ntngocanh19 wrote:
Bunuel wrote:
Officials in Australia estimate that revenues from casinos and gambling houses rose to 80 billion dollars in 1995, an amount that is 30% more than the previous year.
A. an amount that is 30% more than the previous year.
B. an amount that is 30% higher than the previous year's.
C. an amount that is 30% higher than the previous year's figure.
D. which is 30% more than the previous year.
E. which is 30% higher than the previous year's figure.
@GMATNinja
Could you explain why which-clause is not prefer in this situation?
Thanks
Posted from my mobile deviceI can try.
The difference between the relative pronoun modifier
which clause and the noun+noun modifier (or the appositive)
an amount that is 30% higher than the previous year's figure lies in the modification that these two entities carry out in the sentence.
A noun+noun modifier can modify any entity in the preceding clause irrespective of its position. Whereas, generally speaking, our relative pronoun modifiers need to be placed closer to the noun entity they are supposed to modify. Saying that it won't be wrong if you see relative pronoun modifiers modifying a noun placed slightly far away noun. Eg. I killed the
snake with scales,
which lived in the burrow behind my house. But, this jump can happen only if the entity (between my relative pronoun modifier and the noun that it is supposed to modify), can not be placed elsewhere in the sentence without distorting the meaning of the sentence. If it can be placed elsewhere without distorting the meaning, then the intended modification can not happen.
In our case,
1995 is being modified by our relative pronoun modifier (which clause), which is a wrong modification. Reason: It is supposed to modify the
80 billion dollars, not the year
1995. And the jump can not happen because
1995 can be placed elsewhere without distorting the meaning of the sentence. A case in which,
the jump can not happen. We can write:
Officials in Australia estimate that, in 1995, revenues from casinos and gambling houses rose to 80 billion dollars, an amount that is 30% more than the previous year. Here, "
in 1995" is placed slightly ahead in the sentence, yet it conveys the intended meaning without any ambiguity, hence, the jump can not happen in our given case, and thus, "which clause" can not modify the noun
80 billion dollars. _________________