Select the option that will improve the underlined part of the given sentence.
Just when they reach the airport, the flight had departed from the runway.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
The correct answer is option 4 i.e. Just before they reached.
Error concept: Incorrect tense sequence and conjunction usage.
What is wrong: The phrase “Just when they reach” uses the present tense (reach), while the main clause “the flight had departed” is in the past perfect tense. This causes a tense mismatch.
Grammatical concept:
When describing two past actions where one happened earlier than the other, we use:
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Past perfect tense (had + V3) for the earlier action, and
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Simple past tense (V2) for the later action.
Also, “just before” correctly indicates that one event occurred immediately prior to another.
Incorrectness of the concept in context: “Reach” (present tense) cannot be used with “had departed” (past perfect). The correct construction should indicate that the flight had already left before they arrived.
How to correct: Replace “Just when they reach” with “Just before they reached.”
Correct phrase / correction: Just before they reached
Final sentence: Just before they reached the airport, the flight had departed from the runway.
Hence, the chosen option is correct.