Question

Complete the sentence with the correct form of “able to”
A : Did the thief get away?
B : Yes. No one realized what was happening and the thief _______ get away.
a) Is able to
b) Are able to
c) Was able to
d) Were able to

Answer 1

Hint: Read the given sentence carefully. Try to make out the core meaning of it. Find out the subject, predicate, and object of the given sentence.

Complete answer:
 The given two sentences are a conversation. We have to fill in the given blank of one of the dialogues with the correct option from among the four given options. We have to fill in the blank with the correct form if “able to”. Able to is an adjective which means – having the power, skill, means, or opportunity to do something. For example, He was able to read Greek at the age of eight. It may also mean – having considerable skill, proficiency, or intelligence. For example, The dancers were technically very able.
Now, let us examine all the given options to find out the correct answer -
Option ‘a’ is Is able to. ‘Is' is a helping verb. This given option is in the present tense and cannot be used in the given blank.
Option ‘b’ is Are able to. ‘Are’ is a helping verb and is in plural form. We cannot use it for a single ‘thief'.
Option ‘c’ is Was able to. It is the correct answer as it is in the past tense and in the singular form.
Option ‘d’ is Were able to. ‘Were' is a plural form and cannot be used in the given blank.
Hence, option ‘c’ is the correct option.

Note:
Pay attention to the tense of the given sentence. We must fill in the blank with a similar form of tense, else, it will get wrong.