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Difficulty: EasyParallel Structure

When setting up a new saltwater aquarium, hobbyists must regularly monitor the water temperature, test the salinity levels, and performing frequent water changes to keep the fish healthy.

Which of the following is the best replacement for the underlined portion?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. performAnswer
  3. C
    performed
  4. D
    to perform

Answer

The correct answer is 'perform'.
The correct option is 'perform' because it is a base form verb that is grammatically parallel to the other verbs in the series, 'monitor' and 'test'. All three actions are governed by the modal verb 'must'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the list of actions in the sentence and determine their grammatical structure.
The sentence lists three actions following the auxiliary verb 'must': 'monitor' and 'test'. Both are base form verbs (bare infinitives).
Parallel structure requires all elements in a list or series to share the same grammatical form.
2
Analyze the underlined word to see if it matches the established pattern.
The word 'performing' is a present participle, which does not match the base verb form of 'monitor' and 'test'.
Using a different verb form breaks the parallelism of the list.
3
Choose the option that matches the base verb form.
The base verb 'perform' completes the list parallelly: 'monitor', 'test', and 'perform'.
This maintains the grammatical consistency and correctness of the sentence.

Key Concept

Parallel structure in lists of verbs
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Parallel Structure

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