The earliest English settlers in Virginia failed to survive their first winter in the New World because of factors such as inadequate food supplies, harsh weather, and an inability to communicate with Native Americans.


A. an inability

B. that they were unable

C. because they were unable

D. being unable

E. lacking an ability
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A. an inability

Correctly maintain parallelism by providing a noun. CORRECT

B. that they were unable

Parallelism in the list needs a noun in the underlined portion. INCORRECT

C. because they were unable

Parallelism in the list needs a noun in the underlined portion. INCORRECT

D. being unable

Parallelism in the list needs a noun in the underlined portion. INCORRECT

E. lacking an ability

Parallelism in the list needs a noun in the underlined portion. The gerund in this sentence provides an action that is not parallel to other elements in the list. INCORRECT

Hence option A
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Considering parallel structure, A is the best answer as other elements are also nouns. We can't add any other element like a clause to this sentence.