2016 OG SC 131 such like and such as

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2016 OG SC 131 such like and such as

by Crystal W » Sun Mar 20, 2016 11:54 am
Most efforts to combat such mosquito-borne diseases like malaria and dengue have focused either on the vaccination of humans or on exterminating mosquitoes with pesticides.

A.like malaria and dengue have focused either on the vaccination of humans or on exterminating
B.like malaria and dengue have focused either on vaccinating of humans or on the extermination of
C.as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or on exterminating
D.as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating of humans or on extermination of
E.as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or exterminating
I have a question about such like. Is that all use of such like wrong? Or just such like can't be used to indicate two examples of a larger category?
Thanks in advance!

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by MartyMurray » Sun Mar 20, 2016 4:14 pm
Crystal W wrote:I have a question about such like. Is that all use of such like wrong? Or just such like can't be used to indicate two examples of a larger category?
While there are ways in which the word like could correctly directly follow such in a sentence, the expression such like itself is never correct.

Here is a correct example. In this example, like happens to follow such, but the expression such like is not used. The words such and like just happen to be next to each other.

Jim was a signed up runner, and as such, like the others who had signed up, Jim was supposed to receive a race t-shirt.

Here is an example of a sentence that is not correct because it includes the expression such like.

Many types of fruit, such like oranges, have thick skins.

Here is the correct version.

Many types of fruit, such as oranges, have thick skins.
Last edited by MartyMurray on Tue Mar 22, 2016 5:34 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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by Crystal W » Mon Mar 21, 2016 1:29 pm
Marty Murray wrote:
Crystal W wrote:I have a question about such like. Is that all use of such like wrong? Or just such like can't be used to indicate two examples of a larger category?
While there are ways in which the word like could correctly directly follow such in a sentence, the expression such like itself is never correct.

Here is a correct example. In this example, like happens to follow such, but the expression such like is not used. The words such and like just happen to be next to each other.

Jim had officially signed up to run in the race, and as such, like the others who had signed up, Jim was supposed to receive a race t-shirt.

Here is an example of a sentence that is not correct because it includes the expression such like.

Many types of fruit, such like oranges, have thick skins.

Here is the correct version.

Many types of fruit, such as oranges, have thick skins.
Thank you very much for your explanation. I have quick question. What the meaning of as such in you first example?
Thanks in advance!

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by MartyMurray » Tue Mar 22, 2016 5:30 pm
Crystal W wrote:Thank you very much for your explanation. I have quick question. What the meaning of as such in you first example?
The expression, as such, means something along the lines of in that capacity. So in that capacity would, basically, work in the example. I say "basically", because in clarifying how to explain this to you, I found that to a degree I had misused as such. People often use as such as a substitute for accordingly, but now I am seeing that doing that is not technically correct. So I have slightly changed the example.

Jim was a signed up runner, and in that capacity, like the others who had signed up, Jim was supposed to receive a race t-shirt.

Also, as long as we are talking about the word such, there is another use of it, in the expression such that. Here's an example.

The complexity of this example is such that understanding the example is challenging.

What such that means is something along the lines of of such a nature that, characterized by or having the attribute.

You might see such that on the GMAT in quant.

Set S is a set of all the integers X such that X/3 is an even integer.

Set S is a set of all the integers X having the attribute that X/3 is an even integer.
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by Crystal W » Sat Mar 26, 2016 12:22 pm
Marty Murray wrote:
Crystal W wrote:Thank you very much for your explanation. I have quick question. What the meaning of as such in you first example?
The expression, as such, means something along the lines of in that capacity. So in that capacity would, basically, work in the example. I say "basically", because in clarifying how to explain this to you, I found that to a degree I had misused as such. People often use as such as a substitute for accordingly, but now I am seeing that doing that is not technically correct. So I have slightly changed the example.

Jim was a signed up runner, and in that capacity, like the others who had signed up, Jim was supposed to receive a race t-shirt.

Also, as long as we are talking about the word such, there is another use of it, in the expression such that. Here's an example.

The complexity of this example is such that understanding the example is challenging.

What such that means is something along the lines of of such a nature that, characterized by or having the attribute.

You might see such that on the GMAT in quant.

Set S is a set of all the integers X such that X/3 is an even integer.

Set S is a set of all the integers X having the attribute that X/3 is an even integer.
Thank you very much!

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by [email protected] » Thu Apr 18, 2019 3:17 pm
Hello Everyone!

Let's tackle this question, one issue at a time, and narrow it down to the right answer quickly! To start, let's take a quick look at the original question and highlight any major differences between the options in orange:

Most efforts to combat such mosquito-borne diseases like malaria and dengue have focused either on the vaccination of humans or on exterminating mosquitoes with pesticides.

A. like malaria and dengue have focused either on the vaccination of humans or on exterminating
B. like malaria and dengue have focused either on vaccinating of humans or on the extermination of
C. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or on exterminating
D. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating of humans or on extermination of
E. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or exterminating

After a quick glance over the options, a few key differences jump out:

1. like vs. as (Idioms)
2. either on vs. on either (Parallelism & Idioms)
3. on exterminating / on the extermination of / on extermination of / exterminating (Parallelism)


Let's start with #1 on our list because it will knock out 2-3 options right away. This is an issue of idioms! In English, it's actually incorrect to introduce examples with the word "like." We use the word "like" in similes to show how to things are alike - not that they are examples of a larger category. To introduce examples, we use "as" or "such as." Here are some examples:

To save money, consider shopping at discount store like thrift shops and consignment stores. --> WRONG
To save money, consider shopping at discount stores, such as thrift shops and consignment stores. --> CORRECT

The air smelled like fresh dew. -->CORRECT
The air smelled as fresh dew. ---> WRONG

So let's see how our options hold up:

A. like malaria and dengue have focused either on the vaccination of humans or on exterminating
B. like malaria and dengue have focused either on vaccinating of humans or on the extermination of
C. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or on exterminating
D. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating of humans or on extermination of
E. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or exterminating

We can eliminate options A & B because they don't use the correct idiom structure to introduce examples. That was a quick way to eliminate 2 options, right?

Now that we've narrowed things down a bit, let's tackle #2 & #3 on our list. They actually have to do with the same grammar concept: parallelism!

We need to make sure that the two items that are being focused on are written using parallel structure:

C. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or on exterminating

have focused on either X or on Y = NOT PARALLEL

D. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating of humans or on extermination of

have focused on either X or on Y = NOT PARALLEL
(This is also incorrect because the two items don't use the same wording: vaccinating & extermination)

E. as malaria and dengue have focused on either vaccinating humans or exterminating

have focused on either X or Y = PARALLEL


There you have it - option E is the correct choice! It's the only one that uses the proper idiom "as" to introduce examples, and it uses parallel structure when listing the two items being focused on.


Don't study for the GMAT. Train for it.