Examkin

Question

Difficulty: HardPrepositions and Prepositional Phrases

The testimony provided by the key prosecution witness was completely ______ the official forensic report submitted to the judicial panel. Which of the following prepositional expressions correctly completes the sentence?

  1. at variance withAnswer
  2. B
    at variance to
  3. C
    in variance with
  4. D
    on variance from

Answer

at variance with
The expression 'at variance with' is a fixed prepositional phrase meaning to be in disagreement, conflict, or inconsistency with something. In formal English grammar, 'at variance' must be followed by the preposition 'with' when pointing out discrepancy between two items or accounts.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the target relationship and core prepositional idiom in the sentence.
The sentence describes a relationship of conflict or inconsistency between a witness testimony and a forensic report.
English prepositional phrases governing contrast or conflict rely on fixed preposition-noun-preposition collocations.
2
Evaluate the options against standard English fixed prepositional idioms.
The standard idiomatic expression is 'at variance with'. Expressions using 'to', 'in', or 'on...from' break the fixed structural rule of this idiom.
Fixed prepositional phrases do not allow arbitrary substitution of their internal or terminal prepositions.

Key Concept

Prepositional Phrases and Fixed Idiomatic Collocations
Estimated Time:1m 30s
Rate this question

Topics

Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases

More questions from this topic