grammar question

[Arumjeni]

i have a question:

Scientists stress that the overall warming trend of the last decade holds much more significance __________ single year's temperatures
(A)any do
(B)than do any
(C)than any do
(D)do than

what is the correct answer?
please explain me...
thank you

TOEFL listening lectures: Which designer did not work at the Bauhaus?

[Beeesneees]

Hi Arumjeni,

What do you think the correct answer is?
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Cheers m' dears!

[Arumjeni]

in the answer key it's said B,
but I don't know the reason...
please explain me...
thank you...

[Beeesneees]

The key is correct.

The word ‘than’ is being used as a conjunction between clauses in a sentence where two things are being compared:
The things being compared are the overall warming trend of the last decade' and 'any single year's temperature'.
This gives us:
Scientists stress that the overall warming trend of the last decade / holds much more significance / than / any single year's temperatures.
Notice there is no verb after 'than' (yet) --
Informally, it is quite possible that you will hear similar sentences left like this without a verb after 'than', because the verb is 'assumed' from the general meaning.
However, if the final verb cannot be assumed or if the sentence needs to be formal/specific then that verb needs to be added.
In this case 'do' is added to show that a single year's temperature does/doesn't have as much significance as the overall trend:
Scientists stress that the overall warming trend of the last decade / holds much more significance / than / do/ any single year's temperatures.
_________________
Cheers m' dears!

[Arumjeni]

Thank You very much before.

I'm a little bit confused here.
Is that because "holds" word?
For example, if I have this sentence:

Ann is taller than Sue now.

We can write:

Ann becomes taller than Sue becomes.

But instead of the sentence above, we should write:

Ann becomes taller than does Sue.

Is that correct?

[Beeesneees]

You should not use 'becomes' in your example.

Ann is taller than Sue now.
Ann has grown taller than Sue (has).
Ann has grown taller than (has) Sue
- however the second verb is omitted in this simpler example because it is the same as the first verb, so the first verb applies to both.

Here, the verb is 'to have' not 'to do'
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Cheers m' dears!