Standard English ConventionsHardColon before an explanation
Standard English Conventions practice question
Visitors are often alarmed to feel the footbridge move, but the reason it sways is ____ it was engineered to flex with the wind rather than resist it.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
- A. simple:Correct
- B. simple;
- C. simple,
- D. simple
Answer: A. simple:
The second clause explains the first, and a colon introduces that explanation: 'The reason the bridge sways is simple: it was designed to.'
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. simple;
- A semicolon merely links; the colon signals that what follows explains 'simple.'
- C. simple,
- A comma splices the two complete clauses.
- D. simple
- No punctuation runs the clauses together.
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