如何攻克GMAT SC部分-Doing (現在分詞)的用法？

07-17

作者：本質教育-CEO 李澤宇

?Sentence Correction (SC) 是GMAT中比較困難的一種題型，其考察的是正式書面英語語法(Formal WrittenEnglish Grammar)，本文就以GMAT中考察的doing(現在分詞present participle)為例，探討如何攻克GMAT Sentence Correction。

1. 解題步驟

例1：(Difficulty Level: 700) The Wallerstein study indicates that even after a decade young men andwomen still experience some of the effects of a divorce occurring when achild.

(A) occurring whena child

(B) occurring whenchildren

(D) that occurredwhen they were children

(E) that hasoccurred as each was a child

如上題，GMAT需要從5個選項中找到「Best Choice」，其中A選項和劃線部分一模一樣，即劃線部分本身可以是「best」。我們接下來逐漸來定義什麼叫做」Best Choice」。

以下是解決SC的步驟：

第一步：讀完句子，並看懂其意思。

第二步:盯住劃線部分和常見考點（例如doing），你能找出什麼明顯的錯誤嗎？記住

(1) thebest GMAT choice has no grammatical mistake (沒有語法錯誤)

(2)the best GMAT choice has no logical mistake (沒有表意上的邏輯錯誤，你現在理解為什麼要讀懂句子意思了吧)

本文中第一個語法錯誤就是when a child

「when」這裡引導的是時間狀語從句(adverbial clause of time)，而既然是從句(clause)，後面應該跟一句話，例如：

I will come to visit you when it does notrain tomorrow.

在從句「when it does not rain tomorrow」中，我們有完整的一句話，而題目中」when a child」只有一個名詞短語「a child」，這叫做狀語從句的省略(ellipsis in adverbial clause)。正確的形式有：

When/where/if/whereas等連詞 + adj phrase/doing phrase/done phrase

而通常：When/where/if/whereas等連詞 + n phrase/prep phrase是錯誤的。例外就是Whatever + nphrase or once + n phrase/prep phrase是正確的。

因此when a child是錯誤的。

第三步：當我們找到一個錯誤後，迅速的掃描後續的選項，排除那些具有相同錯誤的選項

注意，是掃描而不是精讀，這是我們快速解題的竅門之一：

本題中，A) when a child, B) when children, C)when a child都是錯誤的，因此我們只剩下兩個選項：D或E

第四步：當我們剩下2個或3個選項時候，比較他們，問題一定出在不同處（儘管不是每一個不同處都有問題）

這也是我們加速解題的竅門，D和E的明顯不同為時態，when they were children / as each was a child都明確指出是過去的動作，因此應該用過去時而非現在完成時，因此選D。

這就是我們解決GMAT Sentence Correction的步驟，我們通過快速的排除錯誤的選項，剩下的就一定是正確的了。

我也藉助本題引入關於分詞的第一個用法：

2. 分詞的基本用法：

在英文中，現在分詞（doing）通常用作定語修飾名詞或者狀語修飾動詞。區別很簡單，當修飾名詞時，分詞必須緊跟所修飾的名詞，不能用逗號隔開，而做狀語時通常需要用逗號和主句隔開。

例如：

（1）The wind blowing from the west is strong.

（2）Blowing from the west, the wind is strong.

第一句分詞短語blowing from the west緊跟名詞wind後，因此用來修飾名詞wind。

第二句分詞短語blowing from the west用逗號和主句隔開，作為狀語修飾謂語is strong。

Rule1: 現在分詞做定語與定語從句的區別

現在分詞做定語，強調動作的持續性或者重複性(continuation of an action or repetitiveness of the action)。而定語從句強調動作的一次性。例1不應該使用分詞，否則就表示這些人divorce又結婚接著又divorce接著又結婚…持續不斷 –illogical! 因此正確答案D用了定語從句，而這也是A,B錯誤的另一個原因。

3. 分詞的邏輯主語(logical subject)：

分詞的邏輯主語是GMAT的一大考點。所謂邏輯主語就是doing這個動作的發出者。

Rule2: 當分詞做定語時，其邏輯主語是其修飾的名詞。當分詞做狀語時，其邏輯主語是其修飾的動詞的主語。

（1）The wind blowing from the west is strong.

