surya167 wrote:
Advertising firms know that how a product is displayed and the reputation of a television show can determine the effectiveness of product placements.
(A) the reputation of the television show can determine
(B) the reputation of the television show is determined by
(C) the reputation with which the the television show is regarded is determined by
(D) how reputable a television show is determines
(E) how reputable a television show is can determine
Please underline the relevant part of the sentence. Based on the answer choices, it is presumed that "the reputation of a television show can determine" is the underlined portion of the sentence in the original question.
The sentence presents a list of two factors that determine the effectiveness of product placements:
1. how a product is displayed, and
2. the reputation of a television show
Clearly, the two items in the list are not parallel. Hence, option A is ruled out.
(A) the reputation of the television show can determine
rejected because it is not parallel(B) the reputation of the television show is determined by
rejected because it is not parallel(C) the reputation with which the the television show is regarded is determined by
rejected because it is not parallel(D) how reputable a television show is
determines. This option is rejected as the subject-verb pair is not in agreement. If you notice the sentence follows the structure: SUBJECT - VERB - THAT - SUBJECT - VERB - OBJECT. Remember, when the word THAT appears just after a working verb, it acts as a reset in the sentence and a new subject-verb-object structure will follow. The new subject in the given sentence is "how a product is displayed and how reputable a television show is". As this is a compound subject (plural) the verb must be plural. In this option D, the verb "determines" is singular. Hence, this option is rejected (E) how reputable a television show is can determine
This is the correct answer. It maintains a parallel structure and the subject verb pair is in agreement.