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Difficulty:
45%
(medium)
Question Stats:
64% (01:34) correct
36%
(01:49)
wrong
based on 9207
sessions
History
Date
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Not Attempted Yet
Heirloom tomatoes, grown from seeds saved from the previous year, only look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins, often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but are more flavorful.
(A) cousins, often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but are
(B) cousins, often green and striped, or with plenty of bumps and bruises, although
(C) cousins, often green and striped, or they have plenty of bumps and bruises, although they are
(D) cousins; they are often green and striped, or with plenty of bumps and bruises, although
(E) cousins; they are often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but they are
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(A) cousins, often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but are
(B) cousins, often green and striped, or with plenty of bumps and bruises, although
(C) cousins, often green and striped, or they have plenty of bumps and bruises, although they are
(D) cousins; they are often green and striped, or with plenty of bumps and bruises, although
(E) cousins; they are often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but they are
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Verbal Question of The Day: Day 103: Sentence Correction
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13 Sep 2017, 13:25
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Full disclosure: I missed this one the first time I saw it, mostly because I was too mechanical about “pronoun ambiguity.” But as you might have noticed in our YouTube webinar on pronouns, pronoun ambiguity isn’t an absolute rule.
Plus, there’s a nuance to this particular situation: in (D) and (E), the subject of the second independent clause is a pronoun, and I’m pretty sure that the subject of the second clause can refer unambiguously to the subject of the first clause – even if there are a ton of other potential referents in between those two subjects. More on that in the YouTube webinar, too.
That doesn’t make sense. Why are we using an “or” there? Those two verb phrases support each other, and both are true.
Plus, the placement of “often green and striped” could be better. It looks like the “supermarket cousins” are “green and striped” – but that’s not right. The heirlooms are green and striped. So we have plenty of reasons to ditch (A).
Plus, that last bit is weird: “Heirloom tomatoes… only look less appetizing than their (supermarket cousins)…, although more flavorful.” I could go for “although they are more flavorful”, but the sentence doesn’t make sense the way it’s written. “Although” requires a clause in this situation, not just a random adjective.
Oh yeah – and the “often green and striped” is still in a weird location. (B) is out.
And both the “or” and the “green and striped” finally make sense! Trouble is, we have that little problem with “although more flavorful” at the end of the sentence. In this situation, we’d need a clause following “although”, not just a random adjective. (D) is better than (A), (B), and (C), but it’s still flawed.
Heirloom tomatoes, grown from seeds saved from the previous year, only look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins, often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but are more flavorful.
(E) is our winner, and now I really want a gigantic salad.
Plus, there’s a nuance to this particular situation: in (D) and (E), the subject of the second independent clause is a pronoun, and I’m pretty sure that the subject of the second clause can refer unambiguously to the subject of the first clause – even if there are a ton of other potential referents in between those two subjects. More on that in the YouTube webinar, too.
Quote:
This isn’t technically a run-on sentence, but it feels like one. It’s oddly tricky to pin down the exact errors, even though it’s clearly a mess. I guess I’d start with the parallelism: “or” is a parallelism trigger, so the verb phrase “have plenty of bumps and bruises” must be parallel to some other verb phrase. But the only other verb phrase is “look less appetizing”: “Heirloom tomatoes… only look less appetizing than their supermarket cousins… or have plenty of bumps and bruises.”
That doesn’t make sense. Why are we using an “or” there? Those two verb phrases support each other, and both are true.
Plus, the placement of “often green and striped” could be better. It looks like the “supermarket cousins” are “green and striped” – but that’s not right. The heirlooms are green and striped. So we have plenty of reasons to ditch (A).
Quote:
This is an even hotter mess than (A). I can’t figure out what to do with the “or with plenty of bumps and bruises” here, either – nothing is reasonably parallel to the prepositional phrase “with plenty of bumps and bruises”, since there really aren’t any prepositional phrases earlier in the sentence that could possibly work.
Plus, that last bit is weird: “Heirloom tomatoes… only look less appetizing than their (supermarket cousins)…, although more flavorful.” I could go for “although they are more flavorful”, but the sentence doesn’t make sense the way it’s written. “Although” requires a clause in this situation, not just a random adjective.
Oh yeah – and the “often green and striped” is still in a weird location. (B) is out.
Quote:
This is getting better, but the “often green and striped” is still arguably misplaces, and we still have a parallelism issue with the “or.” “Heirloom tomatoes… only look less appetizing than their (supermarket cousins)…, or they have plenty of bumps and bruises.” Again, the two phrases on either side of the “or” just don’t make sense: both are true, and the two phrases actually support each other. Eliminate (C).
Quote:
If you’re being too mechanical, you might conclude that “they” is ambiguous, because it could refer to “cousins”, “seeds”, or “tomatoes.” But we’re OK here: “they” is the subject of the second clause, and I don’t think there’s any ambiguity in GMAT-land if the subject of the second clause (“they”) refers back to the subject of the first clause (“heirloom tomatoes”).
And both the “or” and the “green and striped” finally make sense! Trouble is, we have that little problem with “although more flavorful” at the end of the sentence. In this situation, we’d need a clause following “although”, not just a random adjective. (D) is better than (A), (B), and (C), but it’s still flawed.
Heirloom tomatoes, grown from seeds saved from the previous year, only look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins, often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but are more flavorful.