這句blowing from the west是用來修飾wind的，因此，blowing這個動作的發出者，即其邏輯主語，就是wind。

（2）Blowing from thewest, I feel that the wind is strong.

這句話blowing from the west用逗號和主句隔開，因此是用來修飾主語的謂語feel的，因此blowing的邏輯主語是feel的主語，即I。因此其意思為「I blow from the west. I feel the wind is strong」因此是錯誤的，需要改為：

Blowing from the west, the wind is strong according to my perception.

例2：（Difficulty Level: 600）Using a Doppler ultrasound device, fetal heartbeat scan be detected by the twelfth week of pregnancy.

(A) Using a Doppler ultrasound device, fetal heart-beats can be detected by the twelfthweek of pregnancy.

(B) Fetal heartbeats can be detected by the twelfth week of pregnancy, using a Doppler ultrasound device.

(D) By the twelfth week of pregnancy, fetal heartbeats can be detected using a Doppler ultrasound device by a physician.

(E) Using a Doppler ultrasound device, a physician can detect fetal heartbeats by the twelfth week of pregnancy.

這裡，同學們看到「using」就應該高興起來，這就是考點，對這類考點要非常熟悉，看到分詞，立馬就應該考慮邏輯主語問題：

「」Using a Doppler ultrasound device」用逗號隔開，因此是做狀語修飾can be detected。因此「using」的邏輯主語是fetal heartbeats (嬰兒的心跳), fetal heartbeat scannot use anything!因此是illogical。同樣的錯誤我們可以排除B, D

剩下的選項就是C,E。

正確的答案是E，要記住：

(1) the best GMAT choice has no grammatical mistake (沒有語法錯誤)

(2) the best GMAT choice has no logical mistake(沒有表意上的邏輯錯誤，你現在理解為什麼要讀懂句子意思了吧)

(3)the best GMAT choice should NOT change the original (underlying part) correct meaning （如果原文的意思是沒邏輯問題的，不能改！）

C選項把情態動詞「can」的位置移動，a physician canuse a Doppler ultrasound device醫生能用超聲波儀器，改變了原文的合理意思了！

練習：（Difficulty Level: 700）A star will compress itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or ablack hole after it passes through a red giant stage, depending on mass.

(A) A star will compress itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole after it passes through a red giant stage, depending on mass.

(B) After passing through a red giant stage, depending on its mass, a star will compress itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole.

(C) After passing through a red giant stage, a star』s mass will determine if it compresses itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole.

(D) Mass determines whether a star, after passing through the red giant stage, will compress itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole.

(E) The mass ofa star, after passing through the red giant stage, will determine whether it compresses itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole.

答案：D

A,B中depending的邏輯主語是a star，這是illogical的，不是star depends on its mass, 而是compressing itself into a white dwarf, a neutron star, or a black hole這個行為depends on its mass.

E中」after passing through the red giant stage」中的passing雖然不是現在分詞，而是動名詞，也有同樣的邏輯主語要求，其邏輯主語變成了the mass of a star，核心詞是mass -> mass passes through the red giant stage -> illogical

C的問題在於代詞it的指代，it只能指代名詞mass (star』s做定語不是名詞，無法指代) mass compress itself into… - illogical.

Rule4: 當現在分詞放在句末用逗號和主句隔開時，其可以作為結果狀語，整個主句成為其邏輯主語

例3. (Difficulty level: 650) The cameras of the Voyager II spacecraft detected six small, previously unseen moons circling Uranus, which doubles to twelve the number of satellites now known as orbiting the distant planet.

