Tricky SC

[GmatKiss]

On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

(A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without
(B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without
(C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having
(D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without
(E) settlers' homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

Please support your pick!
OA after sometime

[cans]

IMO E

[Acorn]

On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

(A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without
(B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without
(C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having
(D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without
(E) settlers' homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

Please support your pick!
OA after sometime

__________________________________________

A weird question. My bit:

In all the options I have ignored the part before the comma and focussed on the part after the comma.

A. Wrong.. Pronoun it...no antecedent.
B. Wrong. Same logic as cited above.
C. Correct.
D. wRONG. Awkward construction..Making...do
E. Wrong.

OA please.

[aspirant2011]

On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

(A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without
(B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without
(C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having
(D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without
(E) settlers' homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

Please support your pick!
OA after sometime

[saketk]

On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without timber and nails.

(A) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, doing it without
(B) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, did it without
(C) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making them while not having
(D) settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without
(E) settlers' homes were built of mud and grass, making do without

Please support your pick!
OA after sometime

'making do' - seeing this idiom for the first time. I googled for it and found the meaning -Create, To cause to exist or happen.

this one certainly cannot be E. because of the illogical meaning -- homes cannot build themselves.

option A and B can be eliminated because 'it' has no antecedent

option C is awkward and wordy 'making them while not having' doesn't sound good to my ear

Option D is the correct answer. Subject is 'settlers' and the usage of 'making do' as per the dictionary meaning is also correct.

Just now I am getting a feeling that we can also do without the meaning of this idiom.

[apex231]

Can "it" refer to a verb (build in this sentence)? or does "it" always refer to an object/noun?

[GmatKiss]

OA is D