Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering

Wow ... this is a toughie. +1
I go for A.

B can be rejected straight away with the "lead" and C can be rejected because of awkward "In the times that were recent". D has incorrect present perfect - have sheltered.

So now we're left with A and E. Both use a present participle - A uses "sheltering" and E uses "leading" . I just feel that E's "leading" is more wrong than A's "sheltering". "leading" is incorrect since it changes the meaning and implies that they are still leading a nomadic life, whereas A clearly says they they "led" the nomadic life, and dont do so anymore.

I go for A.
For D, if we take out the modifying clause, it means intuit people have sheltered in igloos until recently. I don't think that's the intended meaning.

I would also go for A but for little different reasons-
B-during recent times is wordy and awkward
C- In the times that are recent, wordy and awkward
D-Up until recently, wordy and awkward
E-Until recent times, wordy and awkward

A. Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering------ correct
B. During recent times, the Inuit people lead a nomadic existence, sheltering.
C. In the times that are recent, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltered.
D. Up until recently, the Inuit people, leading a nomadic existence, have sheltered.
E. Until recent time, leading a nomadic existence, the Inuit people were sheltered.

Thanks tommy!

After reading your post, I looked up "until" in some decent online dictionaries, and really can't find any sample sentences that uses present perfect tence with "until" .

Also, per cambridge online dictonary, "up until"="up to" and both are preposition, which I think can just be used in front of noun.

until & up until:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/diction ... up-to_2__3
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/diction ... sh/until_1
https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/until

Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering in igloos, the ice-block domes that are peculiar to north-central Canada, and in structures made of stones, bones, driftwood, and skins.

A. Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering - Correct
B. During recent times, the Inuit people lead a nomadic existence, sheltering. - "Recent times" are in the past but "Lead" (≠ "led") is the present tense. That's nonsense with a past timeframe.
C. In the times that are recent, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltered. - wordy -"In the times that are recent"
D. Up until recently, the Inuit people, leading a nomadic existence, have sheltered. - "Up" is redundant, since "until" already carries this meaning. The sentence implies that the Inuit are no longer nomads. "recently", albeit not too long ago, is still a time in the past. So, you need the past tense. In that choice, you'd want "sheltered". Not "have sheltered"
E. Until recent times, leading a nomadic existence, the Inuit people were sheltered. - changes the meaning -they led a nomadic existence should be the main sentence and they slept in certain types of housing should be modifier

Answer A

the good explanation of present perfect is here. this is good for this question.
https://www.perfect-english-grammar.com ... t-use.html

be patient to read it. it is helpful

[quote="prasannar"]Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering in igloos, the ice-block domes that are peculiar to north-central Canada, and in structures made of stones, bones, driftwood, and skins.

(A) Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering
(B) During recent times, the Inuit people lead a nomadic existence, sheltering
(C) In the times that are recent, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltered
(D) Up until recently, the Inuit people, leading a nomadic existence, have sheltered
(E) Until recent times, leading a nomadic existence, the Inuit people were sheltered

recency is current relevance which is under present perfect. the present perfect shows the connection between past event and present. choice B, the official answer , is what I dont like

VeritasKarishma GMATNinja

In option A- if we eliminate quote under the comma " sheltering in igloos", the sentence doesn't make any sense.
It's an essential modifier hence can't be separated by comma.
Please explain.

'sheltering in igloos ... and in structures ...' is a participle modifier separated by a comma at the end of the clause. IT modifies the entire preceding clause.

'the ice-block domes that are peculiar to north-central Canada' is an appositive modifier for 'igloo'. It tells us more about what igloos are.

'Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence' - Makes complete sense
'sheltering in igloos and in structures made of stones, bones, driftwood, and skins.' - Modifying the clause above
'the ice-block domes that are peculiar to north-central Canada' - Modifying 'igloos'

Read more on participles here: https://www.gmatclub.com/forum/veritas-prep-resource-links-no-longer-available-399979.html#/2014/1 ... -the-gmat/

First of all, as we discuss in this long-winded video, the GMAT doesn't really test comma usage that deeply, so I wouldn't get hung up on things like essential vs. non-essential modifiers. Comma usage is rarely a deciding factor, so look for other decision points when making your eliminations.

As for this particular question, notice that "the ice-block domes that are peculiar to north-central Canada" is really just extra information modifying "igloos" (a "non-essential modifier", if you like the jargon). And THAT chunk of the sentence is separated by commas. If we (temporarily) ignore that extra chunk and the commas around it, choice (A) becomes:

"Until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, sheltering in igloos and in structures..."

Notice that "sheltering in igloos" is no longer separated by commas! It just appeared to be because of the commas from the "ice-block domes..." part.

I hope that helps!

I struggle with option E a bit.
Is it say to say that this is a modifier error.
Leading XXX as an initial modifier for the following clause, should indicate a "cause" in a causal relationship.
Leading xxx is certainly not a cause of the people sheltering in igloos, but switching the two is the correct casual relationship.

