Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word:
You say you have gone to his office, but I think __________.
a)Ought to phone him
b)Ought to have phoned him
c)Should has phoned him
d)Should phone him

Answer 1

Hint: The given clause is in present perfect tense containing ‘have’ as a helping verb, the clause required to fill in the blank should also fulfill this condition.

Complete step-by-step answer:

Let’s examine the sentence: “You say you have gone to his office, but I think you ____”. The blank in the sentence requires a clause that is in line with the clause, ‘you have gone to his office,’ as both are stating something about the same event occurring in the same time.

Now we shall analyze each option one by one and begin by the process of elimination.
The last two options are incorrect, we get to know this instantly as in option c, ‘has’ is used with ‘should’, which is grammatically incorrect.

In option d, the clause is not in the present perfect tense, hence it is not the option we require.
Option ‘a’ is not correct because the clause does not use the helping verb ‘have’ and its usage would make the sentence grammatically incorrect.
Hence, Option B is the correct answer

Note: Do not commit the mistake of ignoring the helping verb in a sentence, a lot of students get their answers wrong by not giving it due importance.