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Difficulty: MediumEliminating Redundancy

In the mid-nineteenth century, the invention of the telegraph revolutionized long-distance communication. Messages that once took weeks to arrive by mail could now be transmitted in mere minutes, an innovation that was a new and unprecedented development for global commerce.

Which choice most effectively and concisely replaces the underlined portion in the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. an innovationAnswer
  3. C
    an innovation, which was a new development,
  4. D
    an innovation; which was unprecedented,

Answer

The correct option is the one that reads 'an innovation' because it is the most concise choice and avoids redundant synonyms for novelty.
The option that consists solely of 'an innovation' is correct because it provides the necessary noun phrase to describe the preceding clause while eliminating all redundant synonyms for novelty.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the underlined portion and analyze it for redundancy.
The underlined text 'an innovation that was a new and unprecedented development' contains multiple words ('innovation', 'new', 'unprecedented development') that repeat the same concept of novelty.
To correct redundancy, we must eliminate duplicate or unnecessary words that express the same meaning.
2
Evaluate the remaining options for grammatical correctness and conciseness.
The option 'an innovation' provides the necessary noun phrase without any redundant descriptions. The option 'an innovation, which was a new development,' retains the redundancy. The option 'an innovation; which was unprecedented,' introduces a grammatical error by using a semicolon to connect a dependent clause, creating a fragment.
The correct choice must be both grammatically correct and free of redundant phrasing.

Key Concept

Eliminating redundancy in a sentence requires removing unnecessary words or phrases that repeat the same meaning, while ensuring the remaining sentence is grammatically correct.
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Topics

Eliminating Redundancy

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