A subject-verb agreement question tests whether a verb matches its subject, even with other nouns nearby. Sort the forms by number, and check whether the blank still needs a main verb. Singular verbs go with one thing, plural verbs with more than one, and an -ing form needs a matching helper verb. Then find the true subject by crossing out phrases that describe it. Check that subject with it or they, not the nearest noun.
Hints
- Hint 1
Read past the blank and check the verbs. Which part of the sentence does shapes belong to?
- Hint 2
Cross out the phrase beginning with of and look for the noun left before the blank. Is it one thing or more than one?
Step-by-step
Sort the forms, then find the subject
Step 1Check number and verb type
Start by testing offer and have offered with they: both take a plural subject, more than one thing. What job does the blank need to do? In how technology shapes personal identity, shapes belongs to technology, not the opening subject. That means the blank needs a main verb, the verb that tells what its subject does, and offering can't be that verb without a helper.
- Step 2
Find the true subject
Which noun is the true subject of that main verb? In A recent collection of essays by contemporary authors, cross out of essays by contemporary authors. Those words tell us what's in the collection and who wrote the essays; they don't add subjects. The true subject is collection, even though authors sits nearest to the blank.
- Step 3
Match the subject and verb
Is A recent collection one thing or more than one? It's one collection, so replace it with it and test the verb: it offers. That gives us the singular form offers to match the subject. Choice A.