Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word.
I’m sorry I’m late. I was __________ in the traffic.
a) held back
b) held down
c) held over
d) held up

Answer 1

Hint: Prepositions are only used to denote the location of a noun, not any other time. They can really help to clear up the meaning of the sentence or even emphasize it at times.

Complete answer: Prepositions are words that are used to show positions, locations, direction, and time. They are usually in front of nouns and gerunds.
Example - In the sentence ‘There is a lamp on the table’, the word ‘on’ describes the location of the lamp. So, it is a preposition. There are many verb + preposition combinations in English, which are easy to learn, like ‘go up’. Prepositions indicate relationships between other words in a sentence. They can be extremely important parts of a sentence, as they can give you important insight into the meaning of the sentence.
For example, in the sentence ‘We saw a movie at the theatre’, we understand where the movie was seen. It clearly conveys that the movie was not seen at any other location. This is an example of a preposition of location. There are many more kinds of prepositions.
Depending on which preposition is used after a verb, the meaning of the sentence can completely change. The preposition used makes a big difference. For example, ‘turn back’ and ‘turn off’ have two completely different meanings, even though the root verb is the same.
In the given sentence, we need the phrase to mean ‘delayed’.

Now, we know what we are looking for. Let’s look at the given options-
a) held back - The phrase ‘held back’ refers to ‘to hinder the progress or achievement of’. This phrase does not fit into the context of the given sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
b) held down - The phrase ‘held down’ refers to ‘to keep within limits hold the noise down’. This phrase does not fit into the context of the given sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
c) held over - The phrase ‘held over’ refers to ‘to retain in a condition or position from an earlier period’. This phrase does not fit into the context of the given sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
d) held up - The phrase ‘held up’ refers to ‘to cause a delay for someone or something’. This phrase fits perfectly into the given sentence. This is the required answer. So, this is the correct option

Note:
Differentiate between the meanings that each preposition gives the sentence. Choose the option that makes the most sense. It is important to note that the sentence should retain its meaning.