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Difficulty: MediumIdiomatic Word Choice

The sudden deterioration of the sixteenth-century painting was attributed to the high humidity levels in the gallery, which accelerated the breakdown of its organic pigments.

Which of the following choices best completes the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. NO CHANGEAnswer
  2. B
    attributed from
  3. C
    attributed by
  4. D
    attributed with

Answer

NO CHANGE
The correct idiomatic expression is 'attributed to' when explaining that something is the cause of a particular result. The option 'NO CHANGE' correctly uses this preposition to show that the high humidity caused the painting to deteriorate.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the relationship between the deterioration of the painting and the high humidity levels.
The high humidity levels are identified as the cause of the deterioration.
This establishes that the sentence requires an idiomatic construction linking an effect to its cause.
2
Evaluate the idiom required for the verb 'attributed' in this context.
The correct preposition to pair with 'attributed' when linking an effect to its cause is 'to'.
English idiom rules require the pattern 'attribute [something] to [a cause]' or '[something] is attributed to [a cause]'.
3
Compare the options against the correct idiomatic form.
The option 'NO CHANGE' preserves 'attributed to', whereas the other options use incorrect prepositions ('from', 'by', 'with').
Selecting the correct preposition ensures the sentence is idiomatically and grammatically correct.

Key Concept

Idiomatic Preposition Usage
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Topics

Idiomatic Word Choice

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