Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word:
I can’t forgive Tim for____ his promise
A) To break
B) Breaking
C) Break
D) Broken

Answer 1

Hint: In this question we need to fill the blank with the correct form of the given verb. Verbs have different forms such as; root/present/singular or plural third person, past, past participle etc. For e.g. the different forms of the verb ‘to eat’ are eat (present, third person plural), eats (third person singular), ate (past), eaten (past participle).

Complete answer:
The sentence begins with the verb ‘can’t’ which indicates that the sentence is in the present tense. Therefore, the verb that we choose for the blank should also reflect the present tense of the sentence.
Option A) To break – This is the root or the unconjugated form. We know this because the verb is preceded by ‘to’. In the question the blank is preceded by ‘for’, thus it cannot be filled with this option. ‘For’ cannot be followed by ‘to’ or the unconjugated form of the verb. Hence, this option is incorrect.
Option B) Breaking – It is the continuous form of the verb ‘break’. It can be correctly preceded by ‘for’ if it indicates the reason why the subject cannot forgive Tim. Therefore, this is the correct option.
Option C) Break – It is the present tense or the root form and it cannot be used after the word ‘for’. We need a present continuous form to fill the blank as it indicates that ‘Tim’ is presently or continuously doing something, i.e. breaking his promise. This option is also wrong.
Option D) Broken – It is the participle form of the verb ‘break’ and is used to create sentences in the perfect tense. It is always preceded by a helping verb. For e.g. have broken, had broken, was broken, is broken, etc. This option is also incorrect.

Thus, the correct answer is Option (B) i.e, I can’t forgive Tim for breaking his promise.

Note: A verb that expresses physical or mental behavior is known as an action verb. The action verb describes what our clause or sentence's subject is doing physically or mentally. A sentence is animated by an action verb, which can be physical (swim, run, drop, whistle) or mental (think, dream, believe, suppose, love). Verbs change the pace of a sentence, sometimes dramatically, sometimes subtly.