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Question

Difficulty: MediumColons

In the field of dendrochronology, scientists analyze the growth rings of ancient trees to reconstruct past climate conditions; they look for a specific pattern: narrow rings indicating years of severe drought.

Which of the following options is the best punctuation for the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. pattern: narrow rings indicatingAnswer
  2. B
    pattern, they are narrow rings indicating
  3. C
    pattern. Since narrow rings indicate
  4. D
    pattern of: narrow rings that indicate

Answer

The correct punctuation uses a colon after the independent clause to introduce the explanation of the specific pattern.
The correct option correctly uses a colon after an independent clause to introduce a clarifying phrase that defines the pattern.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the clause preceding the punctuation mark.
The clause 'they look for a specific pattern' can stand alone as a complete sentence, meaning it is an independent clause.
A colon must always be preceded by a complete, independent clause.
2
Evaluate the relationship between the preceding independent clause and the following information.
The phrase 'narrow rings indicating years of severe drought' directly defines and amplifies what 'a specific pattern' refers to.
A colon is the appropriate punctuation mark to introduce an explanation, definition, list, or amplification after an independent clause.
3
Examine the alternative options for grammatical correctness.
The alternatives create structural errors: one creates a comma splice, another creates a sentence fragment starting with a subordinating conjunction, and the last incorrectly places a colon after a preposition.
Selecting the correct choice requires eliminating options that violate punctuation rules.

Key Concept

Colons must be preceded by an independent clause and are used to introduce explanations, lists, or clarifications.
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Colons

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