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555-605 Level|   Meaning/Logical Predication|   Modifiers|   Subject Verb Agreement|                     
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u Updated on: 03 Apr 2023, 23:59
Originally posted by AbdurRakib on 14 Jun 2017, 11:56.
Last edited by Bunuel on 03 Apr 2023, 23:59, edited 1 time in total.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

(A) a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
(B) a female cowbird will use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
(C) female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
(D) female cowbirds lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
(E) up to 40 eggs a year are laid by female cowbirds in the nests of other birds, including
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D
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 28 May 2018, 06:05
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adkikani
GMATNinja VeritasPrepKarishma egmat

In option (C), why can not those refer to nests?

How do I take including ? As a noun or as a modifier?
Is there any difference of placement of coma before including and
its absence that would lead to change of role it plays?

Is there any twist in intended meaning in (C)?

I was able to correctly strike off A and B because of paying attention to
their in non-underlined portion which must have a plural noun antecedent.

E has clear subject placement issue since after unlike... , the phrase after coma
must open with subject/ noun it is comparing.
Show more

"including" is a preposition used to show that certain elements are a part of the whole. Here, it is a non essential part of the sentence since the sentence without it gives the same idea and hence a comma is used before including.

Look at this sentence:
Send me a message including your travel dates.
"message" is very generic and including is an essential part of the sentence. It tells us what to include in the message.

In (C), since "including" is placed right after "40 eggs a year", it seems we are talking about eggs.

... 40 eggs a year, including those of warblers ...

Hence (C) is incorrect.

To give examples of "other birds", we need to write it as:
... of other birds, including warblers ...
as done in (D). (D) is correct.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 14 Jun 2017, 14:24
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AbdurRakib
The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review 2018
Practice Question
Sentence Correction
Question no. 268
Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

A. a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
B. a female cowbird will use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
D. female cowbirds lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
E. up to 40 eggs a year are laid by female cowbirds in the nests of other birds, including
Show more

The first major problem is the modifier "Unable to build nests or care for their young". This modifier must be followed by 'female cowbirds'. Notice that the modifier says "care for their young" so needs the plural form of cowbird. Options A and B are out. E is out incorrect modification.

In C and D, at the end of the sentence we see "including.." this must modify the birds, giving examples of birds,whose nests cowbirds lay their eggs in. In C, the including incorrectly modifies year. D is the best choice.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 11 Jan 2022, 05:21
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

A. a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including “Their” in the non-underlined section tells us that the subject is plural. “A female cowbird” cannot be used.

B. a female cowbird will use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of “Their” in the non-underlined section tells us that the subject is plural. “A female cowbird” cannot be used.

C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of “, including those” seem to mean that the cowbird lays eggs of the other birds including warbler, vireos and so on.”

D. female cowbirds lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including This option shows that the cowbird lays up to 40 eggs in the nest of other birds, including warbler vireos and so on.

E. up to 40 eggs a year are laid by female cowbirds in the nests of other birds, including “Unable to build nests or care for their young” has been used to tell us more about female cowbirds. So this needs to follow immediately after the comma.

- Nitha Jay
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 20 May 2022, 04:03
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Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
AbdurRakib
Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

(A) a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
(B) a female cowbird will use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
(C) female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
(D) female cowbirds lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
(E) up to 40 eggs a year are laid by female cowbirds in the nests of other birds, including
Show more

Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:
Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of this sentence is that - female cowbirds are unable to build nests or care for their young, and so lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, and these birds include warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

Concepts tested here: Meaning + Modifiers + Pronouns + Tenses + Awkwardness/Redundancy

• In the “phrase + comma + noun” and “noun + comma + phrase” constructions, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction.
• Information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense.
• The simple future tense is used to refer to actions that will take place in the future.

A: The sentence formed by this answer choice incorrectly uses the plural pronoun "their" to refer to the singular noun phrase "a female cowbird".

B: The sentence formed by this answer choice incorrectly uses the plural pronoun "their" to refer to the singular noun phrase "a female cowbird". Further, Option B incorrectly modifies the noun phrase "40 eggs a year" with "including those of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes", illogically implying that the 40 eggs laid in a year by the cowbird include eggs of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes; the intended meaning is that the birds in whose nests the cowbird lays its eggs include warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes; remember, in the “phrase + comma + noun” and “noun + comma + phrase” constructions, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction. Additionally, Option B incorrectly uses the simple future tense verb "will use" to refer to information that is permanent in nature; remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, and the simple future tense is used to refer to actions that will take place in the future. Besides, Option B uses the needlessly wordy phrase "use the nests of other birds to lay", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

