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Question

Difficulty: MediumSubject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

Which verb form correctly completes the sentence below to achieve proper subject-verb agreement?

'Beneath the dense canopy of the tropical forest _______ several rare species of flowering plants that have baffled local botanists.'

  1. lieAnswer
  2. B
    lies
  3. C
    is lying
  4. D
    has lain

Answer

The correct verb form is 'lie'.
In inverted sentence structures where a prepositional phrase of location introduces the sentence, the subject comes after the verb slot. The plural subject 'several rare species' demands the plural verb 'lie'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the sentence structure
The sentence begins with an introductory prepositional phrase of place ('Beneath the dense canopy of the tropical forest'), creating an inverted sentence structure.
In inverted structures opening with spatial prepositional phrases, the subject appears after the verb.
2
Identify the true grammatical subject
The subject following the verb slot is the plural noun phrase 'several rare species of flowering plants'.
The noun 'forest' is the object of the preposition, not the head noun of the main subject phrase.
3
Select the verb form that agrees in number with the subject
The plural simple present verb form 'lie' correctly agrees with the plural head noun 'species'.
A plural subject requires a plural verb form to satisfy the rules of concord.

Key Concept

Inverted Subject-Verb Concord
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Topics

Subject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

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