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Difficulty: Very hardSubject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

Every principal investigator and clinical trial coordinator who participated in the multi-center medical studies _______ required to submit an audited report before the ethics committee adjourns. Which of the following options correctly completes the sentence?

  1. isAnswer
  2. B
    are
  3. C
    were
  4. D
    have been

Answer

is
When two or more singular nouns joined by 'and' are preceded by 'every' or 'each', they take a singular verb. Furthermore, the plural noun 'studies' in the modifying clause 'who participated in the multi-center medical studies' is an intervening element that should not influence the main verb. Therefore, the singular present-tense verb 'is' correctly completes the sentence.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the true head subject of the sentence.
The subject phrase is 'Every principal investigator and clinical trial coordinator'.
The introductory word 'Every' modifies both singular nouns connected by 'and'.
2
Apply the rule of concord for compound subjects modified by 'every' or 'each'.
When two singular nouns joined by 'and' are preceded by 'every', the subject is grammatically singular and requires a singular verb.
The quantifier 'every' distributes the action to each individual entity separately.
3
Disregard intervening relative clauses that create proximity traps.
The plural noun 'studies' inside the relative clause 'who participated in the multi-center medical studies' does not govern the main verb.
Intervening prepositional or relative modifiers do not change the number of the head subject.
4
Select the correct tense and singular verb form.
The present-tense singular verb 'is' agrees with the singular subject and aligns with the present-tense clause 'before the ethics committee adjourns'.
Present tense consistency is required across the main and subordinate clauses.

Key Concept

Subject-Verb Concord with 'Every' modifying compound singular subjects despite intervening plural modifiers
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Topics

Subject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

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