*** would like to make sure my logic here is correct anyone?

Dear GMATNinja, dear community,

This question caught me be by surprise!
I read some advice about tense indicators, words which are supposed to hint at what tense should be used.
Present Perfect: Within the past, in the last, since
Past Perfect: By, UNTIL

But after seeing this question it seems like that advice is more of a soft guidance than a hard rule. Seeing the word "until" in the original answer choice, I thought that past perfect would be necessary. Is simple past in answer choice A preferred over past perfect because the word "recently" was added? I suppose this illustrates that the nomadic existence has not been abandoned for very long.

Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-

Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:
Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of the crucial part of this sentence is that until recently, the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, and as a part of doing so they sheltered in igloos.

Concepts tested here: Meaning + Verb Forms + Tenses + Grammatical Construction + Idioms + Awkwardness/Redundancy

• The simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past.
• The simple present tense is used to indicate actions taking place in the current time frame, indicate habitual actions, state universal truths, and convey information that is permanent in nature.
• The present perfect tense (marked by the use of the helping verb “has/have”) is used to describe events that concluded in the past but continue to affect the present.
• Information that is vital to the core meaning of the sentence must not be placed between commas.
• "during" conveys a sense of continuity over time.

A: Correct. The sentence formed by this answer choice uses the phrase "sheltering in igloos", conveying the intended meaning - that the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, and as a part of doing so they sheltered themselves in igloos. Further, Option A correctly uses the simple past tense verb "led" to refer to an action that concluded in the past. Additionally, Option A uses the phrase "Until recently", avoiding the idiomatic error seen in Option B and the tense error in Option C. Moreover, Option A avoids the tense error seen in Option D, as it uses the "comma + present participle ("verb+ing" - "sheltering" in this sentence) rather than an active verb. Option A also avoids the grammatical construction error seen in Options D and E, as it places no information between commas. Besides, Option A is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.

B: This answer choice incorrectly uses the simple present tense verb "lead" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past, and the simple present tense is used to indicate actions taking place in the current time frame, indicate habitual actions, state universal truths, and convey information that is permanent in nature. Further, Option B unidiomatically uses "During" without reference to a sense of continuity; remember, "during" conveys a sense of continuity over time.

C: The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "sheltered in igloos"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, and as a separate action they sheltered in igloos; the intended meaning is that the Inuit people led a nomadic existence, and as a part of doing so they sheltered in igloos. Further, Option C incorrectly uses the simple present tense verb "are" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past, and the simple present tense is used to indicate actions taking place in the current time frame, indicate habitual actions, state universal truths, and convey information that is permanent in nature. Additionally, Option C uses the needlessly wordy phrase "In the times that are recent", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

D: Trap. This answer choice incorrectly uses the present perfect tense verb "have sheltered" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to an event that concluded in the past, and the present perfect tense (marked by the use of the helping verb “has/have”) is used to describe events that concluded in the past but continue to affect the present. Further, Option D incorrectly places information that is vital to the core meaning of the sentence - the fact that the Inuit people led a nomadic existence - between two commas; remember, information that is vital to the core meaning of the sentence must not be placed between commas. Additionally, Option D uses the needlessly wordy phrase "Up until recently", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

E: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the clause "the Inuit people were sheltered"; the construction of this clause incorrectly implies that the Inuit people were sheltered by someone else in igloos; the intended meaning is that the Inuit people sheltered themselves in igloos. Further, Option E incorrectly places information that is vital to the core meaning of the sentence - the fact that the Inuit people led a nomadic existence - between two commas; remember, information that is vital to the core meaning of the sentence must not be placed between commas. Additionally, Option E uses the needlessly wordy phrase "Until recent times", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

Hence, A is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):



To understand the concept of "Present Perfect Tense" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):



To understand the usage of a pair of commas on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~4 minutes):



All the best!
Experts' Global Team

Can someone explain option E? GMATNinja
Can we say that leading presents a bit continuous tense and Intuit no longer live a nomadic existence?

Technically, an "-ing" modifier doesn't have a tense on its own. I can write, "Tim is running" or "Tim was running," right?

But (E) has all sorts of other goofiness we can use to eliminate it. First, why would we ever say "until recent times" instead of "until recently?" The word "recent" pretty clearly indicates a time period! So we have redundancy, for starters.

Also, the placement of the modifier "'leading a nomadic existence" confuses the meaning. At first glance, it seems to be modifying "times." That's clearly nonsense. Could you double-back and figure out that it's actually modifying "the Inuit People?" Sure. But now we have a terrible opening modifier, followed by a second confusing modifier.

Contrast that with (A) which opens with the cleaner, "until recently" and uses "led" as the main verb with "Inuit People", leaving no room for confusion or ambiguity. There's no need to agonize over whether the issues in (E) are definitive errors or just not ideal -- it's clearly not as good as (A), so (E) is out and (A) is our winner.

I hope that helps!

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