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Difficulty: HardEmphatic Stress

Which question correctly elicits the emphatic stress in the given statement?

Answer:Statement: The defense attorney REJECTED the settlement proposal during the conference.
Question: 【Did the defense attorney accept the settlement proposal during the conference?】

Answer

Did the defense attorney accept the settlement proposal during the conference?
In Oral English, emphatic stress indicates contrastive focus on the capitalized word. Because 'REJECTED' is capitalized, the preceding question must introduce a contrasting verb (such as 'accept' or 'approve') while keeping every other structural component of the statement—the defense attorney, the settlement proposal, and during the conference—completely identical.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the word carrying the emphatic stress in the sentence stem.
The verb 'REJECTED' is printed in full capital letters, indicating contrastive focus on the action performed.
Emphatic stress highlights a specific word to contradict an alternative assertion or assumption regarding that exact element.
2
Formulate a question that contradicts only the stressed verb while leaving all other details unchanged.
The correct question must substitute 'REJECTED' with an opposing action (e.g., 'accept' or 'approve') while retaining 'the defense attorney', 'the settlement proposal', and 'during the conference'.
If any other part of the sentence is altered in the question, the stress would logically shift to that altered part instead.

Key Concept

Emphatic Stress and Contrastive Focus
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Topics

Emphatic Stress

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