Technically, quicksand is the term for sand that is so saturated wit

Thank you very much for the nice explanation, Sir.
So, you are saying that with the term ''book's page'' it means ''every book has UNIQUE page'', right?

Hello Everyone!

Even though the stats for this question show it's a tricky one, we can narrow down to the right option by exploiting the error type clues.

Let's start by looking at the differences in the options:

1. that is so saturated / saturated enough
2. acquires / to acquire
3. character / characteristics

Verb tenses are often an easy place to start narrowing down options, so definitely let's start by tackling #2 on our list: acquires vs. to acquire.

When we use the to+verb combination, it implies intention. This means that when we say the sand wants "to acquire" the characteristics of water, it is a thinking, breathing, intentional being that chooses to go out and get the characteristics of water. We know that sand isn't a living thing that has intentions of its own. Therefore, it isn't appropriate to say "to acquire." Here are some examples:

I want to acquire the rights to that song for my movie. = CORRECT (I'm a person with thoughts and intentions, so it's okay.)

The chair is so short as to acquire the perfect balance for short children. = WRONG (A chair can't want "to acquire" balance from somewhere - it's either balanced or it's not. The chair can't decide for itself what it wants to be!)

The school acquires new students every fall. = CORRECT (Just saying "acquires" doesn't imply intention is involved. It just happens, so it's okay.)

Now, let's use that understanding and we'll be able to decimate the incorrect options. Check it out:


(A) that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid

(C) that is saturated with water enough to acquire liquid characteristics

(D) saturated enough with water so as to acquire the character of a liquid

(E) saturated with water so much as to acquire a liquid character


There we have it. The only answer that doesn't imply that sand or quicksand "chooses" to take on the characteristics of a liquid is answer B.

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

hello sir , doesn't the phrase " so saturated with water " in both option (A) and (B) implies we are doing it on purpose / or some external agent is doing it , like we say for any scientific process , for e.g. : metal surface is bombarded with photons excite the electrons , my point is all scientific processes that are carried by external agent are on a purpose and here quicksand is developed artificially , on purpose , so why are thinking of it as sand's intention , that is naturally not implied

Technically, "quicksand" is the term for sand that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character.
(A) that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character
(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid
(C) that is saturated with water enough to acquire liquid characteristics
(D) saturated enough with water so as to acquire the character of a liquid
(E) saturated with water so much as to acquire a liquid character

Pronoun ambiguity isn't automatically wrong on the GMAT -- for more on that, check out this video.

Looking at the three possible antecedents you mentioned (sand, water, and quicksand), which one makes the most sense? Can a term ("quicksand") acquire the character of a liquid? Can water, which is already a liquid, acquire the character of a liquid? It's pretty clear from the meaning that "it" refers to "sand", and since the pronoun and antecedent are both singular, the pronoun doesn't seem like a huge problem.

Although the term “psychopath”is popularly applied to an especially brutal criminal, in psychology it is someone who is apparently incapable of feeling compassion or the pangs of conscience.

(A) it is someone who is
(B) it is a person
(C) they are people who are
(D) it refers to someone who is
(E) it is in reference to people

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid
There we have it. The only answer that doesn't imply that sand or quicksand "chooses" to take on the characteristics of a liquid is answer B.
Don’t study for the GMAT. Train for it.

It's reasonably easy for the reader to understand that the it refers to sand. However, pronoun ambiguity is not usually a massive problem, and you generally don't want to remove an option just because it contains an ambiguous pronoun, unless you've already checked the other options for "bigger" errors. In other words, it is possible for an option that is ambiguous to be correct.

Technically, “quicksand” is the term for sand that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character.
A. that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character--- more ideal than B as it avoids the prickly pronoun issue.
B. that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid-- 'it' may refer to either the term quicksand or just sand.

There are several reasons to eliminate A and choose B.

so X as to Y implies that Y SEEMS TO BE TRUE.
Official examples:
Climatic shifts are so gradual as to be indistinguishable from ordinary fluctuations in the weather.
The features of the idealized sculpture portrait are so unrealistic as to constitute what one scholar calls an "artificial face."
In each case, the blue portion is something that SEEMS TO BE TRUE about the preceding subject in red.

so X that Y implies that Y ACTUALLY HAPPENS.
An official example:
Everyday life is so brisk that it hampers the ability of some children to distinguishing discrete sounds.
Here, the blue portion is something that ACTUALLY HAPPENS -- an action that is actually performed by the preceding subject in red.

