not x but rather y

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j_shreyans: Legendary Member; Posts: 510; Joined: Thu Aug 07, 2014 2:24 amFollowed by: 5 members; Thanked: 3 times

by j_shreyans » Tue Oct 07, 2014 3:29 am

The Bunsen burner, named after the German scientist who improved its design and efficiency, was invented in 1885 not by Bunsen himself but by fellow scientist Michael Faraday.

A)named after the German scientist who improved its design and efficiency, was invented in 1885 not by Bunsen himself but by fellow scientist Michael Faraday

B)which was named for the German scientist who improved its design and efficiency, was not invented in 1885 by Bunsen himself but, rather, by Michael Faraday, his fellow scientist

C)which is named for the German scientist improving its design and efficiency, was invented not by Bunsen himself but, rather, by Michael Faraday, a fellow scientist in 1885

D)named for the German scientist improving its design and efficiency, was not invented by Bunsen himself but by Michael Faraday, a fellow scientist, in 1885

E)naming after the German scientist who had improved its design and efficiency, was invented not by Bunsen himself, but, rather, by fellow scientist Michael Faraday in 1885

Guys ,

The correct IDIOM is - NOT X BUT RATHER Y right?

Then Why OA A

Source: Beat The GMAT — Sentence Correction | Tue Oct 07, 2014 3:29 am

Uva@90: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 490; Joined: Thu Jul 04, 2013 7:30 amFollowed by: 5 members; Location: Chennai, India; Thanked: 83 times

by Uva@90 » Tue Oct 07, 2014 7:12 am

Hi Shreyan,

Both the below mentioned Idioms are correct.
NOT X BUT RATHER Y
and
NOT X BUT Y

Regards,
Uva.

Known is a drop Unknown is an Ocean

j_shreyans: Legendary Member; Posts: 510; Joined: Thu Aug 07, 2014 2:24 amFollowed by: 5 members; Thanked: 3 times

by j_shreyans » Tue Oct 07, 2014 8:33 am

Uva@90 wrote:Hi Shreyan,

Both the below mentioned Idioms are correct.
NOT X BUT RATHER Y
and
NOT X BUT Y

Regards,
Uva.

But why "NOT X BUT Y" in this sentence why not "NOT X BUT RATHER Y" . Is there any special case for both the idioms.

GMAT/MBA Expert

[email protected]: Elite Legendary Member; Posts: 10392; Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pmFollowed by: 511 members; Location: Palo Alto, CA; Thanked: 2867 times; GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Fri Oct 10, 2014 10:53 am

Hi j_shreyans,

The words "but" and "rather" mean the same thing, so using them both (especially next to one another) is redundant. The GMAT rarely allows redundant language of that type in the correct answer. So I'd go with the "not X, but Y" construction as long as the rest of the sentence was grammatically correct.

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Rich

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j_shreyans: Legendary Member; Posts: 510; Joined: Thu Aug 07, 2014 2:24 amFollowed by: 5 members; Thanked: 3 times

by j_shreyans » Fri Oct 10, 2014 9:47 pm

Hi Rich ,

Thanks for your explanation , can you pls also explain how can i eliminate option D.

GMAT/MBA Expert

[email protected]: Elite Legendary Member; Posts: 10392; Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pmFollowed by: 511 members; Location: Palo Alto, CA; Thanked: 2867 times; GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Sat Oct 11, 2014 11:38 am

Hi j_shreyans,

This SC tells us that the Bunsen burner WAS named after a German scientist; the past tense verb gives us a clue that Bunsen IMPROVED the burner's design and efficiency in the past. Answer D uses the very "improving", which is the wrong type of verb (we need the verb "improved").

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

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