"which" usage & gerund

[QingqingW554]

Hi dear instructors,

Could I ask you several sentences that made me feel puzzled? I saw the first sentence from GMAT Official Guide and the second sentence from GMAT Verbal.

1:
Gusty westerly winds will continue to usher a seasonably cool air mass into the region while a broad area of high pressure builds, which will bring fair and dry weather for several days.

my question is : regarding to the meaning of this sentence, which part of this sentence does "which will bring fair ............ " modify ??

I think "which will bring fair ............ " modifies "a broad area of high pressure builds" , since it is the happening of this event that will make weather turn good.

2:
the term “graphic design” may suggest corporate brochure and annual report layout.
the term “graphic design” may suggest laying out corporate brochures and annual reports.

My question is : Is there any difference between these two sentences ??

Thanks in advance!


Best Regards
Qing

[Sage Pearce-Higgins]

In the first sentence, the "which" is modifying "a broad area of high pressure". Sure, it's an unusual example, as there's a verb between the noun and the which. Here's an article that mentions it: https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/blog ... on-part-3/

For your second question, I would say that there's a meaning difference. 'Laying out' is an activity - it's what graphic designers do - whereas 'layout' refers to the shape and organisation of items on a page. Take these (correct) examples:

Laying out corporate brochures is a fun job.
The corporate brochure layout says a lot about the company.