BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

are, were, or had been?

This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Locked
Previous Topic Next Topic
Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2010 6:59 am

are, were, or had been?

by vinay2 » Wed Oct 13, 2010 4:50 pm
I found this one debatable. This is from OG 11th edition Q62.

"A 1972 agreement... reduced the amount of phosphates municipalities ____ allowed to dump into the Great Lakes".

1. Are
2. Were
3. Had been

The original choices could be reduced down to the 1 and 3 (but I have included 2 as an additional possibility).

The OG is 1. However, I had selected 3, and I still think it should be either 2 or 3. My rationale is that the agreement did something in 1972, and not today. This should mean that it reduced the amount M were allowed to dump or had been allowed to dump, and not are allowed to dump back then.

What is there was another agreement in 1992 that increased the amount - the one in 1972 didnt decrease the amount M ARE allowed to dump then isnt it.

Is this one of those gray areas where we blindly agree with OG or am I missing some key grammatical rule here?
Top
Source: — Sentence Correction |
Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:37 pm

by anyuta3 » Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:43 pm
Do not eat a heavy meal fore several hours before your class. yoga is best practiced on an empty stomach. Do new york escorts drink water, both before and after your practice in order to keep your new york asian escort body well hydrated.yoga for a beginner is the first step on a journey of ever new york asian escorts increasing self-awareness, a greater level of strength, endurance, and flexibility, and a nyc asian escorts deeper sense of peace. Have fun and enjoy everything along the way!Della Menechella is a yoga and fitness enthusiast who has been involved in fitness for over thirty years.tel : 212-655-5444
Top
User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 905
Joined: Sun Sep 12, 2010 1:38 am
Thanked: 378 times
Followed by:123 members
GMAT Score:760

by Geva@EconomistGMAT » Thu Oct 14, 2010 4:21 am
vinay2 wrote:I found this one debatable. This is from OG 11th edition Q62.

"A 1972 agreement... reduced the amount of phosphates municipalities ____ allowed to dump into the Great Lakes".

1. Are
2. Were
3. Had been

The original choices could be reduced down to the 1 and 3 (but I have included 2 as an additional possibility).

The OG is 1. However, I had selected 3, and I still think it should be either 2 or 3. My rationale is that the agreement did something in 1972, and not today. This should mean that it reduced the amount M were allowed to dump or had been allowed to dump, and not are allowed to dump back then.

What is there was another agreement in 1992 that increased the amount - the one in 1972 didnt decrease the amount M ARE allowed to dump then isnt it.

Is this one of those gray areas where we blindly agree with OG or am I missing some key grammatical rule here?

The O.G. choice - number 1 - is perfectly sensible, and more sensible than the other choices. The point of the sentence is that the agreement in 1972 changed the amount of phosphate that municipalities would be allowed to dump henceforth -- from the point of the agreement onward, and presumably until the present. Lacking any other context that tells us that this arrangement later changed, it would be illogical to phrase the sentence in either of the past tenses. Past simple (were) does not work, as this would imply that the agreement was only relevant for a limited time in the past; certainly, to phrase it in the past perfect (had been), would be absurd, as this would imply that the agreement attempted to reduce the amounts already dumped - which makes no sense whatsoever. The present works perfectly well, as the outcome of the new agreement is a generality - municipalities are currently allowed to dump X amount.

Oh, and I forgot to mention: NYC asian escorts. :)
Geva
Senior Instructor
Master GMAT
1-888-780-GMAT
https://www.mastergmat.com
Top
Post new topic Locked
• Page 1 of 1