Multiple choice

Directions: In the following sentence, three substitutions are given for each italicised part. If one of them is better than the italicised part, that should be your answer. If none of the substitution improves the sentence, the answer should be (4).

I couldn't help shed tears at the plight of the earthquake victims.

  1. in shedding

  2. shedding

  3. shed

  4. No improvement
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

'Shedding' is correct because the phrase 'couldn't help' is always followed by a gerund (-ing form). The structure 'couldn't help + gerund' means 'unable to prevent or avoid'. 'Shed' is the bare infinitive and is grammatically incorrect here. 'In shedding' doesn't fit the idiomatic structure.

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