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Susan was late. By the time she got to school the class _______ already.
  • a)
    have started
  • b)
    starts
  • c)
    was starting
  • d)
    had started
Correct answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?
Verified Answer
Susan was late. By the time she got to school the class _______ alread...

To determine the correct answer, we need to understand the context of the sentence and the correct verb tense to use.

Analysis:
- The sentence states that Susan was late, indicating that the action of her being late happened in the past.
- The phrase "By the time she got to school" suggests that Susan arrived at school after a certain point in time.
- The use of the word "already" indicates that the class started before Susan arrived at school.
Options:
A:
have started
- Incorrect. The present perfect tense "have started" is not appropriate for describing a past event.
B:
starts
- Incorrect. The present tense "starts" is not appropriate for describing a past event.
C:
was starting
- Incorrect. The past continuous tense "was starting" suggests an ongoing action at a specific past time, which does not fit the context.
D:
had started
- Correct. The past perfect tense "had started" is used to describe an action that happened before another past event. In this case, the class started before Susan arrived at school, making "had started" the appropriate choice.
Therefore, the correct answer is D:
had started
.
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Most Upvoted Answer
Susan was late. By the time she got to school the class _______ alread...
Understanding the sentence:
Susan was late. By the time she got to school the class had already started.

Explanation:
- The sentence indicates a past action (Susan being late) that had an effect on another past action (the class starting).
- The use of "had started" in this context indicates that the class had started before Susan arrived at school.

Correct answer:
Option 'D' is the correct answer because it correctly uses the past perfect tense "had started" to show that the class had already begun before Susan arrived.

Why the other options are incorrect:
- Option 'A' ("have started") uses the present perfect tense, which is not appropriate for describing an action that occurred before Susan's arrival.
- Option 'B' ("starts") uses the simple present tense, which does not convey the past sequence of events.
- Option 'C' ("was starting") uses the past continuous tense, which implies that the class was in the process of starting when Susan arrived, rather than already being in progress.
Therefore, option 'D' is the most suitable choice as it accurately reflects the sequence of events in the sentence.
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Susan was late. By the time she got to school the class _______ already.a)have startedb)startsc)was startingd)had startedCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?
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