16Hit1600
Standard English ConventionsVery hardAgreement with a subject that follows the verb

Standard English Conventions practice question

Among the artefacts recovered from the wreck ____ a bronze astrolabe of remarkable precision.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

  1. A. wasCorrect
  2. B. were
  3. C. are
  4. D. have been

Answer: A. was

The sentence is inverted: the subject, 'a bronze astrolabe', comes AFTER the verb. It's singular, and 'recovered' sets the past, so the verb is 'was'.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. were
'were' agrees with 'artefacts', but 'artefacts' is inside the opening phrase. The subject is the singular 'astrolabe'.
C. are
'are' is plural and present; the subject is singular and the context is past.
D. have been
'have been' is plural. One astrolabe: 'was'.

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