The passage below contains verbs in parentheses. To establish proper subject-verb agreement throughout the passage, what are the correct present-tense forms of the verbs that should replace the blanks?
Answer:Neither the lead researchers studying the geothermal anomalies nor the chief volcanologist supervising the project 【expects】 (expect) that the new data will contradict established models. Indeed, key among the findings that have emerged from the deep-sea expeditions 【is】 (be) the discovery of several previously unknown extremophile species.
Answer
The correct present-tense forms are 'expects' for the first blank and 'is' for the second blank.
For the first blank, the compound subject is joined by 'neither... nor', so the verb must agree with the closer subject, 'the chief volcanologist' (singular), which requires the singular present-tense form 'expects'. For the second blank, the sentence has an inverted structure where the verb precedes the subject. The subject is the singular head noun 'discovery', which requires the singular present-tense verb 'is'.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Subject-Verb Agreement
Estimated Time:1m 30s