Position of "both" + S-V agreement

This topic has expert replies
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 307
Joined: Sun Jul 11, 2010 7:52 pm
Thanked: 36 times
Followed by:1 members
GMAT Score:640

Position of "both" + S-V agreement

by limestone » Sun Oct 03, 2010 7:36 pm
As the etched lines on computer memory chips have become thinner and the chips' circuits more complex, both the power of the chips and the electronic devices they drive have vastly increased.

A.
B. the chip's circuits more complex, the power of both the chips and the electronic devices they drive has
C. the chip's circuits are more complex, both the power of the chips and the electronic devices they drive has
D. their circuits are more complex, the power of both the chips and the electronic devices they drive have
E. their circuits more complex, both the power of the chips and the electronic devices they drive have

[spoiler]OA: later[/spoiler]
"There is nothing either good or bad - but thinking makes it so" - Shakespeare.
Source: — Sentence Correction |

Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 379
Joined: Wed Apr 07, 2010 12:53 am
Location: Chennai,India
Thanked: 3 times

User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 307
Joined: Sun Jul 11, 2010 7:52 pm
Thanked: 36 times
Followed by:1 members
GMAT Score:640

by limestone » Sun Oct 03, 2010 8:43 pm
OA is B. I chose C. Could you please explain why we can omit "are" in C?
"There is nothing either good or bad - but thinking makes it so" - Shakespeare.

Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
Posts: 98
Joined: Sat Feb 06, 2010 11:56 pm
Thanked: 5 times

by anantbhatia » Sun Oct 03, 2010 11:19 pm
A, D , E eliminiated because they don't have :-

powers .. have increased

betweeen (B) and (C),

(C) should have been something like
both the power of X and that of Y

So B is correct.

• Page 1 of 1