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Difficulty: MediumVerb Tense and Consistency

The passage below is about computer pioneer Grace Hopper. Read the passage and determine the correct form of the verb 'reduce' to fill in the blank so that the paragraph maintains consistent verb tense. What is the correct form of the verb?

Answer:In 1952, computer scientist Grace Hopper completed the A-0 compiler, a groundbreaking program that translated mathematical code into machine-readable language. Before Hopper's invention, programmers had to write unique machine code for every new program, a tedious process that took weeks. By translating English-like commands into binary code, Hopper's compiler 【reduced】 the time required to write software and paved the way for modern programming.

Answer

reduced
The correct verb form is 'reduced'. The passage describes historical events that occurred in 1952, established by past-tense verbs like 'completed' and 'translated' earlier in the paragraph. Furthermore, the blank is part of a compound predicate joined by 'and' with the past-tense verb 'paved' ('compiler reduced... and paved'). To maintain verb tense consistency, the past-tense form 'reduced' must be used.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the temporal context of the passage.
The passage describes events in the past (specifically 1952) and uses past-tense verbs such as 'completed', 'translated', 'had to', and 'took'.
Establishing the time frame of the passage is necessary to determine the correct tense for consistency.
2
Examine the structure of the target sentence.
The target sentence contains a compound predicate: 'Hopper's compiler [blank] the time... and paved the way...'. The second verb in this compound predicate is 'paved', which is in the simple past tense.
Verbs sharing the same subject in a compound predicate must maintain consistent tense unless there is a logical reason to shift.
3
Conjugate the verb 'reduce' to match the established tense.
The simple past tense of 'reduce' is 'reduced'.
Using 'reduced' ensures grammatical consistency with 'completed', 'translated', and 'paved'.

Key Concept

Verb Tense and Consistency
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Topics

Verb Tense and Consistency

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