16Hit1600
Standard English ConventionsHardModifier placement

Standard English Conventions practice question

____ the fishermen mended their nets on the quay.

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

  1. A. Waiting for the tide,Correct
  2. B. Waiting for the tide
  3. C. The tide waiting,
  4. D. Having been waited for by the tide,

Answer: A. Waiting for the tide,

The fishermen are waiting, and the phrase is set off with a comma.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. Waiting for the tide
The opening phrase needs a comma.
C. The tide waiting,
Makes the tide wait.
D. Having been waited for by the tide,
Reverses who waits for whom.

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