Question

The following question presents a sentence, part or all of which is underlined. Select the answer that produces the most effective sentence; your answer should make the sentence clear, exact, and free of grammatical error. It should also minimize awkwardness, ambiguity, and redundancy.

As rainfall began to decrease in the Southwest about the middle of the twelfth century, most of the Monument Valley Anasazi abandoned their homes to join other clans whose access to water was less limited.

• A. Whose access to water was less limited
• B. Where there was access to water that was less limited
• C. Where they had less limited water access
• D. With less limitations on water access
• E. Having less limitations to water access

Answer 1

The correct option is A Whose access to water was less limited

In the original sentence, the underlined clause provides a clear, correct, and succinct comparison, explaining the reason for the migration. The possessive pronoun whose correctly refers to its immediate antecedent, clans, and modifies access. For those other clans, access to water was less limited than it was for the Anasazi.

This sentence uses a clear, concise clause that correctly connects access to water with clans by using the possessive pronoun whose.