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Difficulty: EasyPart-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

Many plants form symbiotic partnerships with underground fungi known as mycorrhizae. These fungi grow around plant roots, effectively extending the root system into the surrounding soil. This connection allows the plant to absorb essential nutrients, such as phosphorus, far more efficiently than it could on its own. In return, the plant supplies the fungi with sugars produced during photosynthesis. This exchange is vital for both organisms' survival, particularly in nutrient-poor environments.

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?

  1. It describes a specific benefit that plants receive from the symbiotic relationship.Answer
  2. B
    It challenges the idea that the partnership is beneficial to both organisms.
  3. C
    It explains how the fungi produce sugars through photosynthesis.
  4. D
    It summarizes the overall significance of mycorrhizal partnerships in nutrient-poor environments.

Answer

It describes a specific benefit that plants receive from the symbiotic relationship.
The correct answer correctly identifies that the underlined sentence describes a benefit the plant receives from the relationship. Specifically, the sentence states that the connection allows the plant to absorb nutrients more efficiently than it could on its own.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the underlined sentence to identify its main point.
The underlined sentence states that the connection with fungi helps plants absorb nutrients like phosphorus more efficiently.
Understanding the immediate meaning of the target text is the first step in determining its function.
2
Examine how the underlined sentence relates to the surrounding text.
The preceding sentences introduce the symbiotic partnership, and the subsequent sentence describes what the plant gives in return. The underlined sentence fills the role of explaining what the plant gets out of it (the benefit).
This establishes the logical relation between the part (the underlined sentence) and the whole text.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the one that accurately matches this rhetorical function.
The option stating that the sentence describes a specific benefit plants receive from the symbiotic relationship is the only accurate choice.
This choice correctly identifies the part-to-whole function of the underlined text.

Key Concept

Identifying how a specific sentence contributes to the development of ideas in a passage
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Topics

Part-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

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