Directions : In the following paragraph, a few phrases have been highlighted,…
2021
Directions : In the following paragraph, a few phrases have been highlighted, each of which has been numbered. These highlighted phrases may or may not have been used correctly in terms of contextual meaning and grammatical accuracy. Select the most appropriate phrase from the given options to replace the incorrect one. Choose option (e) as your answer choice if the highlighted phrases are grammatically correct and don't need to be replaced.
Enhancing the efficiency of electricity use are an important complement (68) to decarbonizing the electricity supply. Growing urbanization and uptake of electricity services offer a good opportunity to (69) shape energy consumption within buildings through proactive measures. Cooling needs are expected to increase rapid with rising (70) incomes and temperatures. Air conditioners, fans and refrigerators together consume about 60% of the electricity in households. Today, the average fan sold in the market consumes more than twice (71) what an efficient fan does, and an average refrigerator is about 35% more. India can leverage this transition to as an opportunity too (27) become a global leader in the production of clean appliances.
- A.
is an important complement
- B.
are the important complement
- C.
is the importance complement
- D.
are an important complements
- E.
No replacement required
Attempted by 3 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: A gerund phrase (an "-ing" form acting as a noun) that serves as the subject of a sentence is treated as singular, so it takes a singular verb. The number of nouns that appear inside the phrase does not change this — the whole phrase names one single activity. Also, the article "an/a" can precede only a singular countable noun.
Application: The subject of phrase (68) is "Enhancing the efficiency of electricity use" — a single gerund activity, hence singular. It therefore needs the singular verb "is", giving "is an important complement". The singular article "an" correctly pairs with the singular noun "complement".
Contrast: Why the other phrasings fail:
"are the important complement" — uses the plural verb "are" with a singular gerund subject; subject-verb disagreement.
"is the importance complement" — "importance" is a noun and cannot modify "complement"; the adjective "important" is needed.
"are an important complements" — pairs the plural verb "are" with the subject and also puts the singular article "an" before the plural "complements", a double error.
"No replacement required" — the original "are an important complement" is ungrammatical, so a replacement is in fact required.