Additional to being source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato

Question

Additional to being source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato contain  a carotenoid called lycopene that is thought to help protect against diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

A. Additional to being source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato contain 
 B. In addition to being a source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, tomatoes contains 
 C. As well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato contains 
 D. Tomatoes not only are a source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, but also contain 
 E. A tomato not only is a source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, it also contains

DharLog · Answer

Question to experts.
All options except D are bad.
But is it ok, that in D "are a source" and contain seem to be not "parallel", or it is not important in case of this idiom?

arvind910619 · Answer

The answer is D

Not only X but also Y.

Parallelism is maintained in D

Verb is followed by Not only and but also .
A and B are wrong because they use being 
C as well as is not used correctly
E Does not contain parallelism

acacia · Answer

Official Explanation
Focusing on one error at a time, let's start with the subject-verb issue. We can say a tomato contains as in choices (C) and (E) or tomatoes contain as in choice (D). But choices (A) and (B) use the incorrect tomato contain and tomatoes contains respectively. 
Eliminate Wrong Answer Choices:

After eliminating choices (A) and (B), we notice choice (C) contains a parallelism and comparison mistake: As well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A is not parallel to a tomato and cannot be compared to a tomato.

Choices (D) and (E) both correct the subject-verb agreement mistake, but only Answer Choice (D) correctly uses the "only…but also" construction, making it the correct answer.

Bunuel · Answer

KAPLAN OFFICIAL SOLUTION:

Correct Choice: (D)

This sentence has both an error in subject-verb agreement and an incorrect use of an idiom. We need the subject and verb to agree in number. Either“a tomato contains” or “tomatoes contain”. Answer choices (A) and (B) can be eliminated since they both have subject-verb agreement mistakes. Choice (C) contains a parallelism mistake: “As well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A ”is not parallel to “a tomato”. Choices (D) and (E) both correct the agreement mistake, but only (D) correctly uses “the not only...but also” construction.

abhishekmayank · Answer

Dwelling on the option C :

C. As well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato contains  a carotenoid called lycopene that is thought to help protect against diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

I understand that "as well as" can be used only for two items. But whether this syntax is wrong in which at one hand of "as well as" we have a list, having number of items with "and" conjunction, and on the other hand we have another item :

Vitamin C and Vitamin A  as well as  lycopene

Moreover, what is parallelism issue over here as pointed out by Kaplan, which I quote again :

As well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A ”is not parallel to “a tomato”.

No parallel marker exists, I think, for "tomato" and underlined part. So why are we looking for any parallelism?

Experts, could you help in it ?

AndrewN 
 AjiteshArun

AjiteshArun · Answer

Hi  abhishekmayank ,

I agree. I don't see any problem in "as well as X, something contains Y". Option D sounds better to me, but that is very different from tagging this as a parallelism error.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  abhishekmayank . I took the so-called parallelism issue to mean that the placement of  as well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A  muddles the picture as to whether the vitamins are being held up as a parallel subject to  a tomato  or whether they are contained, like lycopene, within the tomato. Since the answer choices have other non-GMAT™-like features, such as glaringly incorrect subject-verb agreement issues in  a tomato contain  and  tomatoes contains  (the first of which I actually thought was a typo), the question, for all I knew, was testing the usage of  as well as  versus  like . (There is a single answer choice that incorporates this construct, after all.) Consider:

1)  Like Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato contains a carotenoid called lycopene...  (Incorrect, since the meaning is altered.)

2)  A tomato contains a carotenoid called lycopene, as well as Vitamin C and Vitamin A...  (The placement of the  as  phrase clarifies what a tomato contains, but it interrupts the description of lycopene.)

I think the question is fine for the point it is aiming to make about the  correct  sentence, but its articulation of the issues within the incorrect answer choices may be a little off-center.

I hope that helps. Thank you for bringing the question to my attention.

- Andrew

abhishekmayank · Answer

Thanks again  AjiteshArun  and  AndrewN  for the clarification !!

Additional to being source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato

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Additional to being source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, a tomato

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