Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that di

Question

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but

(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

souvik101990 · Accepted Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but

(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

Hurricanes
 
 (A) Meaning

(B) CORRECT

(C) Sentence Structure

(D) Meaning

(E) Sentence Structure

First glance

The beginning of the sentence changes in nearly every answer choice, so keep an eye out for more global issues, such as Meaning, Sentence Structure, Modifiers, or Parallelism.
 
  Issues

(1) Meaning:  at first begin

You might not notice this on your first read; try comparing answers (A) and (B). They are substantially similar in meaning and structure, but answer (B) drops the verb  begin . That might be your clue to examine whether the sentence needs that word.

To  begin  by doing a certain thing means to do that thing  first . Using both  at first  and  begin  is redundant. Eliminate answer (A).

(2) Sentence Structure

While  begins a subordinate clause: While I like cheese, I don’t care for pizza. This structure requires only a comma to connect the  while  clause with the main clause. Choice (C) offers this structure:

“While hurricanes travel (in a certain direction), and they then veer off…”

This choice is flawed in the same way as the sentence: While I like cheese, and I don’t care for pizza. A conjunction (such as  and ) is not an acceptable way to join a dependent clause to an independent clause. Eliminate answer (C).

Side note: in this problem,  while  means  although . It can also mean  at the same time as .

Now that you know that Sentence Structure might be an issue, check whether any other answers also mess up that core structure. Answer (E) does so:

“Hurricanes, (modifier), (modifier), they then veer off…”

The sentence repeats the subject. This would be the equivalent of saying: Larry he likes pizza. Eliminate answer (E).

(3) Meaning

In choice (D) the word  because  is attached to  hurricanes travel from east to west . In most of the other choices,  because  goes with  the direction of the prevailing winds . Is the change in location of that word okay?

Choice (D) states:

“Because hurricanes travel from east to west, they then veer off…”

This meaning is illogical. The hurricanes don’t veer off  because  they first travel from east to west. Rather, they first travel from east to west because that’s the same direction that the prevailing winds blow. Eliminate answer (D).

The Correct Answer

Correct answer (B) fixes the redundancy in the original sentence by removing the verb  begin . It conveys a logical meaning and has a legal core sentence structure: … hurricanes travel from east to west, but they then veer off …

GMATNinja · Answer

This is cool, I really don't see a whole lot of disagreement on this one. I'm a little bit surprised, because I've seen a few students flail helplessly on it.

This is the GMAT's attempt to cram as much redundancy into one answer choice as possible. "At first begin" is redundant. So is "that direction is the way." And why would we bother saying that the "winds in the tropics blow" in that direction? Of course the wind blows. So does this answer choice. Eliminate (A). All of that unnecessary, useless phrasing in (A) is gone now. That's pleasant. So if you have a problem with (B), it's probably because of the word "that." But "that" is just a pronoun here, referring back to "east to west." And that seems completely fine, as we discussed in a recent Topic of the Week on "that" . Keep (B). This isn't even a real sentence, because it has no independent clause. I'm also not crazy about the placement of the modifier "the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics" -- it should ideally be closer to "east to west." The "and" also seems like a worse choice than "but", since we're drawing a contrast between the east to west direction of the wind and its later changes of direction. Eliminate (C). The meaning is a hot mess here: it's saying that because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, they then veer off toward higher latitudes? That doesn't make any sense. Eliminate (D). "Hurricanes, ... they then veer off..." -- that's a diaper fire right there. If "hurricanes" is the subject, where is the verb? Plus, "this" is trying to operate as a pronoun here, and that's not OK -- "this" can only be an article, not a pronoun. Eliminate (E). (B) is the winner.

Patronus · Answer

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but 
 "because that direction.." is modifying "Hurricanes at first begin travelling from east to west".
However, it is NOT that "Hurricanes at first begin travelling from east to west" which is the "direction".
"Direction" is simply "Hurricanes travelling from east to west". So the use of phrase "at first" is extra.

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but 
 "because that direction.." is correctly modifying what is this "direction" which is presented as"Hurricanes travel from east to west".
 
(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and
 1) Again, "the direction" should modify only "...travel from east to west", "at first" is extra.
2) If you fit this option in the original sentence, it becomes "While hurricanes travel, and they veer off.., in many cases changing direction...,.." you will see there is no verb in this sentence.

