Question: With government funds no longer increasing and private philanthropy no longer able to carry the burden it once did, the major research universities are turning to the one likely source of additional funds: the major corporations.
“With government funds no longer increasing and private philanthropy no”- is a GMAT sentence correction question. These types of questions contain grammatical errors and we have to choose the correct statement from the options. This topic is the GMAT sentence correction comes with four options and candidates need to choose the one which is correct. GMAT sentence correction is a part of GMAT verbal. It checks whether the candidate is able to decode the inaccuracy in the sentence. It also checks if they are able to bring out an idea or meaning of the context.
Answer: A
Explanation: This sentence reports an effect (universities turning to a new source of funding) resulting from two changes. Each of the changes is stated in terms of what is no longer happening, and the opening word encompasses both of the no longer phrases. Answer choices C, D, and E all contain inept, unidiomatic wording. The wording in answer choice B differs from the original version only in using had where the original uses did. Did functions here as a pro-verb representing the verb carry. No longer able to carry the burden it once had makes sense, but it is a little odd. It implies that private philanthropy no longer has this burden. If it no longer has the burden, whether it can still carry it is irrelevant. To have a burden and to carry a burden typically do not mean quite the same thing. The burden it once had suggests that private philanthropy was burdened by the funding in the way that a person might be burdened.
Option A
no longer able to carry the burden it once did. Correct. "did" is a stand-in for the action verb "carry." This straightforwardly expresses a coherent meaning using standard forms of expression and appropriate verb forms. The two no longer constructions are appropriately parallel.
Option B
no longer able to carry the burden it once had. Incorrect. "had" is a possessive verb here, not parallel with carry. The problem with this version is subtle. The burden it once had implies that private philanthropy no longer has this burden. If it no longer has the burden, whether it can still carry it is irrelevant. To have a burden and to carry a burden typically do not mean quite the same thing. The burden it once had suggests that private philanthropy was burdened by the funding in the way that a person might be burdened.
Option C
able no longer to carry the burden which it had once.- Incorrect. This has the same subtle problem as answer choice B. Also, the burden which it had once is awkward and nonstandard. Placing once after the verb suggests that the author intends to say that it had the burden one single time, rather than that it used to have the burden. The word which is unnecessary.
Option D
no longer having the ability of carrying the burden it once had.- Incorrect. 'ability of' is not the right idiom structure. (the right idiom structure is : to have the ability to do something). Having the ability of carrying is awkward, verbose, and unidiomatic. Furthermore, this has the same subtle problem as answer choice B.
Option E
no longer with the ability of carrying the burden that it did once.- Incorrect. This is very awkward, wordy, and indirect. No longer with the ability of carrying is unidiomatic and unclear. Placing once after the verb suggests that the author intends to say that it carried the burden one single time, rather than that it used to carry the burden.
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