Question 157·Easy·Form, Structure, and Sense
Each of the photographs on display, along with the accompanying captions, ______ been carefully restored to preserve the original colors.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
For subject–verb agreement questions, first strip away extra phrases (especially ones set off by commas or starting with "along with," "as well as," or "together with") to find the true subject. Decide if that subject is singular or plural—words like "each," "every," and "anyone" are singular—and then eliminate any choices that don’t match its number or don’t form a complete, grammatical verb phrase with the surrounding words.
Hints
Locate the true subject
Ignore the phrase between the commas ("along with the accompanying captions"). What is the main noun phrase that the verb must agree with?
Singular or plural?
Focus on the word "Each" in "Each of the photographs." Does "each" call for a singular or plural verb?
Check the verb phrase with "been"
You need a helping verb that fits before "been carefully restored." Which choice creates a grammatically complete verb phrase and still matches the subject’s number?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the subject of the sentence
Ignore the extra phrase in commas and prepositional phrases to find the true subject. Here, the core subject is "Each of the photographs", not "photographs" alone and not "captions." The phrase "along with the accompanying captions" is extra information and does not change the subject’s number.
Decide if the subject is singular or plural
"Each" is always singular, even though it refers to multiple items. In the phrase "Each of the photographs," the word "each" controls the verb, so the subject is singular and must take a singular verb form.
Match the verb form to the subject and tense
The verb here must (1) agree with a singular subject and (2) correctly complete the verb phrase "___ been carefully restored" (a perfect tense passive construction). Among the choices, only "has" is a singular auxiliary that correctly forms the verb phrase "has been carefully restored" to match the singular subject "Each of the photographs."