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Difficulty: Very hardPhrasal Verbs and Prepositional Verbs

Complete the sentence below by supplying the correct preposition to form an appropriate prepositional verb.

Answer:The committee members were instructed to focus on the overarching objectives of the proposal rather than cavil 【at】 minor stylistic flaws in the draft.

Answer

The correct preposition to complete the sentence is 'at', forming the standard prepositional verb 'cavil at'.
The verb 'cavil' standardly pairs with the preposition 'at' to mean raising trivial objections to something.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the meaning of the main verb 'cavil' in the context of the sentence.
The verb 'cavil' means to make trivial, petty, or unnecessary objections.
Identifying the target verb is essential for determining its fixed prepositional complement.
2
Identify the mandatory preposition that collocates with 'cavil'.
'Cavil' takes the fixed preposition 'at' when specifying the object of criticism (e.g., 'to cavil at minor details').
Standard British English syntax required by JAMB UTME dictates that 'cavil at' is the correct prepositional verb structure.

Key Concept

Prepositional Verbs and Fixed Collocations
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Topics

Phrasal Verbs and Prepositional Verbs

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