this must be repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before the reception of any funds by employees
• almost always, do not use
this as a standalone pronoun.
→
this must point to a noun: this apple tree, this peach tree, this oak tree
→ to my knowledge, GMAC has published exactly 1 question in which
this is a standalone pronoun (in
OG 2020)
•
the reception of any funds by employees is unnecessarily long and passive.
ELIMINATE D
Quote:
E) the majority of which are repaid to investors and other preferred shareholders before employees receive any funds
• the plural verb
are does not match the singular subject of the relative clause [majority of which], which refers to a huge sum =
is ELIMINATE E
The correct answer is A.XyLan , good question.
We can choose between A and E because option E contains a subject/verb error.
A sum of money is singular, even when the sum is written out and is, in a way, "countable."
Option E couples the plural verb
are with a singular subject.
Alternatively, we are sure that "must" agrees with the subject.
Perhaps there is disagreement about whether this sum of money is indeed singular.
Option A gets you out of having to decide the issue.
We treat money as we treat distance:
Twenty dollars is not enough to buy the book.
Twenty miles is a short distance.COMMENTSPeople who posted were brave. Nicely done.
Only one or two people noticed the subject/verb issues. Also nicely done.
Now, everyone: get brave.
Take risks. If 2020 has not taught us that damn near anything can happen . . . well, I don't know what will do so.
close
15 Aug 2020, 23:05
45%
(medium)
40%
(01:36)
wrong 
