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Difficulty: MediumVerb Tense and Consistency

The paragraph below describes the history of Irish lace making. Which form of the verb in parentheses correctly completes the passage while maintaining consistent verb tense?

Answer:During the mid-nineteenth century, Irish lace makers created intricate patterns that became highly sought after in fashion capitals across Europe. By exporting these delicate textiles, families (sustain) 【sustained】 their livelihoods during the devastating famine, proving that traditional crafts could serve as vital economic lifelines.

Answer

sustained
The correct answer is 'sustained' because the passage describes historical events that occurred in the mid-nineteenth century. The surrounding verbs, such as 'created' and 'became', establish a simple past tense narrative, requiring the verb 'sustain' to be conjugated in the past tense to maintain consistency.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the surrounding verbs in the passage to determine the primary tense.
The verbs 'created' and 'became' are in the simple past tense, establishing a past-tense narrative timeline.
Verb tenses in a paragraph must remain consistent unless there is a logical reason to shift timeframes.
2
Examine the sentence containing the blank to see if there is any indication of a time shift.
The sentence describes events that occurred during the mid-nineteenth century famine, which is in the past, so the past tense must be maintained.
The historical context confirms that the action of sustaining livelihoods occurred in the same past timeframe as the creation of the lace.
3
Conjugate the base verb 'sustain' to match the established past tense.
The past tense form of 'sustain' is 'sustained'.
Using the past tense 'sustained' maintains grammatical consistency with the other past-tense verbs in the passage.

Key Concept

Verb Tense and Consistency
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Topics

Verb Tense and Consistency

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