<p>A question I don't understand :)</p>
<p>"Until becoming more affordable by standardizing its technology," cell phones were quite rare.</p>
<p>I was confused between answers D and E.</p>
<p>D) Until they became more affordable in standardized technology
E) Until standardized technology made the mmore affordable</p>
<p>Can someone explain why the answer is E? And maybe identify which section of grammar it is so that I can study that section.
Thanks in advance :)</p>
<p>You wouldn’t say ‘more affordable in standardized technology’ because it doesn’t mean the same thing as ‘more affordable because of standardized technology’. I’d say the preposition ‘in’ is the problem.</p>
<p>Until standardized technology made the mmore affordable</p>
<p>^ Wrong sentence(ad. clause.)</p>
<p>I’d say a typo.</p>
<p>Both sentences are wrong.</p>
<p>Until standardized technology made the cell phones more affordable
^Correct</p>
<p>^^^
“Until standardized technology made the cell phones more affordable, cell phones were quite rare.” can’t be right. The repetition of “cell phones” in each of the clauses is awkward.</p>
<p>The correct sentence is; Until standardized technology made them more affordable, cell phones were quite rare. (correcting the typo “the mmore” to “them more”).</p>
<p>For the OP, there isn’t really a simple grammar rule that would help you eliminate choice D, nor is one required:
“Until they became more affordable in standardized technology, cell phones were quite rare.”</p>
<p>The phrasing of D is awkward – but more to the point, the meaning of the original sentence is lost. What does it mean to be “more affordable in standardized technology”? Eliminate this choice because it’s an unclear statement. It’s possible to correct this phrasing as by clarifying what “in” is supposed to mean:
“Until they became more affordable because they were built using standardized technology, cell phones were quite rare.” But at best this is a very awkward way of saying (E).</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>^^^^ “Until standardized technology made the cell phones more affordable, cell phones were quite rare.” can’t be right. The repetition of “cell phones” in each of the clauses is awkward.</p>
<p>I stand corrected.I agree that ‘‘using cell phones’’ two times is repititon, but it doesnt mean that it is grammatically INCORRECT.</p>
<p>Also, THANK YOU for correcting me because I wont do that mistake again(Hopefully).</p>
<p>Thanks! :)</p>