Chapter 6-Comparisons, page 95: Like

[yo4561]

it is mentioned that "like" can compare noun phrases. Can you provide more clarity on what constitutes a noun phrase? Can a noun phrase include modifiers as long as there is no working verb (e.g. the man with the ugly sweater)? Does the noun phrase need another noun phrase to be parallel when using the word like to make a comparison, or can you compare nouns to noun phrases?"

[esledge]

A noun phrase is a group of words that acts like a noun in a sentence, so there are often modifiers included in them. Some examples are bolded:
Luann could not wait to eat the fancy birthday cake.
The responsibility to plan the party fell to Gary.
Breaking the pinata was the highlight of the party.
The man with the ugly sweater said that he had never had more fun.

Does the noun phrase need another noun phrase to be parallel when using the word like to make a comparison, or can you compare nouns to noun phrases?"

You can compare a noun to a noun phrase:
Dee was as skeptical as the guy most recently hired.

But there are some restrictions that the GMAT generally follows. For example, -ing words used as nouns generally are not parallel to just nouns or modified nouns. Let the splits in the answers guide you; you probably won't have to worry about slight mismatches of this type, and if you do see them, some other issue might eliminate the choice more easily.

[yo4561]

A noun phrase is a group of words that acts like a noun in a sentence, so there are often modifiers included in them. Some examples are bolded:
Luann could not wait to eat the fancy birthday cake.
The responsibility to plan the party fell to Gary.
Breaking the pinata was the highlight of the party.
The man with the ugly sweater said that he had never had more fun.

Does the noun phrase need another noun phrase to be parallel when using the word like to make a comparison, or can you compare nouns to noun phrases?"

You can compare a noun to a noun phrase:
Dee was as skeptical as the guy most recently hired.

But there are some restrictions that the GMAT generally follows. For example, -ing words used as nouns generally are not parallel to just nouns or modified nouns. Let the splits in the answers guide you; you probably won't have to worry about slight mismatches of this type, and if you do see them, some other issue might eliminate the choice more easily.

Thank you Emily so much for all of your help. You are so kind and very clear with your explanations. So when you say -ing words cannot be compared to nouns, do you mean "Like skiing (-ing noun), Hannah (noun) XYZ." In other words, it would be illogical to make this comparison because -ing words cannot be compared to plain nouns? Also, what is a modified noun? Thank you again

[esledge]

Thank you Emily so much for all of your help. You are so kind and very clear with your explanations. So when you say -ing words cannot be compared to nouns, do you mean "Like skiing (-ing noun), Hannah (noun) XYZ." In other words, it would be illogical to make this comparison because -ing words cannot be compared to plain nouns? Also, what is a modified noun? Thank you again

Thank you! Happy to help.

Yes, your "Like skiing, Hannah does something..." example is what I mean. And that illogical result is indeed the likely reason -ing nouns are generally not compared to plain nouns. There's always the possibility of exceptions, but I just can't think of any right now!

A modified noun is just any plain noun with modifier description included (often adjectives or prepositional phrases). In the example below, "abstract" is a modifier of "sculptures."

Probably wrong: I enjoy skiing and abstract sculptures.
(A person can enjoy both of these things, but what ABOUT abstract sculptures do I enjoy? The lack of the -ing parallelism we'd normally expect really highlights the ambiguity.)

Correct: I enjoy skiing and creating abstract sculptures.