V01-16

"Plan on doing X" is used to express those cases in which there are two choices - 1. to do X or 2. not to do X. "Plan on doing X" implies that the the first of these two choices are made.

"Plan to do X" is used to express those cases in which there are many options of which only one is selected.

I am planning to go to India: implies that there are many things I could have planned; out of those many plans, I am planning to go to India.

I am planning on going to India: implies there are just two choices: to go to India or not to go to India - I plan the former.

(Note: This difference in usage is applicable for "decide to" and decide on" as well.)

In option C, the meaning implied is that there are two plans -1. to present rose, 2.not to present rose.

Use of "to present" would imply that there are many plans: 1. to present a rose, 2. to present a teddy bear, 3. to present chocolates, etc.

"Plan on" is more applicable here because the statement is from the perspective of the rose vendors - they are concerned with that whether rose is presented or rose is not presented. They are not bothered whether instead of rose a teddy or a chocolate or something else presented.

Official Solution:

According to a survey of graduating university students conducted by the International Association of Rose Vendors, MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than are other graduates in planning to present roses to their partners on Valentine’s Day.

A. MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than are other graduates in planning to present
B. MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than other graduates who plan on presenting
C. MBA graduates are nearly five times as likely as other graduates to plan on presenting
D. it is nearly five times more likely that MBA graduates rather than other graduates will plan to present
E. it is nearly five times as likely for MBA graduates than other graduates to plan to present

The question is about comparisons and grammatically both "more likely than" and "as likely as" will be correct. The correct idiom is "A is more likely than B to plan/ do etc. (something)", "in planning" is incorrect If a choice would have been correct if it were "MBA graduates are five times more likely than other graduates to plan on presenting"


"in planning is" is unidiomatic and"MBA graduates" are incorrectly being compared with "are other graduates".

Again an incorrect comparison is being made between "MBA graduates" and "other graduates who plan"The relative clause starting with "who" is only modifying"other graduates" and not "MBA graduates".

This choice is correct; the meaning is clear and the construction is idiomatic and concise.

"it' is an ambiguous pronoun; moreover, only one of "more likely" and "rather than" is required; this creates redundancy.

This choice has the same error as choice (D). "to plan to present" is less preferred than "to plan on presenting" and the comparison "as likely --- than" is incorrect.


Answer: C
_________________

I don't know why, but I keep bumping into low-quality type of questions on verbal..this one, though, is not an exception...

A. in planning - incorrect.
B. more likely to do what? out.
C. five times AS LIKELY AS - as likely as - introduces the similarities rather comparison. he is as likely as jane to get a high score. - in the similar way. but since we need a comparison, as likely as is incorrect. - please do correct me if i'm wrong with official GMAT questions.
D. it is used as a placeholder. will plan though - not.
E. as likely as - is the correct idiom. as likely than - not. but as I said before - as likely as - not preferable.

I think this is a poor-quality question and the explanation isn't clear enough, please elaborate. Doesn't the correct answer change the intended meaning?
Or am I confused in thinking that 'more likely than' <> 'as likely as'?

It has not been mentioned in any official guideline that the correct answer must retain the meaning of the original sentence. If there is only one grammatically correct choice, it must be selected even when it deviates in meaning from the original. However if there are two grammatically correct sentences, select the one that agrees with the intended meaning of the original sentence.

Nonetheless you are absolutely right in identifying that "5 times more likely than" is not same as "5 times as likely". "5 times more likely than" effectively means "6 times as likely" !

Excellent explanation!! Thanks!

MGMAT says that the idiom is plan to, but here they use plan on?

I am sorry I maybe asking a seemingly silly question but what does it mean difficulty level 65%, 75% etc.?

Yes, this is the question Difficulty level as determined by the GMAT Club Timer (based on the performance of other users).
You can learn more about the GMAT Club Timer here: https://gmatclub.com/dailypractice
_________________

Useful post regarding the usage of as likely as and more likely than.
https://gmatclub.com/forum/4-times-as-l ... 77793.html
_________________

Why is "presenting" used here? Is this correct? The prompt sounds like the MBA grads in the future plan to present the roses, not as if they were presenting them at the current place in time? Can someone help?

Why can't "it" function as a place holder pronoun in this context?

why plan on is correct: it is generally used for a plot

egmat VeritasKarishma GMATNinja - The meaning of correct answer choice is very different from the original sentence.
Is this a quality question? Can we expect this type of question on the test day?

Any advice is appreciated.
_________________

"Original sentence" is just option (A) and is as likely as any other option to be correct. As long as both meanings are possible, either could be correct. Option (A) is no more likely to be the author's intended meaning than option (C). Look for grammatically correct option and go with that meaning.
_________________

Another Poor Quality Question!

Should the words "plan" to and "present" not have the same tense. Why do we use the participle form with presenting and not plan

I think this is a poor-quality question and I agree with explanation. But doesn't the meaning be changed when 'more likely than' is changed to 'as likely as'?

Hi Bunuel sayantanc2k KarishmaB bb

I'm trying to understand the different parts of the statement from a logical/syntax standpoint. In (C) what role does "on presenting" play? Is it a verb along with "are"?

Can there be two verbs in a single clause?