Question

The way in which the mighty blue whale and the other baleen whales—the finback, gray, humpback, and right whales—eats was discovered by careful observation by biologists.

• A. eats was discovered by
• B. eat was discovered through
• C. eats were discovered by means of
• D. eat was discovered resulting from
• E.

Hint:

When checking subject-verb agreement, ensure that plural subjects have plural verbs. Avoid unnecessary or awkward wording.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Analyze the subject and verb agreement.
The subject "the mighty blue whale and the other baleen whales" is plural, so the verb must agree with this subject. Hence, "eats" is incorrect, and "eat" should be used.
Step 2: Review the options.
- (A) "eats was discovered by" is incorrect because "eats" does not match the plural subject.
- (B) "eat was discovered through" is correct because "eat" agrees with the plural subject, and "through" properly indicates the method.
- (C) "eats were discovered by means of" is incorrect because "eats" is singular, and "were" doesn't agree with it.
- (D) "eat was discovered resulting from" is grammatically awkward and unclear.
Conclusion:
The best option is (B) because it correctly matches the plural subject and provides a clear and grammatically correct sentence.