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

Question

The city's new bike-share program has grown faster than officials predicted. Since the first stations opened in March, more than four thousand ____ have signed up for monthly memberships, and twenty additional stations are now planned.

Accepted Answer

C. riders. The blank names the people performing the action of the plural verb "have signed up," and nothing in the sentence belongs to them, so the simple plural "riders" is correct. (A) is the singular possessive, which both mismatches the plural verb and wrongly signals possession. (B) is the plural possessive, the error of adding an apostrophe to a plural that shows no ownership. (D) is a nonstandard form; a regular plural ending in -s never adds an extra -'s.

Answer

A. rider's — This is the singular possessive, so it clashes with the plural verb "have signed up" and wrongly says something belongs to one rider — nothing in the sentence is owned here.

Answer

B. riders' — You added an apostrophe to a plural that shows no ownership; the riders don't possess anything in this sentence, they simply perform the action.

Answer

D. riders's — A regular plural already ending in -s never takes an extra -'s; this form doesn't exist in Standard English.

Standard English Conventions practice question

Answer: C. riders

Why the other answers are wrong

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