Fill in the Blanks Questions and Answers

Answer: A

The pair is new, curve. The set phrase is brand new to you, and a learning curve is the rate at which a new skill is learnt, which is what the second sentence speaks of.

Marvel is not an adjective, novel could fit the first blank but graph does not fit the second, and nascent with arc does not form an idiom. So only new, curve gives both phrases correctly.

Answer: B

The words are became, into, agreed, accepted. The central government became increasingly divided, the country was partitioned into two dominions, both parties agreed to the plan behind the scenes, and the leaders publicly accepted it on 3 June 1947.

Got is wrong with divided in this sense, and of, to and between do not suit partitioned two dominions. Alluded to, proceeded and denounced do not fit the meaning of leaders approving the plan in public.

Answer: C

The blanks need its and from. India is bringing back one of its submarines, so the possessive its is needed, with no apostrophe, and a submarine is brought back from Russia.

It is a pronoun and cannot be followed by submarines, it's means it is, and its' is not a word. With Russia, the correct preposition for a source is from, and not with, to or for.

Answer: A

The words are on and worth. He is believed to be the richest man on the planet, since on is the preposition used with the planet, and the diamond is believed to be worth Rs 1,000 crore, where worth gives the value.

In the planet and at the planet are not used, and account, value and price do not fit before the amount in this way, since value and price would need of before the sum.

Answer: A

The sentence contrasts a past habit with the present, so the blank takes the simple present with a frequency adverb: he used to visit the library every week, but he rarely comes now.

Is rarely coming would describe an action in progress at the moment, has rarely come would need a period such as lately, and the plain comes lacks the idea of the change from regular visits that the but sentence needs.

Answer: A

The modal that fits is "may". After "so that", a clause of purpose often uses may or might to show a purpose for the present or future, and in a formal style the sentence reads: a bridge was built so that the dangerous ferry may be avoided.

"Would" does not fit the pattern with the passive "be avoided" in a purpose clause here. "Need to" and "has to" are semi-modals that add an obligation, which the sentence does not state, and "has to" does not agree with the subject "ferry" in a purpose clause. So "may" is the best choice.

Answer: C

The correct form is "will have taken over". The future perfect is used for an action that will be completed before a stated time in the future, and here the time is the year 2040, by which artificial intelligence will have taken over many jobs.

"Will be taking over" and "shall be taking over" use the future continuous, which shows an action in progress at a future time and does not fit "by 2040". "Have been taking over" is a present perfect continuous and does not suit a future date with "will" missing, so it is ungrammatical here.

Answer: D

The blank takes "could": he was so tired that he could scarcely stand. The sentence is in the past, and "so tired that" begins a clause of result, so the modal must be the past form could. "Scarcely" already makes the meaning nearly negative, so no "not" is needed.

"Can" is a present form and does not agree with "was" in the first clause. "Should" would suggest advice or duty, and "may" would suggest permission or possibility in the present, so neither suits a past result.

Answer: B

The pair is pace, being. A person walks at a brisk pace, a standard collocation, whereas speed, rhythm and step do not go with ‘brisk’ in the same way. The second blank needs a participle to introduce the reason: they were stronger, being carnivores.

The other options supply finite verbs (are, be, is) that make the clause ungrammatical after the comma.

Note that ‘brisk pace’ is a fixed phrase for a quick walking speed: one says walk at a brisk pace, not at a brisk rhythm or step. The word ‘being’ in the second blank turns the clause into a reason, because they were stronger, being carnivores.

Answer: A

The pair is spotted, are. Researchers have spotted a clouded leopard means they have seen it, and the second blank needs a plural verb for ‘Clouded leopards’: they are known for their spotted coat.

‘Were’ changes the tense wrongly in a statement of general fact, ‘be’ cannot follow a plural subject here, and ‘is’ does not agree with the plural subject.

The verb ‘spotted’ is the right sense of the first blank: in wildlife reports researchers spot, record or sight an animal. ‘Discovered’ and ‘found’ need a different second verb, and ‘seen’ with ‘were’ makes the second sentence a past statement about leopards in general.