Find the part of the sentence that contains an error:
The novel which had remained unpublished for decades (1)/ was discovered by chance in a locked drawer (2)/ and were later translated into multiple languages (3)/ by a well-known critic. (4)
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Correct Answer
and were later translated into multiple languages (3)
Explanation
Subject-Verb Agreement Error The core subject of the entire sentence is "The novel", which is a singular noun.
Tracking the Verbs This singular subject governs two passive verbs joined by the coordinating conjunction "and":
First verb phrase (Part 2): "was discovered" (Correct singular past tense form).
Second verb phrase (Part 3): "were later translated" (Incorrect plural past tense form).
Contextual Correction Because the compound predicate describes two actions happening to the same single novel, the plural auxiliary verb "were" must be replaced with the singular auxiliary verb "was". The corrected segment should read: "...and was later translated into multiple languages..."
Therefore, Part 3 contains the clear grammatical violation.
Key Points
Error Segment and were later translated into multiple languages (3)
Correction Change "were" to "was" to maintain structural harmony with the singular subject.
Grammatical Role Subject-verb agreement (tests the ability to trace a singular subject across multiple split clauses and coordinated verb phrases).