Find the part of the sentence that contains an error: The more senior the position was (1)/ the more urgent became the need (2)/ for discretion, decorum, and (3)/ refraining from premature disclosure. (4)
- (a)(1)
- (b)(2)
- (c)(3)
- (d)(4)
Answer
Why
Correct — D. Parts (3) and (4) are one list hanging on the need for: discretion, decorum, and refraining from premature disclosure.
Discretion and decorum are plain nouns. The third item switches to a verb's -ing form with its own complement, refraining from, so the list breaks its pattern.
Keep the third item a noun — "and avoidance of premature disclosure" — and the list is parallel. The error is in part (4), option (d).
Why the others are wrong
- (a)(1) — The more senior the position was is a correct first half of the pair that part (2) completes, and its past tense was matches became.
- (b)(2) — became the need puts the verb before its subject after the fronted the more urgent. That is a formal word order, as in So great was the need, not an error.
- (c)(3) — for discretion, decorum, and begins the list correctly: two nouns after for, with an optional comma before and. The fault arrives with the item that follows.
Concept
Parallelism: items joined by and in a list share one grammatical form — noun with noun, -ing form with -ing form, clause with clause.
Here the list hangs on the need for. Discretion and decorum are nouns, so the third item should be a noun phrase too: the need for discretion, decorum and avoidance of premature disclosure.
Refraining from premature disclosure is built differently, as a verb's -ing form carrying its own complement, and that mismatch is the error.
Strictly, an -ing phrase can do a noun's job, so part (4) is grammatical taken alone. The fault is the mismatch inside the list, and the key places it where the pattern breaks.
There is no 'No error' option, so one of the four parts has to be wrong.
Key facts
- Items in a list joined by and should share one grammatical form.
- Discretion means care over what one says or reveals.
- Decorum means proper, dignified behaviour.
- Refrain is followed by from: refrain from speaking.
Study next
Common traps
- Suspecting the inverted became the need in part (2) and never testing the list
- Judging refraining from premature disclosure on its own, where it reads naturally, instead of against discretion and decorum
The same list rule decides 23 Sep 2024, 09:00, English Q.21, where Culture is (1)_______, understanding, and protecting is keyed creating, so all three items share the -ing form.
Related PYQs
No directly related past PYQ was found.