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18 May 2021, 23:54
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D
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
35%
(medium)
Question Stats:
57% (00:49) correct
43%
(00:52)
wrong
based on 277
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
For a focus group discussion, an activity in which people from similar backgrounds or experiences discuss a specific topic of interest, to be successful, it is vital that all the group members talk to each other.
A) talk to each other
B) are talking to each other
C) will talk to the other
D) talk to one another
E) have to talk to the other
18 May 2021, 23:58
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OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
THE PROMPT
Two people can speak to each other, but more than two people speak to one another.
2 = each
3+ = one
(I do not know of a good mnemonic for this guideline. Sometimes weird pairings can act as a kind of mnemonic. It is strange that three (3) takes one (1).
When I first learned the rule, I remembered what I just wrote: "Three takes one [another].")
• Command subjunctive
Some verbs require the command subjunctive, this way:
bossy verb + THAT + subject/noun + bare infinitive
The bare infinitive? Simply remove the word "to" from the verb.
If the verb is to insist, then the bare infinitive is insist.
→ The judge insisted that the jury be sequestered.
→ Frustrated citizens demanded that the government investigate lead-poisoned water.
We also use command subjunctive with "bossy adjectives and an "It is" construction, this way:
It is + bossy adjective + THAT + subject/noun + bare infinitive
→ It is important that he be on time.
→ It is imperative that she be on time.
This question uses that "It is + bossy adjective" construction.
The verb must be in the bare infinitive form: talk.
If you know this rule, you can eliminate answers B, C, and E.
THE OPTIONS
The use of group members suggests more than two people; the use of each other is incorrect.
If we want to talk about two people, we do not say "group."
We would not talk about "members of a group" if only two people were involved.
We would most likely say the pair, the couple, or the duo.
ELIMINATE A
→ See my analysis just beneath the prompt.
→ This sentence uses a "bossy adjective" construction
IT IS + vital + THAT + subject + bare infinitive
→ are talking is ungrammatical.
• each other is for two people, not for a group
→ a group is more than two people. The group's members would talk to one another, not each other.
ELIMINATE B
→ The correct verb is talk.
→ this error is the same as that in option B
• "the other" implies only two people.
There are more than two people in the group. The correct reciprocal pronoun is one another
ELIMINATE C
• the verb, in bare infinitive form, follows the command subjunctive pattern
• in a group, more than two people talk to one another
KEEP
• "the other" implies only two people.
We should use one another for more than two people.
ELIMINATE E
The answer is D.
NOTES
The command subjunctive construction does not sound all that weird when the the subject is I, you, we, or they—in those cases, in the present tense, we would say "members talk."
When she, he, and it are the subjects, though, the command subjunctive may sound weird.
Correct: It is vital that he attend the meeting.
Correct: It is vital that she be here early.
The tense talk is correct not because it is in the present tense, but rather because it is in the bare infinitive form, which accords with the command subjunctive construction.
COMMENTS
Green2k1 and chaitnya10 , welcome to SC Butler.
As always, all aspirants have a standing invitation to post.
These answers range from good to excellent.
Keep up the good work.
Project SC Butler: Sentence Correction (SC1)
THE PROMPT
Quote:
• Two = each; more than two = one
Two people can speak to each other, but more than two people speak to one another.
2 = each
3+ = one
(I do not know of a good mnemonic for this guideline. Sometimes weird pairings can act as a kind of mnemonic. It is strange that three (3) takes one (1).
When I first learned the rule, I remembered what I just wrote: "Three takes one [another].")
• Command subjunctive
Some verbs require the command subjunctive, this way:
bossy verb + THAT + subject/noun + bare infinitive
The bare infinitive? Simply remove the word "to" from the verb.
If the verb is to insist, then the bare infinitive is insist.
→ The judge insisted that the jury be sequestered.
→ Frustrated citizens demanded that the government investigate lead-poisoned water.
We also use command subjunctive with "bossy adjectives and an "It is" construction, this way:
It is + bossy adjective + THAT + subject/noun + bare infinitive
→ It is important that he be on time.
→ It is imperative that she be on time.
This question uses that "It is + bossy adjective" construction.
The verb must be in the bare infinitive form: talk.
If you know this rule, you can eliminate answers B, C, and E.
THE OPTIONS
Quote:
The use of group members suggests more than two people; the use of each other is incorrect.
If we want to talk about two people, we do not say "group."
We would not talk about "members of a group" if only two people were involved.
We would most likely say the pair, the couple, or the duo.
ELIMINATE A
Quote:
• command subjunctive requires that the verb be talk
→ See my analysis just beneath the prompt.
→ This sentence uses a "bossy adjective" construction
IT IS + vital + THAT + subject + bare infinitive
→ are talking is ungrammatical.
• each other is for two people, not for a group
→ a group is more than two people. The group's members would talk to one another, not each other.
ELIMINATE B
Quote:
• will talk does not follow the command subjunctive construction.
→ The correct verb is talk.
→ this error is the same as that in option B
• "the other" implies only two people.
There are more than two people in the group. The correct reciprocal pronoun is one another
ELIMINATE C
Quote:
• correct
• the verb, in bare infinitive form, follows the command subjunctive pattern
• in a group, more than two people talk to one another
KEEP
Quote:
• just as is the case in options A and C, the verb should be talk
• "the other" implies only two people.
We should use one another for more than two people.
ELIMINATE E
The answer is D.
NOTES
The command subjunctive construction does not sound all that weird when the the subject is I, you, we, or they—in those cases, in the present tense, we would say "members talk."
When she, he, and it are the subjects, though, the command subjunctive may sound weird.
Correct: It is vital that he attend the meeting.
Correct: It is vital that she be here early.
The tense talk is correct not because it is in the present tense, but rather because it is in the bare infinitive form, which accords with the command subjunctive construction.
COMMENTS
Green2k1 and chaitnya10 , welcome to SC Butler.
As always, all aspirants have a standing invitation to post.
These answers range from good to excellent.
Keep up the good work.
19 May 2021, 00:39
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My answer is (D). It took me 37 seconds.
(A) Use "each other" when discussing two people or things, and "one another" when discussing more than two people or things. Here, "one another" if fitting for group discussion.
(B) See above. Also, the continuous verb tense is uncalled for.
(C) "the other" is nonidiomatic.
(E) See above.
(A) Use "each other" when discussing two people or things, and "one another" when discussing more than two people or things. Here, "one another" if fitting for group discussion.
(B) See above. Also, the continuous verb tense is uncalled for.
(C) "the other" is nonidiomatic.
(E) See above.
