Question

Difficulty: MediumSubject-Verb Agreement

Read the sentence below. Which present-tense form of the verb 'to provide' correctly completes the sentence to maintain proper subject-verb agreement?

Answer:The detection of gravitational waves from colliding neutron stars 【provides】 astrophysicists with a new method for measuring the expansion rate of the universe.

Answer

provides
The correct verb form is the singular present-tense 'provides' because the subject of the sentence is the singular noun 'detection'. The intervening prepositional phrases 'of gravitational waves' and 'from colliding neutron stars' contain plural nouns, but they do not affect the agreement of the main verb with the singular subject.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the true subject of the sentence.
The subject is the singular noun 'detection'.
The prepositional phrases 'of gravitational waves' and 'from colliding neutron stars' modify the noun but do not change the subject of the sentence.
2
Determine the verb form that agrees with the singular subject in the present tense.
The correct verb form is the singular present-tense 'provides'.
A singular subject requires a singular verb form to maintain correct agreement.

Key Concept

Subject-verb agreement with intervening prepositional phrases
Estimated Time:45s
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