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

Question

The museum closed early on Tuesday ____ the staff needed time to install the new exhibit.

Accepted Answer

C. Tuesday; the staff. Both halves are complete sentences: 'The museum closed early on Tuesday' and 'the staff needed time to install the new exhibit.' Two independent clauses can be joined with a semicolon on its own. A comma alone or nothing at all would run them together.

Answer

A. Tuesday, the staff — A comma by itself cannot join two complete sentences — that's a comma splice. It needs a semicolon, a period, or a comma plus a conjunction such as 'because'.

Answer

B. Tuesday the staff — With no punctuation at all, two complete sentences run into each other. Some mark or joining word is needed at the boundary.

Answer

D. Tuesday: and the staff — A colon can't be followed by a coordinating conjunction like 'and'. Either the colon or the 'and' would do the joining, not both.

Standard English Conventions practice question

Answer: C. Tuesday; the staff

Why the other answers are wrong

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