(A) which doubles to twelve the number of satellites now known as orbiting

(B) doubling to twelve the number of satellites now known to orbit

(D) doubling to twelve the number of satellites now known as orbiting

(E) which doubles to twelve the number of satellites now known that orbit

首先，在非限制性定語從句中，which只能指代就近的名詞– Uranus

而Uranus doubles thenumber of satellites to 12不符合邏輯，不是這個行星doubles the number to 12，而是前面整句話「The cameras of the Voyager II spacecraft detectedsix small, previously unseen moons」 doubles the number to 12!

因此，只有doing可以放在句末可以做得到，因為其邏輯主語是前面整句話。

Be known as sth

Be known to do sth

是英文的習慣用法(idiom)，因此本題選擇B。

4. 現在分詞的時態

現在分詞有兩種時態，現在式即doing和過去式– having done

Rule 5. 注意，現在分詞的過去式只能用於修飾動詞，做狀語，表示having done的動作發生在所修飾的動詞之前，而不能做定語。

例如： Having been impressed by Tom』s talents during the interview, Robert decided to give him a job.

「Having been impressed」用逗號隔開做狀語修飾動詞decided，表示「having been impressed」這個動作發生在decided之前。在這裡構成因果關係，因此作原因狀語。

例4. （Difficulty Level: 700）Cajuns speak a dialect brought to southern Louisiana by the four thousand Acadians who migrated there in 1755; their language is basicallyseventeenth-century French to which has been added English, Spanish, andItalian words.

(A) to which has been added English, Spanish, and Italian words

(B) added to which is English, Spanish, and Italian words

(D) with English, Spanish, and Italian words having been added to it

(E) and, in addition, English, Spanish, and Italian words are added

這題定語從句「to which has been added English, Spanish, and Italian words」中用了全倒裝（介詞短語提前），正常的語序是：

English,Spanish, and Italian words has been added to which = French

因此，明顯的有主謂一致的問題，應該改has為have，因此可以立馬排除A,B

D中having been added to it放在名詞words之後作定語是錯誤的，正如我們說的，現在分詞的過去式不能用於修飾名詞。

E中added to where不知道，改變了原句的合理意思，因此本題的答案是C。

5. 分詞的語態

分詞有主動語態,即doing和被動語態,即beingdone

Rule 5. 分詞的被動語態除了被動外，還強調動作的持續性或者重複性。

例5 (Difficulty Level: 700) Having the right hand and arm being crippled by a sniper』s bullet during the First World War, Horace Pippin, aBlack American painter, worked by holding the brush in his right hand andguiding its movements with his left.

(A) Having the right hand and arm being crippled by a sniper』s bullet during the First WorldWar

(B) In spite ofhis right hand and arm being crippled by a sniper』s bullet during the First World War

(D) The righthand and arm being crippled by a sniper』s bullet during the First World War

(E) His righthand and arm crippled by a sniper』s bullet during the First World War

本題用了分詞的被動語態 – beingcrippled，表示right hand and arm被打殘了，又治好了，又打殘了…持續不斷 – illogical! 因此排除A, B, D

C中有明確的時間狀語during the First World War，因此應該用過去時而非過去完成時（過去完成時表示過去的過去），而且其也改變了原句的合理意思。因此正確答案是E。這是一個獨立主格結構(absolute phrase)。

6. Informal Use of Doing

Rule 6:在正式書面英語中，A』s doing, for doing表示目的（表示原因是可以的），being +n/adj/prep都是錯誤的結構

例6 (Difficulty Level:650) Although she had signed a pledge of abstinence while being an adolescent, Frances Willard was 35 years old before she chose to become a temperance activist.

(A) while being an adolescent

(B) while in adolescence

(D) as being inadolescence

(E) as an adolescent

Being an adolescent是being + n結構，因此是錯誤的，同樣的C中being adolescent, D中de being in adolescence均是錯誤的。而B是狀語從句的省略，while + prep是錯誤的結構（見例1），因此本題選E。

這樣我們就涵蓋了GMAT考察現在分詞的幾乎所有內容了。同學們需要對這些考點非常熟悉，從今以後，看到GMAT SC中出現分詞，立馬就要興奮起來，利用好這些rules和我們的解題步驟，搞定GMAT Sentence Correction!