SAT Grammar Question - Comparisons

Question

I have a question on comparisons.

I said no error first, and that was wrong. I don't see an error with B or D or A. Is it C "being"? Should it be switched to be?

In the English that I speak it would be "preferable to" You wouldn't say, "I prefer tea than coffee" it would be "I prefer tea to coffee." — chasly - supports Monica, Nov 06 '15 at 23:47
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because the quesion is about the right choice without any research/reference. — , Nov 07 '15 at 06:24

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 06 '15 at 23:47

3

The proper preposition for part D is "to" so it should be "was preferable to living". "Than" should be used to indicate which is greater, such as "was more preferable than".

answered Nov 06 '15 at 23:47

Wayne Goode

729

+1 for making the connection with 'more'. – chasly - supports Monica Nov 06 '15 at 23:50
But I've noticed that Americans on this site nearly always say different than. Do you say different than or as I would George is different to John? – WS2 Nov 06 '15 at 23:58
@WS2 - If you add 'more' then even Brits say 'different than'. Example: John is different but Jane is even more different than John." – chasly - supports Monica Nov 07 '15 at 00:13
1

Please don't induce scope creep in answers/comments. There's already a question about different than. – Andrew Leach Nov 07 '15 at 00:14
1

@chaslyfromUK But that than is a dependent of more not directly a dependent of different. Consider John is different to* Bill, but Jane is more different to Bill than John is.* – Araucaria - Him Nov 07 '15 at 05:48
@chaslyfromUK Yes, there may possibly be people in Britain who say that, but I wouldn't. I would say Jane is even more different to Bill – WS2 Nov 07 '15 at 08:16

NES · Answer 2 · 2015-11-06T23:53:23.980

2

D

preferable to living with a lie

See, for example, the sentences in the Oxford dictionary

SAT Grammar Question - Comparisons

2 Answers2