Although when a hagfish is threatened it will secrete slime that is s

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 although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity, the slime expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater.

Concepts tested here: Meaning + Tenses + Pronouns

• Information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense.
• The simple future tense is used to refer to events that will take place in the future.
• A pronoun and its derivatives can only have one referent in a single sentence.

A: A. This answer choice incorrectly uses the simple future tense verb “will release” to refer to information that is permanent in nature; please remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, and the simple future tense is only used to refer to events that will take place in the future. Further, Option A incorrectly uses the pronoun “it” to refer to both “a hagfish and “slime”; please remember, a pronoun and its derivatives can only have one referent in a single sentence.

B: The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "when threatened it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that when a small quantity of slime is threatened, it expands several hundred times; the intended meaning is that when a hagfish is threatened, it excretes a small quantity of slime, and the slime expands several hundred times.

C: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase “a hagfish…, it expands several hundred times”; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that the hagfish expands several hundred times; the intended meaning is that the hagfish's slime expands several hundred times. Further, Option C incorrectly uses the simple future tense verb “will release” to refer to information that is permanent in nature; please remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, and the simple future tense is only used to refer to events that will take place in the future.

D: Correct. This answer choice uses the phrase “the slime…, it expands several hundred times”, conveying the intended meaning – that when a hagfish is threatened, it excretes a small quantity of slime, and the slime expands several hundred times. Further, Option E correctly uses the simple present tense verb phrase “is small in quantity” to refer to a statement of permanent fact, avoiding the tense error seen in Options A and C by using the past participle "secreted" rather than an active verb. Additionally, Option E correctly uses the pronoun “it” to solely refer to one noun, “slime.

E: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase “a hagfish…, it expands several hundred times”; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that the hagfish expands several hundred times; the intended meaning is that the hagfish's slime expands several hundred times.

Hence, D is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):



All the best!
Experts' Global Team

Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

Meaning: although slime that is secreted by hagfish is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater.
1. How can we know slime refers to it?
There are 2 possible precedents: hagfish and slime. Even though, we do not know the meaning of the word “slime”, we can tell that hagfish is fish and it cannot expand itself by absorbing seawater.
So we left slime, and we can infer that slime is a something that absorbs seawater and expands widely.
Consequently, A, C and E are wrong, since subject of the dependent sentence is hagfish, which is incorrect.
A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened,

Between B and D, there are meaning differences.
2. Meaning Of the original sentence is that “although slime that is produced by hagfish is small, it expands widely”. So B is wrong.
B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened
Not only It changes the meaning but also it makes the sentence ambiguous.
Fact1: slime is secreted by hagfish
Fact2: slime expands widely.
Because of the meaning of these 2 facts, we cannot use”although” as a connector.
Using although makes ambiguous the meaning of the sentence.

Answer choice D correctly conveys original meaning, hence is our answer.
D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,

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Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened,

If we see all the options we have two nouns that can take subject's place. Thus, they change the meaning accordingly. In the non-underlined part we have a pronoun 'it' which should refer back to subject as per the sentence structure.
Meaning-wise sentence tries to bring contrast using 'Although'. Since just after comma, in the DC pronoun 'it' comes first, a compatible subject for that pronoun must come after 'although'. As 'it' acts a subject in DC and 'it' expands so the subject must be something that can expand by absorbing seawater, eventually shooing away the predators.
Also, verb tense 'will' is wrong as in the DC present tense is used. So,
A - WRONG. It has a grave error as it uses pronoun 'it' for 'hagfish' and 'slime' at least meaning wise. Additionally, 'slime' should be the subject. Verb tense is an issue.
B - 'WRONG. 'A small quantity' can't expand.
C - WRONG. Similar error as that in option A.
D - CORRECT. All errors removed.
E - Similar subject error as that in option A.

IMO Answer D.

GMATNinja, in option D, " it expands..." refers to the slime which distorts the meaning. It should refer back to hagfish as it does in option E. Is this line of reasoning incorrect?

Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
Two ICs are connected by a comma – Incorrect
Also, the usage of it in it expands is incorrect as it is referring to hagfish.
If the subject of the second IC is a pronoun, then it unambiguously refers to the subject of the previous IC.

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened
It is referring to what – the small quantity. Now that doesn’t make sense – a small quantity expands…

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
Again the usage of it is ambiguous here as the subject of the previous IC is hagfish.

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,
It in the second IC is referring to the subject of the previous IC which is slime. BEST of ALL

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened.
Same the it ambiguous issue.

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
Pronoun ambiguity. In It expands ...., it refers to hagfish or slime

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened
D is better construction.

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,
Pronoun ambiguity. In It expands ...., it refers to hagfish or slime

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,
matches with it expands....

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened,
Pronoun ambiguity. In It expands ...., it refers to hagfish or slime

IMO D

Hello Experts,
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The correct sentence is-->
D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.
In this correct sentence, 'and' is the parallel marker. EITHER vs OR is perfectly fine. But, we know that 'parallelism is nothing but a beauty contest '. So, how it makes beauty when we think of can coat and either. The 'can coat' is the verb whereas 'either' is not a verb at all.
Thanks in advance...

Asad, you will have to learn to be more flexible in your approach to SC questions, especially the more advanced ones, in which meaning, rather than grammar, may dictate whether you ought to choose or not choose a particular answer choice. In the sentence at hand, there is an implied causal relationship. The slime ball can coat the gills of predatory fish and then, as a result of this coating process, either suffocate the predator or distress it to the point of giving up (and choosing to try its luck elsewhere). The verbs coat, suffocate, and distress are perfectly parallel, just as the and would suggest. The structure is no more problematic than saying, I can go to Starbucks and either order something or not, but in any case, I can sit in the restaurant. There is a ghost then that is understood to follow the and, and the parallel verb is simply split into two options.

In short, instead of adopting a more typical can A and B structure, this sentence splits the B, turning the structure into can A and [then] either B or C. I hope that helps with your understanding of this question.

- Andrew

Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened,



KritiG, Tricky question -- if we aren't careful here, it's easy to make the assumption that the hagfish is expanding. We can see from the timer data that this is an exceptionally common trap -- 37% choose E.

Our most concrete clue that the slime expands comes later in the sentence: "it expands...., forming a slime ball". This ",verb-ing" modifier (",forming") must modify the preceding subject-verb, "it expands". Logically, the hagfish cannot form a slime ball, so we need to use "the slime" at the start of the sentence.

Hi Experts/Moderators,

Abhi077, GMATNinja, GMATNinjaTwo, generis, billybealright, MentorTutoring

Can we reject option B because it has no independent clause. The clauses starting with 'Although..' and 'when threatened..' function as a dependent clause and a relative clause respectively in IMO.

Is that observation wrong? Please help.

Thanks in advance!

Kind regards,
Akash

Hello, Akash. Thank you for tagging me. I feel honored to have been mentioned alongside such company. You can reject option (B) for other reasons, but not because it contains no independent clause. Yes, when threatened is a dependent clause, one known in my grammar sources as a reduced clause, since it omits a verb. The context tells us that when the animal/organism is threatened, it behaves a certain way. An independent clause is present here, found right after the underlined portion, and it follows a simple subject-verb construct: it expands. (Hard to believe that the entire non-underlined portion of the sentence can really be boiled down to two words, but such are the grammatical underpinnings of the thing.) No matter where we (logically) place our reduced clause, we are left with an independent clause shell:

1) when threatened it expands several hundred times

2) it expands, when threatened, several hundred times

3) it expands several hundred times when threatened

Despite my discussion of some of the finer points of grammar in my posts, I think it is fine to reject an answer choice if you know it is off, even if you cannot exactly elucidate a textbook reason for doing so.

- Andrew

A small but vital amendment to my last post: in the main clause, it expands refers to slime, not to the hagfish. That is what I get for writing a response without examining the actual question in the post (which is why I usually quote the source material directly). The argument about the existence of the independent clause still stands.