C: This answer choice incorrectly modifies the noun phrase "40 eggs a year" with "including those of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes", illogically implying that the 40 eggs laid in a year by the cowbird include eggs of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes; the intended meaning is that the birds in whose nests the cowbird lays its eggs include warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes; remember, in the “phrase + comma + noun” and “noun + comma + phrase” constructions, the phrase must correctly modify the noun. Further, Option C uses the needlessly wordy phrase "use the nests of other birds to lay", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

D: Correct. This answer choice correctly uses "Unable to build nests or care for their young" to modify "female cowbirds" and modifies "other birds" with "including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes", conveying the intended meaning - that female cowbirds are unable to build nests or care for their young, and so lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, and these birds include warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes. Further, the sentence formed by Option D correctly uses the plural pronoun "their" to refer to the plural noun "cowbirds". Additionally, Option D correctly uses the simple present tense verb "lay" to refer to information that is permanent in nature. Besides, Option D is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.

E: This answer choice incorrectly uses "Unable to build nests or care for their young" to modify "up to 40 eggs a year", illogically implying that the eggs laid by cowbirds are unable to build nests or care for their young; the intended meaning is that cowbirds are unable to build nests or care for their young; remember, in the “phrase + comma + noun” and “noun + comma + phrase” constructions, the phrase must correctly modify the noun.

Hence, D is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):



To understand the concept of "Phrase Comma Subject" and "Subject Comma Phrase" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):



All the best!
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 20 Jun 2017, 11:44
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.

A. a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
Pronoun number agreement error : Non-underlined part "their" must agree in number with "a female cowbird"..
B. a female cowbird will use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
Same error as A
E. up to 40 eggs a year are laid by female cowbirds in the nests of other birds, including
Non-underlined part "Unable to build...." so immediately after the comma the entity which is unable to do that activity should come.... The female cowbirds must come immediately after the comma ...

So, straight away option A, B and E are out..
Now my analysis of option C and D are as follows : Though I got this question wrong, on spending few more minutes this is what occurred to me :
C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of
as per this sentence, the meaning becomes "the birds take help of the nests of other birds to lay eggs" - which seems a bit illogical as it means "the action of laying is aided by nests"
Hence, I think this option changes the meaning of the original sentences ...
However, I feel "those" correctly refers to "the nests" and there is NO error in this modification

D. female cowbirds lay up to 40 eggs a year in the nests of other birds, including
Pronoun agreement error in option A is rectified here and the meaning error in C is not present as the sentence avoided the usage of verb "use".


Hi mikemcgarry,

Sir can you please confirm whether my analysis of option C is correct here ?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 21 Jun 2017, 04:41
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Choice C is plain wrong in meaning that the cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, eggs that include the eggs of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes. This is absurd.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 21 Jul 2017, 08:24
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daagh
Choice C is plain wrong in meaning that the cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, eggs that include the eggs of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes. This is absurd.
Show more

Hello Daagh Sir,

I have 2 queries here

1. The word "including" is modifying the preceding clause - right? A few people on the thread commented it is modifying the nearest noun i.e.
- in Option C, "including" ----> year
- in option D, "including" ----> birds
2. How did you conclude that "those of" in option C is referring to "eggs" and not referring to "nests" ?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 21 Jul 2017, 10:48
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pikolo wrote

Quote:
Hello Daagh Sir,

I have 2 queries here

1. The word "including" is modifying the preceding clause - right? A few people on the thread commented it is modifying the nearest noun i.e.
- in Option C, "including" ----> year
- in option D, "including" ----> birds
2. How did you conclude that "those of" in option C is referring to "eggs" and not referring to "nests" ?

Show more



1. If you have a comma before including, then it will never modify the noun before.

2. C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of

Let's replace the pronoun with both nouns:

1. C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including the eggs of
2. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including the nests of

Both choices are equally weird, the second being more bizarre
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 27 May 2018, 19:45
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GMATNinja VeritasPrepKarishma egmat

In option (C), why can not those refer to nests?

How do I take including ? As a noun or as a modifier?
Is there any difference of placement of coma before including and
its absence that would lead to change of role it plays?

Is there any twist in intended meaning in (C)?

I was able to correctly strike off A and B because of paying attention to
their in non-underlined portion which must have a plural noun antecedent.

E has clear subject placement issue since after unlike... , the phrase after coma
must open with subject/ noun it is comparing.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 28 May 2018, 01:55
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What is the role of 'including' in the choice D?

Sounds like it is an 'ing' modifying the previous clause. But as per the meaning, it should modify 'birds'.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 21 Sep 2018, 04:28
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RMD007
What is the role of 'including' in the choice D?

