Question 236·Medium·Form, Structure, and Sense
Knowing that dried fruits can contain concentrated sugars, nutritionist Erin Patel advises her clients to pair them with protein-rich foods. She also ______ portioning the dried fruit into small containers ahead of time to encourage mindful snacking.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
For verb-form questions, first locate the subject and decide what tense the sentence is using by looking at the other verbs nearby. When you see words like “also” or “and” connecting actions of the same subject, those verbs should usually be in the same tense and form for parallel structure. Quickly rule out any choices that don’t agree with the subject (like missing the -s with “he/she/it”) or that shift the tense away from the main verb already in the sentence.
Hints
Check the sentence’s time frame
Ask yourself: Is the sentence talking about something she did once in the past, or about what she generally does as part of her job?
Look at the first verb for a clue
Focus on the verb in the first sentence: “Erin Patel advises her clients…” How is that verb formed, and what tense is it?
Match the subject and keep structure parallel
The subject before the blank is “She.” Which choice gives a verb form that both agrees with “She” and matches the form of “advises” for a smooth, parallel sentence?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify what kind of word is needed
Look at the structure around the blank: “She also ______ portioning the dried fruit…” Here, the word in the blank must be a verb that fits with the subject “She” and the object “portioning the dried fruit.” So you are choosing the correct verb form to complete the sentence.
Find the subject and first verb
The subject of the second sentence is “She,” which refers back to “nutritionist Erin Patel.” That is a third-person singular subject (one person). In the first sentence, the matching verb is “advises” in the simple present: “Erin Patel advises her clients….”
The context describes what she generally does as part of her professional practice, not a one-time past event.
Use tense and parallel structure
Because the sentence is describing her usual, ongoing advice, the main verbs about her actions should both be in the simple present tense and agree with a third-person singular subject:
- First verb: “Erin Patel advises her clients…” (simple present)
- Second verb: “She also ______ portioning…” should match this tense and person for parallel structure.
So you need the simple present tense verb form that goes with “She.”
Match the correct verb form to the subject
For a third-person singular subject like “She,” the simple present form of the verb is the one that adds -s: “recommends.”
Checking each choice:
- “recommend” (base form) does not agree with “She.”
- “recommended” (past) and “has recommended” (present perfect) break the parallel with “advises.”
- “recommends” is the simple present, third-person singular form that agrees with “She” and matches “advises.”
Therefore, the correct answer is B) recommends.