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BillyZ
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr Updated on: 25 Mar 2017, 06:28
Originally posted by BillyZ on 23 Mar 2017, 20:12.
Last edited by BillyZ on 25 Mar 2017, 06:28, edited 2 times in total.
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E
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!

Difficulty:

15% (low)

Question Stats:

77% (00:56) correct 23% (01:16) wrong based on 331 sessions

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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tropical breeding grounds in search of warmer water.

A. whales than they did before
B. whales than there ever were before
C. than ever before, whales
D. than they ever were before, whales
E. whales than ever before
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E
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 24 Mar 2017, 01:46
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Hi ziyuen,
Can you please provide the OE as well?
Don't we need whales right behind fewer to make it clear what are fewer?
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr Updated on: 24 Mar 2017, 07:57
Originally posted by daagh on 24 Mar 2017, 06:27.
Last edited by daagh on 24 Mar 2017, 07:57, edited 1 time in total.
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D is a total wreck: When we expand the choice, one might see how clumsy the comparison is and how distorted the meaning.
Last year, fewer than they (whales) ever were before, whales traveled back to their tropical breeding grounds in search of warmer water. This means that the whales were themselves fewer than before or that the whales' population itself shrank last year. This is confirmed by the linking verb 'were'.
Therefore, the comparison wrongfully turns out to be between the number of whales that exited last year and those that existed before that time. This is not what the topic wants to convey, it is comparing the number of times the whales traveled last year with the number of travels or trips the whale did before. Therefore, the meaning is blatantly distorted in D.
E, on the contrary is forthright in saying that fewer whales than ever before traveled. It will be worth going through Veritas' OE.
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 24 Mar 2017, 07:40
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There is absolutely no way that "D" can be the correct answer. Please review and fix the OA to the question.
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 25 Mar 2017, 06:28
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ziyuen
Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tropical breeding grounds in search of warmer water.

A. whales than they did before
B. whales than there ever were before
C. than ever before, whales
D. than they ever were before, whales
E. whales than ever before
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OFFICIAL SOLUTION



You should recognize quickly that this problem deals with comparisons (the word before the underline is "fewer" and multiple answer choices start with the classic comparison signal word "than"). Your job, then, is to ensure that you're dealing with a logical comparison.

Choice A illogically uses "they" as part of the comparison; as a pronoun "they" has to refer back to "whales," but this implies that it was the same whales and not a comparison between the numbers of whales.

Choice B illogically compares the whales who migrated last year to the number of whales that ever existed. Choice D, essentially, combines the mistakes from A and B.

In choice C, the sentence puts "fewer than ever before" in a nonessential modifier. This then modifies "whales" but not as a comparison but rather as a description. As such, this is illogical and strange.

Choice E draws a proper comparison. Fewer whales made the migration this year than ever before. Therefore, choice E is correct.
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 25 Mar 2017, 09:14
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only E fits in the sentence. All of the rests are fragments.

E. whales than ever before
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 22 Jun 2017, 07:27
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E changes the meaning of the sentence by saying "ever." How can we conclude that there are fever than ever before, the original sentence reads as though there are just fewer, not fewer than ever.

Last year, fewer whales than before traveled back...

While I do agree that E is the best structured, by far, I think it is ambiguous what the original sentence was intended to convey because it's such a wreck.
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 05 Sep 2019, 07:04
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special pattern of comparison in which zero subject is used in the one of two clauses.
another example of this case

more persons are attacked by shark today than were attacked by bees.

zero subject is used in the second clause
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Last year, fewer whales than they did before traveled back to their tr 06 Aug 2020, 06:10
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Smokeybear00
E changes the meaning of the sentence by saying "ever." How can we conclude that there are fever than ever before, the original sentence reads as though there are just fewer, not fewer than ever.

Last year, fewer whales than before traveled back...

While I do agree that E is the best structured, by far, I think it is ambiguous what the original sentence was intended to convey because it's such a wreck.
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generis

I have same question. Could you help please.

Thanks,
SS
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