- Andrew

Hi Andrew,

Thank you for the great reply! and for replying so quickly, I think I understand now.

If I am not wrong, then the other reason to rule out B is the meaning. 'It' is referring to 'a small quantity of slime' instead of just 'slime'. Is that correct?

Also,'when threatened' is modifying the verb 'expands' here, acting as a adverbial clause. isn't it?

I promise I won't ask anymore questions! please help

Kind regards,
Akash

Hello, Akash. If you have questions, ask. That is why we Experts hang around. Here is my full analysis of (B), this time with a quote from the source:


Not only is there an issue with ambiguity in the pronoun that follows the underlined portion—does it refer to the hagfish or a small quantity of slime?—but the same can be said of our reduced clause, when threatened. What is being threatened here, the hagfish or the slime? With a comma after hagfish instead of the reduced clause, you can interpret the sentence as saying that when slime is threatened, it expands, and that does not make a whole lot of sense, does it? A more logical explanation is that when the hagfish is threatened, the slime that the animal secretes will expand in a certain way, as outlined clearly in choice (D) only.

I hope that helps. If you have further questions, you know how to reach me.

- Andrew

Hello Everyone!

Let's tackle this question, one thing at a time, and narrow down our options quickly so we know how to answer questions like this when they pop up on the GMAT! To begin, let's take a quick look at the question and highlight any major differences between the options in orange:

Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity,

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity,

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened,

After a quick glance over the options, one thing has become very clear: there aren’t any clear differences we can focus on. So what do we do?

When you run into this problem on the GMAT, you need to look at the bigger picture - and in this case, that means we need to look at the non-underlined portion for clues:

Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater, forming a slime ball that can coat the gills of predatory fish and either suffocate them or distress them enough to make them flee.

Immediately after the underlined portion, we have the pronoun “it.” This is a great place to start! We can do a quick test to make sure the pronoun “it” has a clear and logical antecedent. So - who/what expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater? The slime. We need to make sure each option clearly shows that, and eliminate any that do not:

A) Although when a hagfish is threatened, it will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater

This is INCORRECT because the pronoun “it” is referring back to the hagfish, not the slime. It’s also not grammatically correct to have two independent clauses (both “it” statements) stacked up like this with no conjunction.

B) Although a small quantity of slime is secreted by the hagfish, when threatened it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater

Again, this is INCORRECT because it’s wrongly attributing the expanding to the fish, and not to the slime it secretes.

C) Although, when threatened, a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater

This is also INCORRECT because it’s not 100% clear if the pronoun “it” is referring to the slime or the hagfish. Also, we have two independent clauses (“a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity” and “it expands to several hundred times as it absorbs seawater”) with no conjunction to combine them properly!

D) Although the slime secreted by a threatened hagfish is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater

This is CORRECT! The pronoun “it” is clearly referring back to the slime, not the hagfish! It’s also worded clearly and concisely, which is always a good thing on the GMAT!

E) Although the hagfish secretes a small quantity of slime when threatened, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater

This is INCORRECT because the pronoun “it” is referring to the hagfish, not the slime.

There you have it - option D is our winner! By pulling our focus out to the entire sentence when we’re overwhelmed with too many differences between the options, we can look for clues to help us narrow things down!


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

Hello,

How is "C" a run-on ? The conjunction "although" makes it a dependent clause, no ?

Although,..., a hagfish will secrete slime that is small in quantity, it expands several hundred times as it absorbs seawater...

The only issue I see in this choice is that the subject("it") of the second clause is referring back to the subject(hagfish) of the first clause.

please correct me if I am wrong.

Thanks for the question ShreyKapil08! The problem with this has to do with punctuation. If we keep the comma after "Although," the clause after it becomes an independent clause - making this a run-on. If we eliminate the comma, then you're right - it's a dependent clause. Since we don't know what the writer intended to happen if we took out the non-essential phrase "when threatened," we're not 100% clear on whether the comma would also stay or not.

As long as you found the vague pronoun, then you would have eliminated it based on that anyhow.