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 "because...,since" 2 subordinators in 1 sentence. Redundant.

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 1) "This" should be followed by noun, as per MGMAT SC book. Just saying "this is" is ok in colloquial not in GMAC Verbal.
2) Not all hurricanes travel from east to west. So the modifier "beginning by traveling from east to west" is incorrectly modifying "Hurricanes". 
3) 1st part of the sentence which has the subject "Hurricanes" does not have a verb at all.

kinjiGC · Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

Meaning : At first, hurricanes blow east to west because that is direction of prevailing winds. But they then veer off toward higher latitudes and other things.

(A) Hurricanes at first  begin traveling  from east to west, because that direction   is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow , but 
 Two issues:
1) "begin travelling" is wordy as we can replace with "travel". We need a simple present to make it parallel with "veer off" -> another simple present verb.
2) "is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow" -> is too wordy and can be easily replaced by construction in option B)

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but 
 Clear and concise -> Correct

(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics,  and 
 while is a contrast word and we have conjunction "and" so it feels that contrast is still continuing.
For example -> While I was standing and sweating outside, others were seating in the AC. 
But after "and" we need the contrasted part and that is the reason usage of " and " is incorrect 
 
(D)  Because  hurricanes at first travel from east to west,  since  it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 Since is the reason why hurricanes at first travel from east to west -> this is correct.
Similarly, Because should provide the reason why "they then veer off" -> meaning is illogical

(E) Hurricanes,  beginning  by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 beginning -> is a verb+ing modifier modifying "Hurricanes" which is correct. So we can remove the "modifier".
If we remove the modifier the sentence becomes
"Hurricanes, because X" -> this doesn't make sense. 
because -> cannot modify a noun. It has to modify a clause.

For example I went to market because my supplies were out. ->Here because is modifying the clause "I went to market".

GMATmantra · Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but 
(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but 
(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and
(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

Vertical scan reveals that Option A and B have 'but' 
C has 'and'
The sentence, (Hurricanes travels from east to west.................they then veer off......), needs a contrast
Therefore C, D and E are out

Option A 'first begin' is redundant..Out

Therefore, Option B is the correct answer

mcelroytutoring · Answer

Hi, I hope this video helps. This question is tricky, but if you take advantage of the rule "skip over the appositives and see if it makes sense," then it becomes easier to handle.

rMq1qD3HFMA

EMPOWERgmatVerbal · Answer

Hello Everyone!

If you're running into this question for the first time on the 2020 Official Guide, welcome! Let's start by taking a quick glance over the original question, and highlight any major differences we can find in  orange :

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A)  Hurricanes at first begin traveling  from east to west,  because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow ,  but  
(B)  At first, hurricanes travel  from east to west,  because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics ,  but  
(C)  While hurricanes travel  from east to west at first,  the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics ,  and 
(D)  Because hurricanes at first travel  from east to west,  since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics ,
(E)  Hurricanes, beginning by traveling  from east to west,  because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics ,

After a quick scan over the options, a few differences pop out:

1. How it talks about hurricanes traveling
2. How it talks about prevailing winds
3. How they end (no conjunction / and / but)

This seems like a lot, right? Whenever you see a GMAT question with this much variation between the options, it's time to start looking for bigger picture problems.

One of the big picture issues we can look at is making sure each sentence has a clear subject and verb. With this many modifiers, commas, and phrases stacked together, it's likely that at least 1-2 options will be missing a subject or verb. Let's look closely at each option and cross out any modifiers, prepositional phrases, or non-essential phrases to see if we're left with a complete sentence:

(A)  Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow ,  but they then veer off toward higher latitudes ,  in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land . -->  OK

(B)  At first ,  hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,   but they then veer off toward higher latitudes ,  in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land . -->  OK

(C)  While hurricanes travel from east to west at first ,  the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics ,  and they then veer off toward higher latitudes ,  in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land . -->  WRONG  
 (There is no clear subject or verb here - just a series of modifiers, prepositional phrases, and interjections piled up together!)

(D)  Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west ,  since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics ,  they then veer off toward higher latitudes ,  in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land . -->  WRONG 
 (While what you're left with is technically a complete sentence, it has lost so much of its intended meaning that it doesn't make sense on its own.)

