Question: To help preserve ancient Egyptian monuments threatened by high water tables, a Swedish engineering firm has proposed installing pumps, perhaps solar powered, to lower the underground water level and dig trenches around the bases of the stone walls.

(A) to lower the underground water level and dig trenches
(B) to lower the underground water level and to dig trenches
(C) to lower the underground water level and digging trenches
(D) that lower the underground water level and that trenches be dug
(E) that lower the underground water level and trench digging

Correct Answer: C
Explanation: The sentence tackles the issue of how threatened ancient Egyptian sites are by increasing water levels. The meaning is ambiguous due to the sentence's form. According to the original language, a company has suggested installing pumps, with the goal of using them to dig trenches and decrease water levels. But we are aware that saying a pump wants to dig a trench is irrational. We must then infer the logical implication that a Swedish engineering firm has proposed two things: constructing pumps, perhaps solar-powered ones, to reduce the level of subsurface water. The second suggestion is to create trenches all the way around the base of the stone walls.

to lower the underground water level and digging trenches.- Correct. This option corrects the error in the original sentence. The two suggestions – “installing” and “digging” – are now grammatically and logically parallel.
Let’s examine the other options available.

Option A
to lower the underground water level and dig trenches- Incorrect. The list in this sentence — “to lower…” and “(to) dig…” — are grammatically parallel but not logically parallel. Through meaning analysis, we understand that the suggestions must be in proper parallel structure “installing pumps” and “digging trenches.”

Option B
to lower the underground water level and to dig trenches- Incorrect. Error in parallelism that affects meaning. This choice reiterates the original sentence's mistake. The only distinction between this option and option A is that in this option, "to" is mentioned directly before "dig" to make the list clear. However, this list lacks sense.

Option D
that lower the underground water level and that trenches be dug- Incorrect. Modifier mistakes that modify the meaning include the deletion of the "to + verb" phrase, which removes the pump's intended function of lowering the subsurface water level. The two "that" clauses become parallel when "that" is added to this option. Pumps are modified by the first clause, thus since the two are connected by "and," the second clause should likewise affect pumps. This alteration, nevertheless, is irrational. Verb Mistake: An example of a subjunctive verb is "be excavated." Because there is no trigger word that necessitates the use of the subjunctive verb, this use is wrong.

Option E
that lower the underground water level and trench digging- Incorrect. This option does not provide the necessary parallel structure for "installing pumps" and "digging trenches," which is a parallelism error. This decision replicates the mistake of choice D with regard to the usage of "that," which results in a meaning error.

“To help preserve ancient Egyptian monuments threatened by high water”- is a GMAT sentence correction question. These sorts of questions come up with grammatical errors in the underlined part of the sentence. The candidates need to select the correct statement given in the options. The GMAT sentence correction section demands good skills in grammar since the candidate has to identify common grammatical errors. GMAT sentence correction is a part of GMAT verbal.

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