Question

A student is writing a social studies report for class. Read the paragraph from the student report and answer the question that follows. After the Louisiana Purchase, the territory of the United States increased by a lot. The land gained stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the border of Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and meant that the United States controlled twice as much territory as it did before 1803. The purchase was an important achievement of President Jefferson. The student wants to replace the underlined phrase with something more precise. Which replacement BEST fits the author’s intended purpose and audience?

Answer 1

To provide a more precise replacement for "increased by a lot," the student could consider using "doubled" or "expanded significantly." These options convey a clearer sense of the magnitude of the increase in territory.

For instance, the revised sentence could read:

"After the Louisiana Purchase, the territory of the United States doubled."

This phrase maintains the intended meaning while being more concise and precise, thus better fitting the author's purpose and audience.