For punctuation-boundary questions, first determine whether the text before the blank is an independent clause. Then classify what follows as another clause, a list, or an explanatory phrase. When a complete clause directly introduces a list or explanation, a colon is generally the appropriate boundary.
Hints
- Hint 1
Find the sentence core
Determine whether the words before the blank can stand alone as a complete sentence.
- Hint 2
Classify what follows
Notice that the three items after the blank are noun phrases rather than complete sentences.
- Hint 3
Choose an introductory boundary
Consider which punctuation mark can follow a complete clause and introduce a list of examples.
Step-by-step
- Step 1
Identify the complete clause
The text before the blank has a subject, “the chest,” and a complete predicate, “held abundant evidence of the stagehands' ingenuity.” It can stand on its own as a sentence.
- Step 2
Examine the following material
The material after the blank is a list of three noun phrases naming objects that demonstrate the stagehands' resourcefulness. Because this list is not an independent clause, a semicolon cannot introduce it; a comma or no punctuation would also fail to establish the needed boundary.
- Step 3
Select the correct punctuation
A colon can follow an independent clause and introduce a list that explains it. Therefore, the correct answer is A, “ingenuity:”