From the following options, choose the grammatically correct statement. Choose…
2025
From the following options, choose the grammatically correct statement. Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below.
- A.
The Fodder scam was unearthed after a decade-long investigation.
- B.
The Fodder scam was earthed after an decade-long investigation.
- C.
The Fodder scam had unearthed before a decade-long invigilation.
- D.
The Fodder scam were unearthed after a decade-long investigation.
Attempted by 1 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
A grammatically correct sentence needs the verb to agree in number with its subject, a complete verb form matching the intended voice and tense (a passive sense in the past needs "was/were + past participle", and a passive sense in the past perfect needs "had been + past participle"), the article that matches the sound that follows it ("a" before a consonant sound, "an" before a vowel sound), a hyphen joining a compound modifier that precedes the noun it modifies (e.g. "decade-long"), and words that carry the intended meaning rather than a similar-sounding word with a different meaning.
Applying these rules to the given sentence: the subject "The Fodder scam" is singular, so it takes the singular verb "was", not the plural "were". The intended meaning is that the scam was discovered, which "unearthed" expresses; "earthed" instead refers to an electrical connection to the ground. "Investigation" (a formal inquiry) is the intended noun; "invigilation" refers to supervising an examination. "Decade" begins with a consonant sound, so it takes the article "a", not "an". A passive sense built on "had" additionally needs the auxiliary "been" before the past participle. "Decade-long" is a compound adjective placed before "investigation", so it takes a hyphen.
The option ending in "...after an decade-long investigation" combines "earthed" with the article "an" before "decade-long".
The option ending in "...before a decade-long invigilation" combines "had unearthed" (without "been") with "before" and "invigilation".
The option ending in "...after a decade-long investigation" that opens with "The Fodder scam were" combines the plural verb "were" with the singular subject.
The option opening with "The Fodder scam was unearthed after a decade-long investigation" combines the singular verb "was" with the singular subject, the complete passive form "was unearthed", the preposition "after", and the noun "investigation".
Checking each rule against every word choice above, only "The Fodder scam was unearthed after a decade-long investigation." satisfies subject-verb agreement, a complete passive form, the correct article, the correctly hyphenated compound modifier, and the intended word meanings together — so it is the grammatically correct statement.