Sounds like it is an 'ing' modifying the previous clause. But as per the meaning, it should modify 'birds'.
Show more
Hi RMD007, this indeed creates confusion. The rule you've mentioned (modifying the previous clause) is for present participial phrases. However, including is not a present participial phrase; including is actually a preposition. Hence, the general rules of participial phrases do not apply to including.

including can modify the Noun or Noun-Phrase immediately before the word including.

An officially correct sentence:

A study by the Ocean Wildlife Campaign urged states to undertake a number of remedies to reverse a decline in the shark population, including establishing size limits for shark catches, closing state waters for shark fishing during pupping season, and requiring commercial fishers to have federal shark permits.

Notice how including modifies a rather far-away noun remedies.

p.s. Our book EducationAisle Sentence Correction Nirvana has a special note on the usage of including. Have attached the corresponding section of the book, for your reference.
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Including.pdf [10.85 KiB]
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 03 Oct 2018, 22:22
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GMATNinja, what is the clause including warbles, vireos modifying? Is the use of comma correct?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 04 Oct 2018, 09:35
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Hey Gagoosh,

The "including" clause modifies "other birds". What follows is then a list of other bird species that the cowbird might take care of. The first comma, before the word including, is there to offset that modifier, and the rest of the commas are there to indicate that you're dealing with a list :)
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 04 Oct 2018, 19:44
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dear LauraOrion, thank you for your reply.
my confusion was that since comma + verb-ing modifies the action of the main clause (being the adverbial modifier), why is this structure modifying the preceding noun?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 05 Oct 2018, 08:58
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The verb+ing (participle) construction can work as an adverb (and in that case would have to modify a verb), but it can also act as an adjective even though it retains some of its verb-like qualities. And because it can perform both functions, you have to fall back on the logic here - a group of birds can include a list of bird types, but a verb like build, care, or lays can't logically include a list of bird types.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 16 Mar 2019, 14:32
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daagh
pikolo wrote

Quote:
Hello Daagh Sir,

I have 2 queries here

1. The word "including" is modifying the preceding clause - right? A few people on the thread commented it is modifying the nearest noun i.e.
- in Option C, "including" ----> year
- in option D, "including" ----> birds
2. How did you conclude that "those of" in option C is referring to "eggs" and not referring to "nests" ?





1. If you have a comma before including, then it will never modify the noun before.

2. C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of

Let's replace the pronoun with both nouns:

1. C. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including the eggs of
2. female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including the nests of

Both choices are equally weird, the second being more bizarre
Show more


Hi,

I understand why C is incorrect but I want to know how choice D is correct. Here including cannot refer to birds as per the rules right? Please explain what including is modifying.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 17 Mar 2019, 01:59
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Ujaswin
Hi,

I understand why C is incorrect but I want to know how choice D is correct. Here including cannot refer to birds as per the rules right? Please explain what including is modifying.
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We'll have to be careful about the "rules" we apply to ings in general, but this type of including is not like other ings, so we'll have to be doubly careful here. An including can refer to the noun just before it, and this has nothing to do with commas (there is nothing that restricts an including to only the noun just before it either). Here is an example from an official question:

Bluegrass musician Bill Monroe, whose repertory, views on musical collaboration, and vocal style influenced generations of bluegrass artists, also inspired many musicians, including Elvis Presley and Jerry Garcia, whose music differed significantly from his own.

Even the following sentence is okay:
Ten people were arrested by the police, including two minors.

However, because the last sentence is not very clear, we'd prefer the following option:
Ten people, including two minors, were arrested by the police.

Or, if the ambiguity is too great (there are multiple nouns before the including), we could do away with the including entirely.
Ten people, two of whom were minors, were arrested by the police.
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 08 May 2019, 00:39
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Do the comma + ing modifier rules apply to '??ncluding' in this case?
In answer choice C, why is the use of 'including' incorrect?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, a female cowbird lays u 20 May 2019, 01:59
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chirag95
Do the comma + ing modifier rules apply to '??ncluding' in this case?
In answer choice C, why is the use of 'including' incorrect?
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Unable to build nests or care for their young, (C) female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay up to 40 eggs a year, including those of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes.
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The problem with (C) is that "including those of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes" seems to modify eggs! This sentence seems to indicate that female cowbirds use the nests of other birds to lay eggs of warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and thrushes. That, of course, doesn't make any sense: the cowbird doesn't lay eggs of other types of birds.

On the other hand, choice (D) makes it clear that we are talking about the NESTS of those other birds, not the eggs of those other birds.
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