Question

Fill in the blank with the most suitable non finite verb to complete the sentence.
My favourite pastime is ____ video game.
A.play
B.playing
C.to be playing
D.have been playing

Answer 1

Hint:The sentence is in present participle tense, that is, it shows the present action in accordance to the time by the finite verb.
Present participle tenses are generally used as adjectives,verbs or gerunds. So ,here one of the options is to be chosen which is correct.
These are normally expressed as: is cooking,are playing, they are going, she is coming. General format is- infinitive +ing.

Complete answer:
Option A-play- is an incorrect answer because infinitives don't have a preposition as prefix. Example- I usually play with my dog.
So it is grammatically incorrect.
Option B- playing- is the correct option because it is in present participle form having a preposition as prefix.
Option C – to be playing – is an incorrect answer because it is grammatically wrong and inappropriate.
Option D- have been playing – is an incorrect answer because have been playing is often used to express an action which has been occurring for a certain period of time in past.Example- Rohan has been playing since morning.

Hence the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note:Generally, sentences having present participle form is written in the format-
Prefix +infinitive+ing
These are used as verbs or gerunds. It indicates an action which takes place usually or is taking place at present.