Practice: Verb Forms Foundations

Front

Future e-sports 'athletes' interested in playing for UC Irvine, Miami University, and Maryville University often _____________ their skills in a practice game before earning status as a top recruit.

Back

to prove

Answer explanation

Explanation

Choice 'D' is the correct answer. This question is asking you to use the correct verb form. The sentence is explaining what potential players "have to" do before becoming top recruits. They "have to prove" their skills to these top e-sports schools.

Explanation of Distractors

Choice 'A' is incorrect. E-sports 'athletes' aren't currently proving their skills right now. The present progressive would not be the best option because it suggests the action is ongoing in the present but not in a constant ongoing state.

Choice 'B' is incorrect. The future progressive suggests that these 'athletes' will be doing this in the future. The sentence suggests that they "have to" do this, not necessarily that all will do this.

Choice 'C' is incorrect. 'Athletes' is plural, so the plural verb form "have" is needed and not the singular verb form 'has.'

Front

Complete the sentence: Professional headshots are a must in many industries, but the cost of a professional headshot package from a photographer can be astronomical, with some photographers charging $500 or more. As an alternative, new AI-powered self-service headshot photo booths are popping up around the country. _____________this service, a person need only make an appointment, arrive at the studio, sit in a chair in the 'pod' with professional-grade lighting, and follow the onscreen instructions as the AI takes, retakes, and retouches the photos in real time.

Back

to use

Answer explanation

Explanation

Choice 'B' is the correct answer. This question is asking you to use the correct infinitive verb form. The sentence is describing the steps a person needs to take "to use" this service.

Explanation of Distractors

Choice 'A' is incorrect. This option lacks clarity because it is unclear who or what is in "use of this service."

Choice 'C' is incorrect. This may be tempting, but "using" is a progressive construction, and the context of the sentence is such that the implication is not that a person is currently "using" the service but rather may want "to use" it in the future.

Choice 'D' is incorrect. This option suggests that someone has already used the service. The sentence makes clear that the author is going to give information about what a person must do in order "to use" the service.

Front

Recent discoveries in marine biology reveal that octopuses and squids _____________ their RNA with red ink but leave their DNA unchanged. Some scientists posit that this RNA editing may increase the cephalopods' intelligence.

Back

to edit

Answer explanation

CORRECT ANSWER

Choice 'D' is correct. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The plural verb "edit" agrees in number with the compound subject "octopuses and squids."

DISTRACTORS

Choice 'A' is incorrect because the singular verb "edits" does not agree in number with the compound subject "octopuses and squids."

Choice 'B' is incorrect because the singular verb "is editing" does not agree in number with the compound subject "octopuses and squids." Furthermore, the present continuous tense ("is editing") refers to an action in progress and does not match the present tense of the second verb "leave."

Choice 'C' is incorrect because the future tense verb "will edit" does not match the present tense of the second verb "leave."

Front

Writing Things Fall Apart in response to Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Chinua Achebe _____________ his main character Okonkwo in a Nigerian setting rather than one in the Congo.

Back

to place

Answer explanation

Explanation

CORRECT ANSWER

Choice 'A' is correct. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The singular verb "places" agrees with the singular subject "Chinua Achebe."

DISTRACTORS

Choice 'B' is incorrect because the plural verb "have placed" does not agree with the singular subject "Chinua Achebe." Additionally, it is customary to use present literary tense to discuss works of literature rather than the present perfect of "have placed." Present perfect tense refers to an action that begins in the past and continues in the present.

Choice 'C' is incorrect because the future tense ("will place") creates a confusing and illogical sentence.

Choice 'D' is incorrect because the plural verb "place" does not agree with the singular subject "Chinua Achebe."

Front

Spiders from the family Ctenizidae, often called trapdoor spiders, ______ their burrows with doors, using their silk for hinges.

Back

to cover

Answer explanation

Notice that each choice includes the same verb conjugated in a different tense. This tells us that the question is focused on verb forms.

So what verb form should we be using here? Well let's look for context clues.

Nothing suggests that this sentence is happening at a certain point in time (e.g., the past or the future). Instead, this sentence states a fact that is generally true regardless of time. This means we should use the simple present tense.

Only choice A uses the simple present tense. Choice A is the answer.

Front

Botanists recognize over fifty different species of sunflower, and variance exists even in those species. One species, the silverleaf sunflower, ______ both an early-flowering ecotype that tends to grow in coastal areas and a late-flowering ecotype that grows inland.

Back

to encompass

Answer explanation

• A encompasses

• This choice creates a sentence fragment. The present participle "encompassing" can't serve as a verb on its own, which leaves the sentence without a main verb.

• (Choice B)  

  to encompass

  B

  to encompass

  This choice creates a sentence fragment. The infinitive form "to encompass" can't serve as a verb on its own, which leaves the sentence without a main verb.

• (Choice C, Checked, Correct)  

  encompasses

  Correct (selected)

  encompasses

  This is the best choice. The simple present tense verb "encompasses" is used appropriately to state a general fact.

• (Choice D)  

  having encompassed

  D

  having encompassed

  This choice creates a sentence fragment. The participle phrase "having encompassed" can't serve as a verb on its own, which leaves the sentence without a main verb.

Front

Antarctic pearlwort, a low-growing shrub with characteristic yellow flowers, is one of only two native flowering plants which ______ in Antarctica.

Back

to occur

Answer explanation

• were occurring

  This choice creates a verb form error. The past progressive verb "were occurring" shouldn't be used to express this general fact (disconnected from time). Notice that "were occurring" doesn't match the simple present tense verb "is" used earlier in the sentence.

• (Choice B, Checked, Correct)  

  occur

  Correct (selected)

  occur

  This is the best choice. The simple present tense "occur" is appropriate for describing a general fact (like this sentence does). Also, notice that "occur" matches the simple present tense "is" used earlier in the sentence.

• (Choice C)  

  are occurring

  C

  are occurring

  This choice creates a verb form error. The present progressive verb "are occurring" shouldn't be used to express this general fact (which is disconnected from time). Notice that "are occurring" doesn't match the simple present tense verb "is" used earlier in the sentence.

• (Choice D)  

  will have occurred

  D

  will have occurred

  This choice creates a verb form error. The future perfect verb "will have occurred" shouldn't be used to express this general fact (disconnected from time). Notice that "will have occurred" doesn't match the simple present tense verb "is" used earlier in the sentence.

Front

Before the museum closed permanently, it faced financial challenges that ______ a large deficit and declining ticket sale revenues.

Back

to include

Answer explanation

• include

  This choice creates a verb form error. Notice that the present tense verb "include" doesn't match the time frame indicated by the sentence. Context clues like "before the museum closed" and the past tense verb "faced" indicate that the actions in the sentence occurred in the past.

• (Choice B)  

  will include

  B

  will include

  This choice creates a verb form error. Notice that the future tense verb "will include" doesn't match the time frame indicated by the sentence. Context clues like "before the museum closed" and the past tense verb "faced" indicate that the actions in the sentence occurred in the past.

• (Choice C)  

  would include

  C

  would include

  This choice creates a verb form error. The sentence describes factual challenges faced by the museum, so the conditional verb "would include" doesn't make sense here.

• (Choice D, Checked, Correct)  

  included

  Correct (selected)

  included

  This is the best choice. The simple past tense verb "included" matches the past tense verb "faced" and corresponds to the time frame indicated by the sentence ("before the museum closed").