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Difficulty: HardPrepositions and Prepositional Phrases

Despite strong objections from the minority shareholders, the board of directors eventually acquiesced _____ the proposal to merge with the multinational corporation. Which of the following prepositions correctly completes the sentence?

  1. inAnswer
  2. B
    to
  3. C
    with
  4. D
    for

Answer

The preposition 'in' correctly completes the sentence as the verb 'acquiesce' standardly governs 'in'.
The verb 'acquiesce' (meaning to accept or agree to something reluctantly without protest) strictly takes the dependent preposition 'in'. Therefore, the completed sentence correctly reads: '...eventually acquiesced in the proposal...'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the head verb in the sentence requiring a dependent preposition.
The verb is 'acquiesced'.
Dependent prepositions are fixed by the governing verb that precedes the gap.
2
Determine the correct standard prepositional complement for 'acquiesce'.
The correct complement is 'in'.
In standard formal English grammar, one acquiesces 'in' a matter, arrangement, or decision.
3
Evaluate and eliminate distractors based on false analogies with similar verbs.
Options using 'to', 'with', and 'for' are rejected.
Expressions like 'agree to' or 'comply with' lead to L1 transfer or analogy errors, but 'acquiesce' exclusively requires 'in'.

Key Concept

Fixed dependent prepositions after specific verbs (Verb + Preposition collocations)
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Topics

Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases

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