Bunuel wrote:
Pluto, along with the solar bodies Ceres, Haumea, Makemake, and Eris, are properly classified as dwarf planets, which differ from planets in that dwarf planets are not sufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from the areas around their orbits.
A. are properly classified as dwarf planets, which differ from planets in that dwarf planets are not sufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from the areas around their orbits
B. is properly classified as a dwarf planet, which differs from a planet in that a dwarf planet is not sufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from the area around its orbit
C. constitute the dwarf planets, which, unlike planets themselves, are not sufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from their surrounding areas
D. is properly classified as a dwarf planet, which differs from a planet through it being insufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from the area around its orbit
E. are properly classified as dwarf planets, which differ from planets in their inability to be sufficiently large to clear all planetesimals from the areas around their orbits
Veritas Prep Official Explanation
Correct Answer: (B)
The entire phrase “along with ... Eris” is purely interruptive from a grammatical perspective, so you should disregard it: the subject of the sentence is simply “Pluto.” Slash and burn the superfluous phrase to assess subject/verb agreement. This singular subject, “Pluto,” needs a singular verb, “is,” which limits our choices to (B) and (D). (D) uses the incorrect and wordy structure “through it being.” (B) uses a more direct and concise structure, “in that,” so it is correct.