Retail figures grew 13 percent in the quarter that ended in June, significantly less than they did in the previous quarter.

Retail figures grew 13 percent in the quarter that ended in June, significantly less than they did in the previous quarter.

A – less than they did

B – less than it did

C – less than they were

D – lower than

E – lower than they were

Right Answer: A

Error Identification: 

Identifier	Fix
Underlined comparison words “less than”	Comparison
Underlined comparison between “figures” and “they”	Comparison

Difficulty Level: Medium

Explanation:

In the sentence, plural ‘figures’ are correctly compared to ‘they’, referring to the figures ‘in the previous quarter’. Hence the comparison is balanced and correct. Also, ‘figures grew’ and ‘they did’ are parallel. Thus, the sentence does not have any error.

A – Correctly compares plural ‘figures grew’ to plural ‘they did’, both being balanced and parallel. This is the correct answer.

B – Incorrectly compares ‘figures grew’ to ‘it did’, as ‘it’ lacks a clear antecedent. Hence, eliminated.

C – Incorrectly compares ‘figures grew’ to ‘they were’. Usage of ‘were’ is incorrect. Hence, eliminated.

D – Comparison is not balanced. ‘Than’ should be followed by a noun/pronoun. Hence, eliminated.

E – Incorrectly compares ‘figures grew’ to ‘they were’. Usage of ‘were’ is incorrect. Hence, eliminated.