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

Question

Every spring, my grandmother tends a small vegetable garden in the courtyard behind her apartment building. ____ and I plant tomato seedlings along the sunniest wall and stake them as they grow.

Accepted Answer

C. She. The blank is part of the compound subject of the verb "plant," so the subject-case pronoun "She" is required ("She plants..." works; "Her plants..." does not have the intended meaning). (A) is the object-case form, the common error of using "her" in a compound subject. (B) is a possessive pronoun, which cannot serve as a subject here. (D) is a reflexive pronoun, which requires an antecedent in the same clause and cannot stand alone as a subject.

Answer

A. Her — "Her" is the object form; since the pronoun is part of the compound subject of "plant," you need the subject form "She" — test it alone: "She plants tomato seedlings."

Answer

B. Hers — "Hers" is a possessive pronoun standing in for something she owns, so it can't serve as the subject performing the verb "plant."

Answer

D. Herself — "Herself" is reflexive and needs an antecedent in the same clause; it can't stand alone as the subject of "plant."

Standard English Conventions practice question

Answer: C. She

Why the other answers are wrong

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