Select the most appropriate option to fill in the blank. He ____ left his…
2025
Select the most appropriate option to fill in the blank.
He ____ left his important document on the table, and it was stolen.
Answer: A. carelessly — Concept: In sentence-completion items that pair an action with a stated consequence (here, "..., and it was stolen"), the blank must be filled with the word…
- A.
carelessly
- B.
frequently
- C.
usefully
- D.
loudly
Attempted by 6 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: In sentence-completion items that pair an action with a stated consequence (here, "..., and it was stolen"), the blank must be filled with the word that logically explains how that consequence came about — not merely one that is grammatically well-formed. A manner adverb naming the vulnerability behind the outcome is required; an adverb describing something orthogonal to that vulnerability (for instance, how often the action occurred) leaves the stated outcome unexplained.
Application: The second clause, "it was stolen," is a consequence that needs an explanation of what made the document vulnerable to theft. "Carelessly" names exactly that vulnerability — the document was left without due care or attention, in a way that allowed it to be taken unnoticed. This manner directly accounts for why the document ended up stolen.
Cross-check — contrasting the other options by value:
"Frequently" tells us only how often he left the document on the table, not the manner in which he left it on this occasion; even granting frequent repetition, frequency alone does not explain why the document was left vulnerable — the sentence's stated outcome (theft) still goes unexplained by a repetition adverb.
"Usefully" describes an action carried out to a beneficial or practical effect, which does not describe how an item comes to be left unattended and taken.
"Loudly" describes the volume of an action, an attribute with no bearing on how a document came to be exposed to theft.
Result: Only "carelessly" supplies the manner that explains the stated consequence, so it correctly completes the sentence.