Using and vs or

Expert replies

cbenk121: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 202; Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2009 11:34 pm; Thanked: 15 times; GMAT Score:760

by cbenk121 » Tue Oct 06, 2009 1:25 pm

The commission has directed advertisers to restrict the use of the word "natural" to foods that do not contain color or flavor additives, chemical preservatives, or nothing that has been synthesized.

A) or nothing that has been
B) or that has been
C) and nothing that is
D) or anything that has been
E) and anything

[spoiler]OA: D[/spoiler]

[spoiler]My question is why is OR the logical choice? In order to be labeled natural, the food needs to not contain ALL of those items, not simply one of them. However, I do understand so much on the grounds that original sentence meant to use "or", so using and changes the meaning.[/spoiler]

Source: Beat The GMAT — Sentence Correction | Tue Oct 06, 2009 1:25 pm

cbenk121: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 202; Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2009 11:34 pm; Thanked: 15 times; GMAT Score:760

by cbenk121 » Wed Oct 07, 2009 8:58 pm

Bump, don't tell me this is too hard!

punitkaur: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 168; Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2009 6:48 pm; Thanked: 6 times

by punitkaur » Thu Oct 15, 2009 2:55 am

I had the same question and was looking for discussions on this forum. couldnt find any answers.

punitkaur: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 168; Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2009 6:48 pm; Thanked: 6 times

by punitkaur » Thu Oct 15, 2009 3:00 am

ok after some thinking,

i tried to relate this to the mathematical "and"/"or" we use in sets.

So lets say, a mixture should not contain A,B and C.

what this means it DEFINITELY DOES NOT contain all of them together. However, it COULD contain A alone or B alone or C alone. or combinations of AB,BC, CA. since nothing is being said about these explicitly, usage of AND will distort the meaning.

But if you use A or B or C, then the mixture WILL definitely not contain either of those and also "all of those", which was the intention of the original sentence. So if we used and instead of or, it changes the meaning being conveyed.

Try to apply this logic to the problem and see if it makes sense now. To me it does

Thats why the OG says it distorts the meaning..

cbenk121: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 202; Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2009 11:34 pm; Thanked: 15 times; GMAT Score:760

by cbenk121 » Mon Oct 19, 2009 5:44 pm

punitkaur wrote:ok after some thinking, i tried to relate this to the mathematical "and"/"or" we use in sets.

So lets say, a mixture should not contain A,B and C.

what this means it DEFINITELY DOES NOT contain all of them together. However, it COULD contain A alone or B alone or C alone. or combinations of AB,BC, CA. since nothing is being said about these explicitly, usage of AND will distort the meaning.

But if you use A or B or C, then the mixture WILL definitely not contain either of those and also "all of those", which was the intention of the original sentence. So if we used and instead of or, it changes the meaning being conveyed.

Try to apply this logic to the problem and see if it makes sense now. To me it does Thats why the OG says it distorts the meaning..

Make sense, thanks!

GMAT Course Reviews

563 reviews

1168 reviews

431 reviews

359 reviews

147 reviews

5/5

5 Star (563 Reviews)

"Target Test Prep is the closest to the official version of the GMAT exam, about 99% accuracy in terms of the quality and quantity of information. The course has excellently created singular sets of focused lessons and tests for every possible topic that one could come across in the official GMAT exam."

"The TTP course maximizes the efficiency of the time you spend studying. It will take time and effort but I could almost guarantee that if you complete the course exactly as it is laid out you will get an amazing score. They also have a very responsive team willing to help with any questions you might have."

"TTP has two things that I think no other test prep company offers: A teaching approach that reinforces understanding and an attitude that will give you the mental preparedness needed to succeed on the test. TTP gives you a deep understanding of the concept you need to know while teaching you how to think."

Write a Review