A key difference between the two idioms:
Whereas in the second idiom Y can serve to express an actual action, in the first idiom it cannot.
In the first idiom, Y must serve to express not an actual action but something that merely SEEMS TO BE TRUE about the preceding subject.

A: so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character
Here, so X as to Y incorrectly serves to express the action in red.
As noted above, Y in this idiom must serve to express not an actual action but something that merely seems to be true about the preceding subject.

Moreover, the usage of so X as to Y implies that the portion in red does not actually happen.
Not the intended meaning.
A person can DROWN in quicksand.
Thus, quicksand actually DOES acquire the character of a liquid.
To express this meaning, we should use so X that Y, as in the OA:
"Quicksand"...is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid.

Another issue:

A dog's eyes can reveal much about its temperament.
Here, the phrase in blue implies that every dog has UNIQUE eyes -- eyes that can reveal much about the dog's temperament.

A: a liquid's character
This phrase seems to imply that every liquid has a UNIQUE character.
Not the intended meaning.
The intention here is to discuss the general nature of any given liquid.
The OA correctly expresses this meaning:
"Quicksand"... is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid.
Here, THE CHARACTER of a liquid = the general nature of any given liquid.

For all these reasons, eliminate A.

Technically, "quicksand" is the term for sand that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character.

(A) that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid

(C) that is saturated with water enough to acquire liquid characteristics

(D) saturated enough with water so as to acquire the character of a liquid

(E) saturated with water so much as to acquire a liquid character

NEW question from GMAT® Official Guide 2019

(SC00971)

so X as to Y: extend the meaning of X to Y

so x that Y

(A) that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid

Hello, imSKR. Do not worry about bothering me. I could always choose to take a break, but I like to volunteer my time to help others reach their GMAT™ goals. I am honored whenever anyone asks for my input. How about we take a look, then?

Thanks in advance!

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid

Technically, "quicksand" is the term for sand that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character.

(A) that is so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's character

(B) that is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid

(C) that is saturated with water enough to acquire liquid characteristics

(D) saturated enough with water so as to acquire the character of a liquid

(E) saturated with water so much as to acquire a liquid character

NEW question from GMAT® Official Guide 2019

(SC00971)

Another issue:

A dog's eyes can reveal much about its temperament.
Here, the phrase in blue implies that every dog has UNIQUE eyes -- eyes that can reveal much about the dog's temperament.

A: a liquid's character
This phrase seems to imply that every liquid has a UNIQUE character.
Not the intended meaning.
The intention here is to discuss the general nature of any given liquid.
The OA correctly expresses this meaning:
"Quicksand"... is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid.
Here, THE CHARACTER of a liquid = the general nature of any given liquid.

Anyway, the character of a liquid already suggests the seems that you wanted to insert to clarify the matter in your second sentence. The character of something just implies a similarity, not an exact likeness. For instance, if I say that "pop" dancing has acquired the character of fluid movement over the years (look up David Elsewhere on YouTube if you are unfamiliar with this style of dance), you should understand that I am not comparing a dance to water, just that I am remarking on a similarity in movement that I perceive between the two.

My advice: stick with what is on the screen. Adapt your approach to the question at hand, and if you miss it, use the opportunity to build your understanding.

- Andrew

Dear experts,
In option (A), OG says that: Lacking a subject, this sentence fails to state a clear condition."
Can you please explain why this sentence has no subject?

And doesn't this sentence follow proper stucture of "so as to"?

Hello, Pankaj0901. I think the OA describes just what it means to convey, that so _____ in this context, a construct that indicates the extent of something, will precede an embedded clause—that...—to draw a proper comparison (the clear condition of the OA). In any case, I did not approach the question with such a consideration. Instead, I considered (A) through (C) as one cluster and (D) and (E) as another. Here, that is warranted at the head of the underlined portion because sand serves as the subject of the embedded clause (and could stand in for that). Then, (C) is the odd one out because it adopts a juvenile-sounding saturated... enough that also focuses on the lower limit of saturation rather than emphasizing that same degree of saturation (by using so saturated). That is, if the sentence aims to compare quicksand to water, then so saturated is more fitting.


- Andrew

Hi AndrewN - when I read the bit in pink from you, I got confused

Why did you eliminate D and E, just because D and E started with a past participle whereas A/B/C start with a "THAT".

Is there a subtle difference between the two from a meaning perspective ?

Per my understanding there is no difference between these two sentences.

This is a bucket THAT is filled with water
This is a bucket FILLED with water