Quote:
Great. The pronouns are all nice and clear, according to GMAT rules: the subject of the second (“they are often green and striped”) and third clauses (“they are more flavorful”) refer back to the subject of the first clause (“heirloom tomatoes”). The verb phrase “have plenty of bumps and bruises” is appropriately parallel to “are often green and striped” – and the “or” makes sense.
(E) is our winner, and now I really want a gigantic salad.
27 Jul 2009, 11:18
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(A) "often green and striped" is a modifier that is right after cousins. Since the cousins are red, this modifier is in the wrong place.
(B) "often green and striped" is a modifier that is right after cousins. Since the cousins are red, this modifier is in the wrong place.
(C) "often green and striped" is a modifier that is right after cousins. Since the cousins are red, this modifier is in the wrong place.
(D) Since there is a ";" "they" in the new clause is referring to the tomatoes. However they are not "with". "They have" is better.
(E) CORRECT - Both "they" refer to tomatoes.
(B) "often green and striped" is a modifier that is right after cousins. Since the cousins are red, this modifier is in the wrong place.
(C) "often green and striped" is a modifier that is right after cousins. Since the cousins are red, this modifier is in the wrong place.
(D) Since there is a ";" "they" in the new clause is referring to the tomatoes. However they are not "with". "They have" is better.
(E) CORRECT - Both "they" refer to tomatoes.
27 Feb 2022, 05:14
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Dear Friends,
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:
Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended core meaning of this sentence is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they are often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but these tomatoes are more flavorful.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Modifiers + Parallelism
• In a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction.
• Elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence.
• Any elements linked by a conjunction ("but" and “although” in this case) must be parallel.
A: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option A uses the clause "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing...or have plenty of bumps and bruises"; the parallelism between "look less appetizing" and "have plenty of bumps and bruises" incorrectly implies that heirloom tomatoes either look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins or have plenty of bumps and bruises; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; remember, elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence. Further, Option A fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "are more powerful"; remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("but" in this case) must be parallel.
B: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option B uses the phrase "or with plenty of bumps and bruises", leading to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes often have bumps and bruises. Further, Option B fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "more powerful"; remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("although" in this case) must be parallel.
C: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option C uses the clause "or they have plenty of bumps and bruises"; the parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing" and "they have plenty of bumps and bruises" incorrectly implies that heirloom tomatoes either look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins or have plenty of bumps and bruises; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; remember, elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence.
D: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "or with plenty of bumps and bruises"; the construction of this phrase leads to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes often have bumps and bruises. Further, Option D fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "more flavorful"; please remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("although" in this sentence) must be parallel.
E: Correct. This answer choice avoids the modifier error seen in Options A, B, C, and D, as it uses the independent clause "they are often green and striped", conveying the intended meaning - that "they" (heirloom tomatoes) are often green and striped. Moreover, Option E uses the phrase "or they have plenty of bumps and bruises", correctly maintaining parallelism between "are often green and striped" and "have plenty of bumps and bruises", conveying the intended meaning - that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; parallelism between these two phrases is correct, as both refer to an action taken by "they (heirloom tomatoes)". Further, Option E maintains parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "they are more flavorful".
Hence, E 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
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
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Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:
Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended core meaning of this sentence is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they are often green and striped, or have plenty of bumps and bruises, but these tomatoes are more flavorful.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Modifiers + Parallelism
• In a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction.
• Elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence.
• Any elements linked by a conjunction ("but" and “although” in this case) must be parallel.
A: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option A uses the clause "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing...or have plenty of bumps and bruises"; the parallelism between "look less appetizing" and "have plenty of bumps and bruises" incorrectly implies that heirloom tomatoes either look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins or have plenty of bumps and bruises; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; remember, elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence. Further, Option A fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "are more powerful"; remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("but" in this case) must be parallel.
B: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option B uses the phrase "or with plenty of bumps and bruises", leading to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes often have bumps and bruises. Further, Option B fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "more powerful"; remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("although" in this case) must be parallel.
C: This answer choice incorrectly modifies "their round and red supermarket cousins" with "often green and striped", incorrectly implying that the heirloom tomatoes' round and red supermarket cousins are often green and striped; the intended meaning is that the heirloom tomatoes themselves are often green and striped; remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Moreover, Option C uses the clause "or they have plenty of bumps and bruises"; the parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing" and "they have plenty of bumps and bruises" incorrectly implies that heirloom tomatoes either look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins or have plenty of bumps and bruises; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; remember, elements in a sentence should only be parallel if they play the same role in the sentence.
D: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "or with plenty of bumps and bruises"; the construction of this phrase leads to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that heirloom tomatoes often have bumps and bruises. Further, Option D fails to maintain parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "more flavorful"; please remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("although" in this sentence) must be parallel.
E: Correct. This answer choice avoids the modifier error seen in Options A, B, C, and D, as it uses the independent clause "they are often green and striped", conveying the intended meaning - that "they" (heirloom tomatoes) are often green and striped. Moreover, Option E uses the phrase "or they have plenty of bumps and bruises", correctly maintaining parallelism between "are often green and striped" and "have plenty of bumps and bruises", conveying the intended meaning - that heirloom tomatoes look less appetizing than their round and red supermarket cousins in that they have plenty of bumps and bruises; parallelism between these two phrases is correct, as both refer to an action taken by "they (heirloom tomatoes)". Further, Option E maintains parallelism between "Heirloom tomatoes...look less appetizing..." and "they are more flavorful".
Hence, E 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
