Dear Friends,
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
greatchap wrote:
Currently 26 billion barrels a year, world consumption of oil is rising at a rate of 2 percent annually.
(A) world consumption of oil is rising at a rate of
(B) the world is consuming oil at an increasing rate of
(C) the world’s oil is being consumed at the increasing rate of
(D) the rise in the rate of the world’s oil consumption is
(E) oil is consumed by the world at an increasing rate of
Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of this sentence is that the world consumption of oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year, and it is rising at a rate of 2 percent annually.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Modifiers• In a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction.
A: Correct. This answer choice correctly uses "Currently 26 billion barrels a year" to modify "world consumption of oil", conveying the intended meaning - that the world's
consumption of oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year. Moreover, Option A uses the phrase "rising at a rate of 2 percent annually", conveying the intended meaning - that
the amount of oil that the world is consuming is increasing at a
stable rate.
B: This answer choice incorrectly uses "Currently 26 billion barrels a year" to modify "the world", illogically implying that
the world is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; the intended meaning is that the world's
consumption of oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; remember, in a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option B further alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "increasing rate of 2 percent annually"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that
the rate at which the world is consuming oil is increasing; the intended meaning is that
the amount of oil that the world is consuming is increasing at a
stable rate.
C: This answer choice incorrectly uses "Currently 26 billion barrels a year" to modify "the world’s oil", incorrectly implying that
the world's oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; the intended meaning is that the world's
consumption of oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; remember, in a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option C further alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "increasing rate of 2 percent annually"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that
the rate at which the world is consuming oil is increasing; the intended meaning is that
the amount of oil that the world is consuming is increasing at a
stable rate.
D: This answer choice incorrectly uses "Currently 26 billion barrels a year" to modify "the rise in the rate", incorrectly implying that
the rate at which the world's consumption of oil is rising is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; the intended meaning is that the world's
consumption of oil itself is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; remember, in a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun.
E: This answer choice incorrectly uses "Currently 26 billion barrels a year" to modify "oil", incorrectly implying that
oil in general is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; the intended meaning is that the world's
consumption of oil is currently at 26 billion barrels a year; remember, in a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option E further alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "increasing rate of 2 percent annually"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that
the rate at which the world is consuming oil is increasing; the intended meaning is that
the amount of oil that the world is consuming is increasing at a
stable rate.
Hence, A is the best answer choice.To understand the concept of "Phrase Comma Subject" and "Subject Comma Phrase" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1minute):
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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