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Difficulty: HardShifts in Construction

Read the passage below. To maintain consistency in grammatical construction and mood throughout the passage, what form of the verb 'stain' should be written in the blank?

Answer:When preparing a specimen for electron microscopy, first slice the tissue into extremely thin sections, and then rinse the sample with a buffering solution. Once the sample is prepared, 【stain】 it with a heavy metal stain to enhance the contrast of the cellular structures.

Answer

stain
The passage establishes a sequence of instructions using the imperative mood ('slice' and 'rinse'). To maintain consistency in construction and mood, the blank must also use the imperative form of the verb. The base form 'stain' functions as a command, thereby preserving the parallel grammatical structure of the directions.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the grammatical mood and construction of the preceding sentences and clauses in the passage.
The initial instructions use the imperative mood ('first slice... and then rinse...'), which issues direct commands without an explicit subject.
This establishes the established pattern of construction (imperative mood) for the instructional passage.
2
Identify the construction shift that would occur if other moods or structures were used.
Inserting indicative phrases like 'you should stain' or gerunds like 'staining' would shift the construction away from the imperative mood.
Maintaining consistent construction prevents a jarring shift in the author's tone and sentence structure.
3
Determine the correct form of the target verb 'stain' that maintains the imperative mood.
The base form 'stain' functions as an imperative verb, maintaining parallel construction with 'slice' and 'rinse'.
This completes the sentence while preserving grammatical consistency throughout the passage.

Key Concept

Shifts in Construction (Mood Consistency)
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Topics

Shifts in Construction

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