Never before had taxpayers confronted so many changes at once as they had in the Tax Reform Act of 1986.
(A) so many changes at once as they had in
(B) at once as many changes as
(C) at once as many changes that there were with
(D) as many changes at once as they confronted in
(E) so many changes at once that confronted them in
How to choose between D (AS MANY AS) and E (SO THAT) in the above question?
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taxpayers confronted
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ceilidh.erickson
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SO MANY ______ THAT _______ is a construction that you may have seen in grammar guides, and can be perfectly grammatically correct. It's used to show cause and effect structure. For example:
There were SO MANY people at the party THAT I had to leave.
This is another way of saying "BECAUSE there were so many people at the party, I had to leave."
In this sentence, there is no cause-and-effect relationship. The taxpayers confronted many changes, but that didn't cause anything else to happen. If we reword option E the way I did above, it would read "BECAUSE taxpayers confronted so many changes at once... confronted them." That makes no sense! Because there is no cause-effect relationship, the SO MANY / THAT construction doesn't work.
What we want to say in this sentence is that taxpayers confronted more changes than ever before. "Never before had they confronted AS MANY AS..." is the correct construction to express this.
There were SO MANY people at the party THAT I had to leave.
This is another way of saying "BECAUSE there were so many people at the party, I had to leave."
In this sentence, there is no cause-and-effect relationship. The taxpayers confronted many changes, but that didn't cause anything else to happen. If we reword option E the way I did above, it would read "BECAUSE taxpayers confronted so many changes at once... confronted them." That makes no sense! Because there is no cause-effect relationship, the SO MANY / THAT construction doesn't work.
What we want to say in this sentence is that taxpayers confronted more changes than ever before. "Never before had they confronted AS MANY AS..." is the correct construction to express this.
Ceilidh Erickson
EdM in Mind, Brain, and Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
EdM in Mind, Brain, and Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
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GMATGuruNY
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E: taxpayers confronted...changes...that confronted themvishalwin wrote:How to choose between D (AS MANY AS) and E (SO THAT) in the above question?
This sentence is redundant.
Eliminate E.
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I have worked with students based in the US, Australia, Taiwan, China, Tajikistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia -- a long list of countries.
My students have been admitted to HBS, CBS, Tuck, Yale, Stern, Fuqua -- a long list of top programs.
As a tutor, I don't simply teach you how I would approach problems.
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aflaam
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hello Mitch,
What is the problem with C?
I have seen "there", when used in situations similar to one under discussion, is usually incorrect.
is there any way to be sure rather than going by gut feeling?
What is the problem with C?
I have seen "there", when used in situations similar to one under discussion, is usually incorrect.
is there any way to be sure rather than going by gut feeling?
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GMATGuruNY
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C: taxpayers confronted...as many changes thataflaam wrote:hello Mitch,
What is the problem with C?
Here, the usage of that is unidiomatic.
Correct idiom:
as many X as Y.
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Followed here and elsewhere by over 1900 test-takers.
I have worked with students based in the US, Australia, Taiwan, China, Tajikistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia -- a long list of countries.
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As a tutor, I don't simply teach you how I would approach problems.
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vishalwin
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GMATGuruNY wrote:E: taxpayers confronted...changes...that confronted themvishalwin wrote:How to choose between D (AS MANY AS) and E (SO THAT) in the above question?
This sentence is redundant.
Eliminate E.
Hi Mitch,
E: taxpayers confronted...changes...that confronted them
Why is above redundant?
Thanks & Regards
vishalwin
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DavidG@VeritasPrep
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One could write, "The taxpayers confronted many changes." Or one could write, "Many changes confronted them [the taxpayers.]" Both convey the same basic idea. But we wouldn't want to write, "The taxpayers confronted many changes that confronted them," as we're then unnecessarily (and clumsily) communicating the same notion twice in one sentence.E: taxpayers confronted...changes...that confronted them
Why is above redundant?
