Not trusting themselves to choose wisely among the wide array of investment opportunities on the market, stockbrokers are helping many people who turn to them to buy stocks that could be easily bought directly.
Meaning analysis:
1. People do not trust themselves to choose wisely
2. Hence they take help of stock brokers to buy stocks
3. (to buy) Stocks that can be easily bought directly
Error analysis:
1. Misplaced modifier. “Not trusting ..” should modify People – logically, How stockbrokers cannot trust themselves to choose. – Option A gives incorrect meaning
(A) stockbrokers are helping many people who turn to them to buy stocks that could be easily
Incorrect – Explained above.
(B) stockbrokers are helping many people who are turning to them for help in buying stocks that they could easily have
Misplaced modifier. – incorrect (same as A)
It creates even more funny meaning, people are turning to help brockers
(C) many people are turning to stockbrokers for help from them to buy stocks that could be easily
“turning to stockbrokers for help from them” – from them seems to be redundant. Even if we remove it still sentence can stand.
Incorrect
(D) many people are turning to stockbrokers for help to buy stocks that easily could have been
“Help to buy” – People are turning to stockbroker for help to buy” , it probably saying People are helping brocker
“Could have been “ – past event, but we need to say about possibility not about what happened – incorrect meaning
(E) many people are turning to stockbrokers for help in buying stocks that could easily be
Correct
Nice Analysis Viswa.
(E) many people are turning to stockbrokers for help in buying stocks that could
Easily is an adverb and is modifying the verb. Try to put the adverb as close as possible to verb.
So the ideal would be "that could have been easily bought".
For option E) it is already ideal.