Question 217·Easy·Form, Structure, and Sense
In 2012, engineers restored the historic lighthouse’s lantern room. The restored glass panes now allow visitors to view the original Fresnel lens that the lighthouse keepers _____ into place in 1880.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
For verb-tense questions, first mark all time clues (dates, words like now, then, before, after). Decide when the action in the blank happens relative to other actions: is it present, past, future, ongoing, or completed? Then eliminate choices whose tense does not match that timeline (for example, future when the event is clearly past, or progressive when no ongoing action is implied). Finally, prefer the simplest tense (like simple past or simple present) that accurately and clearly matches the time and meaning of the sentence.
Hints
Use the time clues
Look carefully at the time expressions in the sentences: In 2012 and in 1880, plus the word now. How do these help you understand when each action happened?
Think about the action in the blank
The blank describes what the lighthouse keepers did with the lens in 1880. Is that action ongoing, repeated, or a single completed event?
Match the verb tense to the time
For a single, completed action at a clearly stated time in the past, what general verb tense does English usually use? Which answer choice shows that tense?
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the timeline in the sentence
Read the full context:
- In 2012, engineers restored the lighthouse’s lantern room.
- Now, visitors can see the original lens that the keepers installed in 1880.
The action in the blank (what the lighthouse keepers did with the lens) clearly happened in 1880, at a specific point in the past, and is fully completed.
Identify what tense is needed
For a completed action at a specific time in the past (in 1880), English normally uses the simple past tense.
We do not need:
- A progressive form (was/were doing) that emphasizes an ongoing action.
- A perfect form (had done) that emphasizes one past action happening before another past action when the order is not already clear.
- A future form (will do), because the action is clearly in the past.
Check each option’s tense and meaning
Now classify the choices:
- were fitting is past progressive (ongoing past action).
- [correct answer] is simple past.
- had fitted is past perfect (completed before another past event).
- will fit is simple future.
Only the simple past form matches a single, completed action in 1880 that does not need extra emphasis on its relation to another past action.
Choose the verb form that is simple past
The only option that uses the simple past tense of the verb fit is B) fit. So the completed sentence is:
The restored glass panes now allow visitors to view the original Fresnel lens that the lighthouse keepers fit into place in 1880.