Select the most appropriate option that can substitute the underlined segment in the given sentence.
The COVID-19 pandemic led to trade disruptions worldwide, but the agricultural and food sector prove to more resilient than other sectors of the economy
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
The correct answer is option 4 i.e. proved to be more resilient
Error concept: Wrong verb tense usage.
What is wrong: The segment “prove to more resilient” is grammatically incorrect because:
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The verb “prove” is in the wrong form.
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The infinitive “to more resilient” is incomplete; it requires “to be more resilient.”
Grammatical concept: Since the sentence talks about a completed past event (the pandemic already led to disruptions), the past tense “proved” should be used.
Incorrectness of the concept in context: Using “prove to” is ungrammatical here because it mixes present tense with past context.
How to correct: Change “prove to more resilient” → “proved to be more resilient.”
Correct phrase/ correction: proved to be more resilient
Final sentence: The COVID-19 pandemic led to trade disruptions worldwide, but the agricultural and food sector proved to be more resilient than other sectors of the economy.
Hence, the chosen option is correct.