Multiple choice

Directions: A part of the sentence that has been underlined may have an error. Select the option that is the most coherent and precise representation of the underlined part.

It took time for him to adapt to his new job of a lab assistant as he knew scarcely nothing about the experiments performed.

  1. as he knew scarcely nothing about

  2. as he knew scarcely anything about

  3. as he knew nothing about

  4. as he knew next to nothing about

  5. since he knew scarcely nothing about
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

'Scarcely' is already negative, so adding 'nothing' creates a double negative. 'Scarcely anything' means 'almost nothing', which is the intended meaning. 'Next to nothing' is also correct but 'scarcely anything' is the most direct correction.

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