Select the option that completes the sentence CORRECTLY. The last rays of the…

Concept

Two grammar rules govern this blank. First, subject-verb agreement: the verb must match the number of its true subject (a plural subject takes a plural verb). Second, tense: an action that was already in progress at a particular past moment takes the past continuous form, "was/were + -ing".

Application

1. Find the subject: the verb belongs to "The last rays" (the head noun is the plural "rays"), not to the singular "the sun" inside the of-phrase. So the subject is plural.

2. Fix the tense: the clause "when I reached home" is simple past, and the rays were already in the process of fading at that moment, so the blank needs the past continuous.

3. Combine plural + past continuous: the required auxiliary is "were", giving "The last rays of the sun were fading away when I reached home."

Cross-check the alternatives

• "Are" is present tense, which clashes with the past-time marker "when I reached home".

• "Will be" is future tense, but the event is set in the past, not the future.

• "Was" is singular and cannot agree with the plural subject "rays".