Question

No attempt was made on the part of SteelCo to ensure that information that was provided to the consumer about product offerings was accurate.

• A. No attempt was made on the part of SteelCo to ensure that information that was provided to the consumer about product offerings was accurate.
• B. No attempt is made on the part of SteelCo to ensure that the consumer was provided information about product offerings that was accurate.
• C. No attempt was made on the part of SteelCo to ensure that information provided to the consumer about product offerings were accurate.
• D. There was no attempt made on the part of SteelCo to ensure the accuracy of that information provided to the consumer about product offerings.
• E. SteelCo made no attempt to ensure that the consumer received accurate information about product offerings.

Hint:

In sentence correction questions, always look for ways to make a sentence more concise. Prefer the active voice (e.g., "The company did something") over the passive voice (e.g., "Something was done by the company") when it makes the sentence clearer and more direct.

Answer 1

Answer: (E)

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This question tests for conciseness, clarity, and effective sentence construction. The original sentence is grammatically correct but suffers from wordiness and passive voice, which can make it clunky and less direct.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The original sentence uses the passive construction "No attempt was made on the part of SteelCo," which is less direct than the active voice. It also uses the wordy phrase "information that was provided." The goal is to find an option that expresses the same idea more clearly and concisely.
\[\begin{array}{rl} \bullet & \text{(A) This is the original sentence, which is correct but stylistically weak due to wordiness. } \\ \bullet & \text{(B) This option incorrectly changes the verb tense from the past ("was made") to the present ("is made"), which alters the meaning of the sentence. } \\ \bullet & \text{(C) This option contains a subject-verb agreement error. The subject is "information" (singular), but the verb used is "were" (plural). It should be "was accurate." } \\ \bullet & \text{(D) This option is also wordy and awkwardly constructed, particularly with the phrase "ensure the accuracy of that information provided." } \\ \bullet & \text{(E) This option is the best choice. It rephrases the sentence using the active voice ("SteelCo made no attempt..."), which is more direct and forceful. It also simplifies the second part of the sentence to "...that the consumer received accurate information...", which is much more concise and clearer than the original phrasing. } \\ \end{array}\]

Step 3: Final Answer:
Option (E) is the most improved version of the sentence because it uses the active voice and eliminates unnecessary words, making the statement more direct and powerful without changing its meaning.