(E)  Hurricanes ,  beginning by traveling from east to west ,  because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics ,  they then veer off toward higher latitudes ,  in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land . -->  WRONG 
 (This sentence has a subject, but no verb!)

We can eliminate options C, D, & E because they are missing a subject, verb, or both.

Now that we have it narrowed down to only 2 options, let's look more closely to find other problems and narrow it down to one option:

(A) Hurricanes  at first begin  traveling from east to west,  because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow , but

This option is  INCORRECT  for a couple reasons. First, the phrase "at first begin" is redundant - "at first" and "begin" mean the same thing, so you don't need to say them both. The other phrase we highlighted is also a bit clunky and overly wordy as well.

(B)  At first , hurricanes travel from east to west,  because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics , but

This is the  CORRECT  choice! It's not redundant, there is a clear subject and verb, and it's not overly wordy!

There you have it - option B is the correct choice!

Don't study for the GMAT. Train for it.

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-

Choice A:  Option A suffers from a great deal of redundancy. The phrase "At first begins" contains a redundancy, as the beginning will always be what took place first. Moreover, the phrases "prevailing winds in the tropics blow" and "that direction is the way" are needlessly wordy. Thus, A is a poor answer choice.

Choice B:  Option B is concise, preserves the intended meaning of the sentence, and contains no modifier errors. Thus, Option B is correct.
 
 Choice C:  In Option C, we see a modifier error in the placement of the phrase "the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics". This phrase should be closer to the noun that it is modifying, the direction "east to west". Additionally, the use of "and" is inappropriate here, as the presence of the word "while", in this context, indicates that this sentence is trying to show contrast. Thus Option C alters the meaning of the sentence and is incorrect.

Choice D:  In Option D, the use of the word "because" changes the intended meaning of the sentence. The sentence that results from the use of Option D states that the reason behind hurricanes veering off towards higher latitudes is that the hurricanes travel from east to west, which is not the intended meaning. Thus Option D is incorrect.

Choice E:  In Option E, if we remove the information between two commas, we get "Hurricanes, they...". As the pronoun "they" refers to the noun "Hurricane", which is the subject of the sentence, we can say that this sentence repeats the subject. For this reason, Option E is a poor answer choice.

Hence, B is the best answer choice.

If you are confused by the use of "that" in Option B, rest assured that it is perfectly appropriate, as "that" is serving as a pronoun for "east to west".

To understand the concept of “And v/s other Conjunctions” on the GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLAjw4aR0rM

All the best!
Experts' Global Team

adkikani · Answer

Hi Experts,
Though I got correct OA, it seems my approach wasn't correct.
My query is regarding -  traveling  - in Option A and usage of -  that  - in option B
I discarded A at first glance thinking traveling in written in  continuous  tense, whereas 
meaning wise this sentence shows a  fact  whixh needs to be communicated in 
present tense. On closer look, it seems traveling seems to modify the verb in present tense -  begin 
Is my interpretation correct?
Is this version of A correct?
 Hurricanes begin  to travel  from east to west, because that direction is the
way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, bu t they then veer off toward higher
latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over
the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

Here, is  to travel  a verb or modifier?

Furthermore, -  that - refers to travel in option B. It jumps over both nouns - east / west Am I correct?

daagh · Answer

To make life simple, before we embark on solving this question, just dump C and E for being blatant fragments. We can also drop D for using two back-to-back subordinate clauses with just a main clause. In addition, the use of 'because' and 'since' in the same sentence is awkward. 
A prickly observation giving a serious doubt whether GMAT is oblivious of this norm is that in A and B which are complex sentences, the comma shouldn't have been used when the subordinate clause follows the main clause.
Notwithstanding the punctuation error, we may drop A for using the redundant 'direction' and 'the way' together as afterall a direction is actually a way. 
B is perhaps the choice by POE.

DmitryFarberMPrep · Answer

adkikani , you're right that "traveling" modifies the present tense verb "begin" in A. There's nothing grammatically wrong with that. The problems with A are elsewhere: the redundancy of "at first begin" and the confusing phrase "that direction is the way."

As for "that" in B, it has to modify a noun, and "travel" is serving as a verb. It's directly modifying "east to west": east to west is the direction of the winds.

Abhishek009 · Answer

Correct answer must be (B) for the highlighted errors in other options...

daagh · Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land. 
Let's remove the easily visible errors.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but --  at first begin and direction and way are redundant.

