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mud and grass

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pappueshwar Really wants to Beat The GMAT! Default Avatar
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mud and grass Post Mon Mar 12, 2012 8:36 pm
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  • Lap #[LAPCOUNT] ([LAPTIME])
    On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

    (A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without

    (B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without

    (C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having

    (D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without

    (E) settlers’ homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

    OA D
    WHY IS A INCORRECT? IS NOT D AWKWARD

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    dj_vinayak Rising GMAT Star
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    Post Mon Mar 12, 2012 8:52 pm
    My guess would be "it" reference is ambiguous

    GMAT_2010_2707 Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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    Post Mon Mar 12, 2012 9:03 pm
    Option A certainly has an ambiguous "It" that has no antecedent.
    My pick is "D"

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    Post Tue Mar 13, 2012 8:41 pm
    pappueshwar wrote:
    On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

    (A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without

    (B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without

    (C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having

    (D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without

    (E) settlers’ homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

    OA D
    WHY IS A INCORRECT? IS NOT D AWKWARD
    In A and B, it lacks a clear antecedent. Eliminate A and B.

    In C, it's not crystal clear whether them refers to mud and grass or to homes. Eliminate C.

    COMMA + VERBing generally refers to the subject of the preceding clause. Thus, E implies that settlers' homes were making do without timber and nails -- a nonsensical meaning. Eliminate E.

    The correct answer is D.

    To make do is an idiom. It means to manage with the means available.

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    pappueshwar Really wants to Beat The GMAT! Default Avatar
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    Post Tue Mar 13, 2012 8:49 pm
    thanks guru NY

    vikram4689 GMAT Titan
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    Post Wed Mar 14, 2012 8:04 am
    Quote:
    COMMA + VERBing generally refers to the subject of the preceding clause
    Hi Mitch,
    Doesn't this construction acts as an ADVERB... e.g. Workers built magnificent monument, using mud and stone

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