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Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
KC wrote:
In many nations, criminal law does not apply to corporations, but in the United Stated today, a corporation commits a crime whenever one of its employees commits a crime, if the employee acted within the scope of his or her authority and if the corporation benefited as a result.
(A) a corporation commits a crime whenever one of its employees commits a crime, if the employee acted
(B) a corporation is committing a crime whenever one of its employees committed a crime, if those employees were acting
(C) corporations commit a crime whenever one of its employees does, on the condition that the employee acts
D) corporations commit crimes whenever an employee of those corporations commit a crime, if it was while acting
(E) the corporation whose employees commit a crime, commits a crime, whenever the employee acted
Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:Understanding the meaning of this sentence is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of the crucial part of this sentence is that a corporation commits a crime whenever one of its employees commits a crime, in the event that the employee acted within the scope of his or her authority and the corporation benefited as a result.
Concepts tested here: Subject-Verb Agreement + Meaning + Tenses + Pronouns + Awkwardness/Redundancy• 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 simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past.
• The simple present continuous tense is used to refer to actions that are currently ongoing and continuous in nature.
• The simple past continuous tense is used to refer to actions that were ongoing over a period of time in the past.
A: Correct. This answer choice correctly refers to the singular pronoun phrase "one of its employees" with the singular verb "commits". Moreover, Option A avoids the pronoun errors seen in Options C and D, as it clearly and logically refers to the singular pronoun "a corporation" with the singular pronoun "it". Further, Option A uses the phrases "one of its employees" and "if the employee acted", conveying the intended meaning - that any
individual corporation commits a crime whenever an employee belonging to
that corporation commits a crime, in the event that the employee acted within the scope of his or her authority and the corporation benefited as a result. Additionally, Option A correctly uses the simple present tense verb "commits" to refer to information that is permanent in nature and uses the simple past tense verb "acted" to refer to an action that concluded in the past. Besides, Option A is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.
B: This answer choice incorrectly uses the simple present continuous tense verb "is committing" and the simple past tense verb "committed" to refer to information that is permanent in nature; please remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, the simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past, and the simple present continuous tense is used to refer to actions that are currently ongoing and continuous in nature. Moreover, Option B incorrectly uses the simple past continuous tense verb "were acting" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; please remember, actions that concluded in the past are conveyed through the simple past tense, and the simple past continuous tense is used to refer to actions that were ongoing over a period of time in the past.
C: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the plural noun "corporations" with the singular pronoun "its". Further, Option C incorrectly uses the simple present tense verb "acts" to refer to an action that concluded in the past; remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to actions 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 construction "on the condition that", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.
D: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the singular noun phrase "an employee" with the plural verb "commit". Further, Option D alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "an employee of those corporations"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that corporations
collectively commit crimes whenever an employee belonging to
all of the corporations commits a crime; the intended meaning is that any
individual corporation commits a crime whenever an employee belonging to
that corporation commits a crime. Additionally, Option D suffers from a pronoun error, as the pronoun "it" lacks a clear and logical referent.
E: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrases "whose employees commit a crime" and "whenever the employee acted"; the construction of these phrases leads to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that a corporation commits a crime whenever one of its employees commits a crime, in the event that the employee acted within the scope of his or her authority and the corporation benefited as a result.
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 "Simple Continuous Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):
All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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