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Question

Difficulty: MediumSentence Reordering and Placement

[1] Leafcutter ants are renowned for their highly structured colonies and complex agricultural practices. [2] They do not actually eat the leaves they harvest; instead, they use them to cultivate a specialized fungus that serves as the colony’s primary food source. [3] This fungal garden requires constant maintenance and protection from foreign contaminants. [4] To safeguard their crop, the ants secrete potent antibiotics from glands on their bodies to suppress the growth of unwanted weed molds. [5] Consequently, the health of the entire colony depends on this delicate, symbiotic relationship.

The writer wants to add the following sentence to the paragraph:
"Without these protective secretions, the invasive molds would quickly overrun and destroy their food supply."

To make the paragraph most logical, where should this sentence be placed?

  1. A
    Before Sentence 1
  2. B
    After Sentence 2
  3. C
    After Sentence 3
  4. After Sentence 4Answer

Answer

After Sentence 4
The correct option is the one that places the sentence after Sentence 4. The target sentence begins with the phrase 'these protective secretions', which directly references the 'potent antibiotics' secreted by the ants as described in Sentence 4. Placing the sentence here establishes a clear cause-and-effect relationship before the concluding sentence.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the sentence to be inserted to find any cohesive or transitional clues.
The target sentence contains the phrase 'these protective secretions', which requires a clear, previously mentioned noun or concept to act as its antecedent.
Identifying pronoun and demonstrative references helps locate where the sentence must logically follow.
2
Scan the paragraph to find the first mention of secretions or protective fluids.
Sentence 4 states that 'the ants secrete potent antibiotics from glands on their bodies.'
This is the only sentence that describes the physical act of secreting a protective substance, providing the direct referent for the phrase in the target sentence.
3
Check the logical flow of the entire paragraph with the sentence inserted in the proposed position.
Sentence 4 introduces the secretions, the new sentence explains the consequence of not having them, and Sentence 5 summarizes the overall symbiotic relationship.
Verifying the flow ensures that the sentence fits smoothly between Sentence 4 and the concluding Sentence 5.

Key Concept

Sentence Reordering and Placement
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Topics

Sentence Reordering and Placement

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