Bunuel wrote:
One often referenced online dictionary’s definition of nut as “a hard-shelled dry fruit or seed with a separable rind or shell and interior kernel” indicates that it does not include almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, or walnuts.
A. it does not include almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, or walnuts
B. almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, and walnuts are not examples of nuts
C. almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, and walnuts are not included as examples of them
D. almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, and walnuts are not included
E. they do not include almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, or walnuts
KAPLAN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
(B) Step 1: Read the Original Sentence Carefully, Looking for ErrorsThe underlined part of the sentence starts with the pronoun “it” and proceeds with a list of examples of foods. However, that pronoun could refer to any one of a number of nouns and is thus ambiguous.
Step 2: Scan and Group the Answer Choices(A) and (E) begin with pronouns—“it” and “they,” respectively. The other three choices start with “almonds.”
Step 3: Eliminate Choices Until Only One RemainsSince the pronoun is ambiguous, eliminate (A). And because (E) references a nonexistent plural noun, eliminate that choice as well.
The remaining choices differ only with regard to their endings. As with (E)’s “they,” (C)’s “them” refers to a nonexistent plural noun, so eliminate (C). And (D) is unclear in that it does not specify who or what does not include the listed foods. (B) is correct, since it not only fixes the original sentence’s pronoun error but also does not introduce any other issues into the sentence. Read your choice back into the sentence to confirm that it is correct:
One often referenced online dictionary’s definition of nut as “a hard-shelled dry fruit or seed with a separable rind or shell and interior kernel” indicates that
almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, and walnuts are not examples of nuts.