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SO X AS TO Y ? CORRECT ?

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by rishi4you » Fri Aug 21, 2009 6:54 am
SO X as Y seems to be a correct idiom
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by capnx » Fri Aug 21, 2009 7:06 am
dude, So X as Y is ALWAYS wrong.

accepted expressions are:
so... as to...
ie: The weather was so dry as to cause the fire to spread even further.

so as to...
ie: I studied all night so as to pass my exam today.

so... that...
ie: The weather was so dry that the fire grew even larger.

so that...
ie: I studied all night so that I can pass my exam.
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by mmslf75 » Sun Aug 23, 2009 5:30 am
CAPNX..

Ur using SO ..AS TO...in first sentence right ??
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by mmslf75 » Sun Aug 23, 2009 6:21 am
CAPNX..

Ur using SO ..AS TO...in first sentence right ??
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by capnx » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:13 am
yes, so... as to... = so X as to Y = so + adj + as to + verb

He got up so late as to miss the bus.
Her health condition deteriorated so fast as to threaten her life.

from the Manhattan GMAT prep chapter 8 Idioms list:

so as not to be hindered by
so X as to (be) Y
so X as to constitute Y
so X that Y
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by target_mba2010 » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:22 am
Hi,

One more point i feel can be useful is..
While using so X as to Y = so + adj + as to + verb ,
one should remember to use it as a comparator.
Never use it to substitute 'in order to'.
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by rishi4you » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:30 am
Hey CAPNX,

There seems to be some confusion with this idiom. Manhaatan GMAT SC says So X as to Y is correct, but if you check Q 33 of OG 11, it mentions the construction so x as to y as an incorrect idiom.

In this case where do we go now. Stacey or some other Sc wizard can you guys pitch in with your expert comment.
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by capnx » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:42 am
target is right. "so as to" = in order to, NOT "so X as to"

I think the explanation in the explanation in 33 is incomplete. Here's the question:

Although... it is so debilitating that it has become an economic drain...

C: so debilitating is it as to become an economic...

when the answer key says "so X as to Y" is not idiomatic, I think it's referring to this case which is "it is so debilitating is it as to..."

if the sentence had read: "it is so debilitating as to become an economic drain...", the sentence would be acceptable.

EDIT:

stacey (not sure if it's the same person) has a short discussion here:
https://www.manhattangmat.com/forums/x-i ... t6537.html

after some search, I think "so X as to (be) Y" is correct as long as the meaning is correct. Also, if one of the choices is "so X that...", pay attention because usually "so... that..." is preferred.
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by mmslf75 » Sun Aug 23, 2009 7:56 pm
Any 1 Any body has an Idiom list ?
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by Stacey Koprince » Thu Aug 27, 2009 7:54 am
Yeah, that other post was me, too. I'll quote it here, because I think it clears up the questions from above:
Interestingly, we've recently discovered two contradictory OG explanations on this issue. A problem in the 10th edition says "so x as to y" is correct, and a different problem in the 11th edition says it is not a correct idiom. Maybe something in the 12th edition will clear up the discrepancy. :)

We think the "rejection" of the entire idiom in the 11th edition was merely poor wording; we think the writer was actually trying to say it just wasn't correct usage for that particular sentence.

"So X as to Y" means something is SO (big, strong, slow, whatever, but something kind of extreme) that it actually causes something else to happen - something that wouldn't ordinarily happen.
The nutshell: that OG11 problem that implies the entire idiom itself is incorrect wasn't really worded that well. It should've said that the idiom was incorrectly used in that problem. That's all. :)
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