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Question

Difficulty: HardVerbs, Tenses, and Aspect

Complete the sentence below by supplying the grammatically appropriate form of the verb in brackets.

Answer:The managing director stated that he would rather the committee 【postponed】 [postpone] the press conference until all financial reports are verified.

Answer

The correct verb form to complete the sentence is 'postponed'.
In standard English grammar, when the preference structure 'would rather' is followed by a subordinate clause with its own subject ('the committee'), the verb must be in the simple past tense (unreal past) to refer to a present or future action. Consequently, the root verb 'postpone' must be written as 'postponed'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the sentence structure and identify the controlling grammatical phrase.
The main clause contains the expression 'would rather' followed by a distinct subordinate subject 'the committee'.
The structure 'would rather + subject + finite clause' determines the required verb form and mood.
2
Determine the required tense and mood after 'would rather' with a personal subject.
When 'would rather' introduces a clause with a separate subject to express a preference regarding present or future events, standard English requires the unreal past (simple past form).
The simple past form 'postponed' functions hypothetically to express present or future preference.
3
Inflect the base verb 'postpone' into the required simple past form.
The simple past form of 'postpone' is 'postponed'.
Using the bare infinitive 'postpone' or a modal verb phrase produces an ungrammatical structure in this context.

Key Concept

Unreal Past Tense following 'Would Rather' with a Personal Subject
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Topics

Verbs, Tenses, and Aspect

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