In the 1950s, a man named Joseph McVicker was struggling to keep his business afloat when his sister-in-law Kay Zufall

Question

In the 1950s, a man named Joseph McVicker was struggling to keep his business afloat when his sister-in-law Kay Zufall advised him to repurpose the company’s product, a nontoxic, clay-like substance for removing soot from wallpaper, as a modeling putty for kids. In addition, Zufall blank selling the product under a child-friendly name: Play-Doh.

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

Accepted Answer

Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of verbs to express tense. In this choice, the simple past tense verb &ldquo;suggested&rdquo; properly indies that Zufall offered her suggestion for the product&rsquo;s name in the past. This verb tense is consistent with the previous sentence&rsquo;s use of a simple past tense verb (&ldquo;advised&rdquo;) to describe Zufall&rsquo;s advice to McVicker in the 1950s. Choice B is incorrect because the present tense verb &ldquo;suggests&rdquo; doesn&rsquo;t indie that Zufall offered her suggestion in the past. Choice C is incorrect because the past perfect verb &ldquo;had suggested&rdquo; isn&rsquo;t consistent with the previous sentence&rsquo;s use of the simple past tense verb &ldquo;advised&rdquo; to describe Zufall&rsquo;s advice to McVicker. Choice D is incorrect because the past progressive verb &ldquo;was suggesting&rdquo; isn&rsquo;t consistent with the previous sentence&rsquo;s use of the simple past tense verb &ldquo;advised&rdquo; to describe Zufall&rsquo;s advice to McVicker.

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