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but---- can't find anything wrong. 
 
(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and ---  This is a fragment since the subordinate clause doesn't have a main clause.

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, ---  Two subordinate clauses not connected by proper conjugation but depending upon one main clause is a fragment.

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,---  'Hurricanes' in the underlined part and 'they' in the non-underlined part turn the sentence as a double subject -single verb one

thangvietnam · Answer

in choice B, "that is" is correct or not. "that " can refer to a noun only if "that " is relative pronoun. pls, explain this point

GMATNinja · Answer

All constructions contained in an OA are, by definition, correct!

In this case, "that" is serving as a pronoun referring to "east to west," as discussed in  this explanation . The easiest way to test whether a given pronoun properly connects to the referent in question is to substitute the referent for the pronoun and see if the sentence is logical. Here, " that  is the direction of the prevailing winds" becomes  "east to west  is the direction of the prevailing winds." Sounds logical to me!

And if you want a more thorough treatment, check out  this article  for a full rundown on the various ways in which "that" might show up on the GMAT.

Srsrsr32 · Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but

(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,

In option  A , using both  at first  and  begin  is incorrect. ''  that direction is the way '' is a wordy expression.

B  is the correct answer.
 
In option  C  , we can see  illogical contrast . Moreover,  a verb is missing  in the second clause.

In option  D , the meaning becomes illogical. The use of both  because  and  since  is incorrect in the context.

In option  E ,  a verb is missing  for the subject Hurricanes. Also, two independent clauses are incorrectly connected by a comma here.

thangvietnam · Answer

"that" in choice b is problematic.
"that" can be relative pronoun. but relative pronoun can not stand after "because". 
that can be stand alone pronoun, (one question from og prove this point) but this is inferior and inferior point is correct if all 5 choices contain inferiorness. 
in choice B, "that" is stand alone pronoun. this is inferior. choice A is inferior because "firt begin" is redundant. so, elimination of choice B is not good.

one question from og, in which stand alone "that" appear in 5 choices. only in this case, stand alone "that", which is inferior is acceptable.

'that/this" refers to a noun is considered inferior. but if all of 5 choices contain this inferior case, we have accept this . in problem, other choices contain clear error, so, "that" in choice B is good.

however, I do not like this problem because "at first begin" redundancy is hard to see while "that is direction" is inferior. puting these two errors/inferior case, is not good, I think

navderm · Answer

Why ?

DSBlender · Answer

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but  they then veer off toward higher latitudes, in many cases changing direction toward the east before dissipating over the colder, more northerly waters or over land.

(A) Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that direction is the way the prevailing winds in the tropics blow, but
 "At first" and "Begin" have the same meaning, so drop one for redunancy. INCORRECT

(B) At first, hurricanes travel from east to west, because that is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics, but
 This is correct. The redundancy of "At First' and "Begin" is resolved. "Because" clause is modifying the first part of the sentence, where "that" is in place for the direction of "east to west". "But" is the correct conjunction to use, since it represents a change: "At first hurricanes traveled east to west, but they then veer off" 
 
(C) While hurricanes travel from east to west at first, the direction of the prevailing winds blowing in the tropics, and
 "While hurricanes travel..." is a dependent clause, that is being modified by "the direction of....". A conjunction can't be used to link a dependent clause to an independent clause (they then veer off). Incorrect

(D) Because hurricanes at first travel from east to west, since it is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 This is a meaning issue. "Because hurricanes travel from east to west,...., they then veer off." This is illogical. This answer choice is saying that the reason they veer off is BECAUSE they at first travel from east to west. Rather, the correct meaning is that they travel at first form east to west and then change direction. The direction change is not BECAUSE they were initially going east to west. Incorrect.

(E) Hurricanes, beginning by traveling from east to west, because this is the direction of the prevailing winds in the tropics,
 This is a sentence structure issue. This answer choice is essentially saying: "Hurricanes, (modifier for Hurricanes), (modifier for Hurricanes), THEY then veer off..". The subject is repeated. THEY, in the nonunderlined portion of the sentence, represents the subject (hurricanes). So if the modifiers are ingored, the subject shows up twice in a row: "Hurricanes Hurricanes then veer off."

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that di

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GMAT Sentence Correction (SC - EA only) Questions

Hurricanes at first begin traveling from east to west, because that di

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