|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
20 Jul 2021, 19:53
Kudos
Bookmarks
A
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
45%
(medium)
Question Stats:
59% (01:16) correct
41%
(01:19)
wrong
based on 532
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
According to the results of a recent survey, environmental degradation is piling on to the perils already faced by the tea estate workers, some of the country’s poorest, most neglected workers.
A) some of the country’s poorest, most neglected workers.
B) they are some of the country’s poorest, most neglected workers.
C) being some of the poorest, most neglected workers in the country.
D) some of the country’s most neglected workers and also poorest.
E) who are some of the country’s most poorest, most neglected workers.
20 Jul 2021, 19:55
Kudos
Bookmarks
OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
THE PROMPT
• The underlined portion describes the tea estate workers.
→ What more do we know about these tea estate workers?
We know that these people are some of the country's poorest and most neglected workers.
• That underlined portion is called an appositive.
→ An appositive is usually a noun modifier that gives us more information about or re-describes a noun.
Sometimes the appositive word or phrase can be substituted directly for its noun. Not always.
→ Nonessential appositives are set off by a comma or commas. Essential appositives are not set off by commas.
→ Essential: Samuel's friend Julie threw him a surprise birthday party. ("Julie" is an essential appositive modifier of friend. Which of Samuel's friends threw the party? The one named Julie.)
→ Nonessential: Julie is Samuel's good friend, a person he can always count on. (The appositive a person he can always count on is important but not essential information. We already know that Julie is a good friend to Samuel. The appositive simply expands upon "good friend.")
THE OPTIONS
• This option correctly and concisely describes the tea estate workers.
KEEP
→ In this option, the words create an independent clause—a sentence with a subject and verb that could stand on its own.
→ We cannot "stick" two independent clauses together with nothing more than a comma.
→ Using only a comma to join two independent clauses is a form of a run on sentence called a "comma splice."
We need COMMA + CONJUNCTION (such as and)
Other ways to connect two independent clauses include a semicolon (no conjunction); a period; and a semicolon with a conjunctive adverb such as consequently. You can read more about these connectors (including a comma + conjunction) and some examples by clicking on this site, here.
ELIMINATE B
→ Can you remove being, and does the meaning of the sentence stay the same? Yes? Then you do not need being.
• the word being seems randomly inserted into the sentence. Compare to option A. No contest. Option A is better.
ELIMINATE C
• diction error
The phrase and also poorest is clumsily integrated with the rest of the sentence.
Choice A does this integration much better.
Choice A is also more concise than option D. Concision really is a thing.
(Although "and also" is not always redundant, in this case, it is.)
ELIMINATE D
→ poorest is already a superlative. Poorest = most poor
→ adding the word most before a superlative such as poorest (or richest, shortest, tallest, funniest) is redundant and ungrammatical.
→ most poorest is redundant. The correct construction is most poor.
ELIMINATE E
The correct answer is A.
COMMENTS
I am always glad to see a mix of new and veteran SC Butler posters.
Typically, I do not care whether you know the jargon.
I still do not care whether you know what to call an appositive—but you must know how they work.
GMAC writers use appositives frequently, and often in just the way you all see in this case.
Most of the analysis in these posts is quite good.
Sometimes I award kudos for bravery.
Posting an answer to what appears to be a murky question takes courage.
So -- kudos to all.
Project SC Butler: Sentence Correction (SC2)
THE PROMPT
Quote:
• The underlined portion describes the tea estate workers.
→ What more do we know about these tea estate workers?
We know that these people are some of the country's poorest and most neglected workers.
• That underlined portion is called an appositive.
→ An appositive is usually a noun modifier that gives us more information about or re-describes a noun.
Sometimes the appositive word or phrase can be substituted directly for its noun. Not always.
→ Nonessential appositives are set off by a comma or commas. Essential appositives are not set off by commas.
→ Essential: Samuel's friend Julie threw him a surprise birthday party. ("Julie" is an essential appositive modifier of friend. Which of Samuel's friends threw the party? The one named Julie.)
→ Nonessential: Julie is Samuel's good friend, a person he can always count on. (The appositive a person he can always count on is important but not essential information. We already know that Julie is a good friend to Samuel. The appositive simply expands upon "good friend.")
THE OPTIONS
Quote:
• I do not see any errors.
• This option correctly and concisely describes the tea estate workers.
KEEP
Quote:
• COMMA SPLICE
→ In this option, the words create an independent clause—a sentence with a subject and verb that could stand on its own.
→ We cannot "stick" two independent clauses together with nothing more than a comma.
→ Using only a comma to join two independent clauses is a form of a run on sentence called a "comma splice."
We need COMMA + CONJUNCTION (such as and)
Other ways to connect two independent clauses include a semicolon (no conjunction); a period; and a semicolon with a conjunctive adverb such as consequently. You can read more about these connectors (including a comma + conjunction) and some examples by clicking on this site, here.
ELIMINATE B
Quote:
• being is not always wrong, but in this case, the word is unnecessary and strange.
→ Can you remove being, and does the meaning of the sentence stay the same? Yes? Then you do not need being.
• the word being seems randomly inserted into the sentence. Compare to option A. No contest. Option A is better.
ELIMINATE C
Quote:
• the choice is grammatical but not as clear or crisp as option A
• diction error
The phrase and also poorest is clumsily integrated with the rest of the sentence.
Choice A does this integration much better.
Choice A is also more concise than option D. Concision really is a thing.
(Although "and also" is not always redundant, in this case, it is.)
ELIMINATE D
Quote:
• there is no such thing as "most poorest."
→ poorest is already a superlative. Poorest = most poor
→ adding the word most before a superlative such as poorest (or richest, shortest, tallest, funniest) is redundant and ungrammatical.
→ most poorest is redundant. The correct construction is most poor.
ELIMINATE E
The correct answer is A.
COMMENTS
I am always glad to see a mix of new and veteran SC Butler posters.
Typically, I do not care whether you know the jargon.
I still do not care whether you know what to call an appositive—but you must know how they work.
GMAC writers use appositives frequently, and often in just the way you all see in this case.
Most of the analysis in these posts is quite good.
Sometimes I award kudos for bravery.
Posting an answer to what appears to be a murky question takes courage.
So -- kudos to all.
General Discussion
ramlala
Joined: 22 Aug 2020
Last visit: 13 Dec 2022
Posts: 467
Given Kudos: 30
Location: India
Concentration: International Business, Finance
Schools: IIMA PGPX'23 INSEAD Jan'23 intake Sloan (MIT) ISB HEC Said
GPA: 4
WE:Project Management (Energy)
20 Jul 2021, 20:00
Kudos
Bookmarks
According to the results of a recent survey, environmental degradation is piling on to the perils already faced by the tea estate workers, some of the country’s poorest, most neglected workers.
E) who are some of the country’s most poorest, most neglected workers.
IMO E
Underline part is clearly to modify tea estate workers.
E) who are some of the country’s most poorest, most neglected workers.
IMO E
Underline part is clearly to modify tea estate workers.
