In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. Social media companies (1)______ claim that they promote democracy and are dedicated to the empowerment of ordinary individuals. The assertion (2)______ entirely unfounded. Recent history shows how (3)______ citizens have been mobilised against totalitarian regimes on social networking sites. Starting from MeToo to Black Lives Matter, digital networks (4)______ indispensable in bringing together critical voices against social and political (5)______ .
Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank no. 1.
- (a)never
- (b)don’t
- (c)frequently
- (d)seldom
Answer
Why
Correct — C. Read one sentence past the blank: 'The assertion (2)______ entirely unfounded.'
The assertion is a definite noun phrase, so something must already have been asserted. That only holds if the companies do make the claim.
All four options fit the slot grammatically — an adverb of frequency, or a negated verb, can stand between 'companies' and 'claim'.
Only frequently leaves an assertion standing for the next sentence to weigh → option (c).
Why the others are wrong
- (a)never — never cancels the claim outright. If the companies never claim it, 'The assertion' in the very next sentence has nothing to point back to.
- (b)don’t — don't is perfectly grammatical here, but it denies the claim, and the passage then goes on to weigh a claim it would have just said was never made.
- (d)seldom — seldom is a near-negative. It concedes the claim is rarely made, which sits badly with a paragraph that immediately supports the claim with historical examples.
Concept
Cloze blanks are settled at two levels, and the skill is knowing which level is doing the work.
At sentence level you check the slot: what can stand between the subject 'companies' and the bare verb 'claim'? An adverb of frequency can, and so can a negated auxiliary — which is why grammar alone does not decide this blank.
At paragraph level you check cohesion. The definite phrase The assertion in the next sentence must have something earlier to refer to, and that is what fixes the answer.
Nothing in sentence 1 by itself rules out never, don't or seldom. Filling the blanks strictly in order, without reading the whole passage first, makes this one unwinnable.
Key facts
- An adverb of frequency sits between the subject and a simple-present main verb, as in 'companies frequently claim'.
- A definite noun phrase such as The assertion needs an antecedent already present in the text.
- Seldom and never are negative-frequency adverbs, so they cancel a claim rather than establish one.
Study next
Common traps
- Testing each option for grammar alone, when all four are grammatical and the paragraph decides.
- Assuming a passage about social media must be hostile to it, and reaching for a negative.
- Treating 'The assertion' as a new idea rather than as a pointer back to sentence 1.
This cloze runs five blanks across English Q.21 to Q.25, mixing grammar with meaning: a modal at Q.22, an adjective at Q.23, a verb form at Q.24 and a noun at Q.25.
A blank turning on agreement rather than meaning is at 19 Sep 2024, 12:30, English Q.22, where 'the number of heart-attacks ... has increased' keys 'has' over 'have'.
Related PYQs
No directly related past PYQ was found.