Question

in the dense forests of białowieża, poland, ____ the last of europes primeval woodland. home to the european bison, an animal once nearly extinct, these woods provide a sanctuary. surprisingly, this area has remained largely untouched by human hands for centuries.
20
mark for review
which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard english?
a thrives
b thrive
c have thrived
d would have thrived

Explanation:

To solve this, we analyze subject - verb agreement. The subject here is "the last of Europe's primeval woodland" (a singular subject, as "woodland" is singular). We need a singular verb.

• Option A: "thrives" is a singular present - tense verb, which matches the singular subject.
• Option B: "thrive" is a plural verb, so it doesn't agree with the singular subject.
• Option C: "have thrived" is a plural - form present perfect verb, which is incorrect for a singular subject.
• Option D: "would have thrived" is a conditional verb form and doesn't fit the context of the sentence (the sentence is in the present - tense context of describing a current situation).

Answer:

A. thrives