GMAT - Graduate Management Admission Verbal: Sentence Correction Flashcards

Which sentence correctly uses 'that' vs. 'which'?

Answer: The report that the auditor submitted contained several errors.

A restrictive relative clause (essential to identify the noun) uses 'that' without commas; a non-restrictive clause uses 'which' with commas.

Which sentence uses the correct form of the verb after 'not only…but also'?

Answer: The CFO not only cut expenses but also increased revenue.

Correlative conjunctions like 'not only…but also' require grammatically parallel elements; both verbs must be in the same tense and form.

Which sentence avoids the incorrect use of 'being'?

Answer: Having reviewed all proposals, the committee selected the strongest candidate.

On the GMAT, 'being' used as a causal conjunction (e.g., 'being that') is almost always incorrect; a clear participial phrase is preferred.

Which sentence correctly expresses a past counterfactual conditional?

Answer: If the company had invested earlier, it would have captured the market.

In a past counterfactual conditional, the if-clause uses past perfect ('had invested') and the result clause uses 'would have + past participle.'

Which sentence correctly uses a misplaced modifier: 'Exhausted after the long negotiation, the contract was finally signed by the lawyers'?

Answer: Exhausted after the long negotiation, the lawyers finally signed the contract.

The participial phrase 'Exhausted after the long negotiation' must modify 'lawyers,' so 'lawyers' must be the grammatical subject of the main clause.

Which sentence correctly uses the past perfect tense?

Answer: By the time the auditors arrived, the CFO had already destroyed the documents.

The past perfect ('had destroyed') is required to show an action completed before another past action ('arrived').