Identifying the Grammatical Error

This question asks us to find a grammatical error in the provided sentence. The sentence is broken down into three parts: (a), (b), and (c). We need to check each part for any mistakes. Option (d) suggests there might be no error at all.

Analyzing Part (a): 'The unfair distribution'

This part sets up the topic. 'Distribution' is a noun, meaning the act of sharing something out. 'Unfair' is an adjective describing this distribution. The phrase 'The unfair distribution' is grammatically correct and makes sense.

Analyzing Part (b): 'of assets among the family members'

This phrase explains more about the distribution. 'Of assets' tells us what was distributed. 'Among the family members' tells us who received the assets. We use 'among' when talking about three or more people or items. Since 'family members' implies multiple people, using 'among' is correct here. This part is grammatically sound.

Analyzing Part (c): 'angered the more hardworking members of the familyowned firm.'

This part describes the effect of the unfair distribution. The key phrase here is 'the more hardworking members'. Let's look closely:

• The word 'hardworking' is an adjective describing the members.
• 'More hardworking' is the comparative form of the adjective. Comparative adjectives are used when we compare two things (e.g., 'John is more hardworking than Peter').
• 'Most hardworking' is the superlative form, used when comparing three or more things to identify the one with the highest degree (e.g., 'Sarah is the most hardworking student in the class').
• In this sentence, the phrase 'the more hardworking members' is awkward. It suggests a comparison, but it doesn't clearly state who or what is being compared against. It's generally better to use simply 'the hardworking members' if you are just describing them, or 'the most hardworking members' if you mean they worked harder than everyone else in the group. The use of 'more' here without a specified comparison makes the sentence grammatically questionable.

Because of the awkward and potentially incorrect use of the comparative adjective 'more hardworking' without a clear comparative context, this part of the sentence contains the error.

Summary of the Identified Error

The error lies in the usage of 'more hardworking' in part (c). Standard English grammar typically requires either the base adjective ('hardworking') or the superlative adjective ('most hardworking') in this context, rather than the comparative form 'more hardworking' unless a specific comparison is being made explicit.