Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word :
I saw him __________ a newspaper.
A. to read
B. to have read
C. reading
D. to be reading
E. having reading

Answer 1

Hint: Verb is absent in a person tense so suitable verbs will be used to fill the blank. Verbs are the doing words or action words which determine the action of a sentence or action done by the subject in the sentence.

Complete answer:
According to options we have

In option A ‘to read’ is incorrect because ‘to read’ denotes action that is going to happen in a short time but the sentence starts with ‘saw’ which indicates that sentence is in the past so option is incorrect.

Now in option B to have read this phrase have two verbs one is ‘have’ and another is ’read’ which is not possible for a single object which is newspaper.

Opinion C is correct. In sentence the subject is reporting past action and when the subject reports a past action it should be in ‘ing’ form.

Option D is incorrect because ‘to be reading’ indicates an action that is going to happen but the sentence is in the past and here the sentence starts with the past that means every action followed will be in the past tense.

Option E is incorrect because ‘having’ and ‘read’ are two different verbs which is not possible for one object which is newspaper.

Hence, the correct answer is option ‘C’.

Note: these types of questions on verbs require knowledge of verbs because verbs are the most complicated part of speech in sentences. The knowledge of tense is also necessary for solving questions regarding verbs.