Intermediate ellipsis and substitution. 45 questions on VP ellipsis with do so, auxiliary ellipsis across clauses, and substitution with so/not in complex structures.
What this test covers
- VP Ellipsis and Do So
- Clausal Ellipsis Across Sentences
- Substitution in Complex Structures
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All 45 questions with answers
Pick an answer for each question to see if you are right, with the explanation. Submit when you are done; you can submit before answering them all.
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Q1The manager requested that the team finish the report by Friday. Using formal substitution, they ____ exactly as instructed.
Answer: A. did so
In formal writing, 'did so' is a common substitute for a previously mentioned verb phrase ('finish the report'). While 'did it' is used in spoken English, 'did so' is the standard for formal instructions.
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Q2I asked my assistant to print the documents. In a formal context, he ____ immediately, which saved me a lot of time.
Answer: B. did so
The phrase 'did so' acts as a substitute for the verb phrase 'print the documents'. The past tense is required because the action is completed. 'Done' is incorrect as it needs an auxiliary verb like 'has'.
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Q3The committee agreed to reduce the budget, and the board also decided to ____ (use formal substitution).
Answer: C. do so
After 'decided to', we need an infinitive. 'Do so' is the formal pro-form for 'reduce the budget'. Bare 'do' is incomplete, and 'doing so' does not fit the infinitive structure required by 'decided to'.
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Q4I told him to wash the car, and he ____ (use formal substitution), even though he was tired.
Answer: D. did so
The pro-form 'did so' refers back to 'wash the car'. In formal contexts, this is preferred over 'did it'. Using 'did' alone is an example of ellipsis, but the prompt specifically asks for substitution.
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Q5The consultant suggested restructuring the department. Although it was risky, the CEO ____ (use formal substitution) anyway.
Answer: B. did so
To substitute for the action 'restructuring the department', we use 'did so'. The phrase 'did it' is more informal, and the past continuous 'was doing' does not correctly describe a completed decision.
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Q6A: 'Are you going to the conference next week?' B: 'I hope ____ (using ellipsis), if my schedule allows.'
Answer: D. to
When we omit a verb phrase after 'hope', 'want', or 'would like', we usually retain the infinitive marker 'to'. This is known as 'to-ellipsis'. Options like 'to do' or 'to go' are redundant.
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Q7A: 'Will she sit the certification exam next month?' B: 'She said she ____, but she's still preparing.'
Answer: A. would
'Would' is the backshift of 'will' in reported speech. Because the original statement was a prediction about a future event ('I will sit the exam'), it is reported as 'she said she would'. 'Had' is the backshift of the past simple or present perfect and would imply the exam had already taken place, contradicting 'next month'. 'Should' expresses obligation or expectation rather than a straightforward prediction. 'Would have' is used for unreal or hypothetical conditions, not direct predictions.
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Q8A: 'He should have apologized for his behavior.' B: 'I know he ____.'
Answer: B. should have
In verb phrase ellipsis with perfect modals (modal + have + past participle), we must retain the auxiliary 'have'. Therefore, 'should have' is the correct elliptical form to represent 'should have apologized'.
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Q9A: 'Can you come to the party?' B: 'I'd love to, but I don't think I ___.'
Answer: B. can
We use the same modal auxiliary in the response that was used in the question. Since the question asks 'Can you...?', the elliptical response must be 'I can' (or in this negative context, 'I can't' is implied after 'I don't think I...').
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Q10A: 'Has he finished the project?' B: 'He claims ____, but I haven't seen it yet.'
Answer: D. to have
The verb 'claim' is followed by a 'to-infinitive'. To substitute for the present perfect 'has finished', we use the perfect infinitive 'to have', with the main verb 'finished' omitted via ellipsis. 'He does' is wrong because 'does' refers to a present habitual action, not a completed past event. 'Done' alone is incorrect because it requires the subject pronoun 'he' and the auxiliary 'has' to form a grammatical clause.
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Q11The performance of the new team was significantly better than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) of the previous one.
Answer: C. that
The demonstrative pronoun 'that' is used to substitute for a singular noun ('performance') to avoid repetition. 'Those' would be used for plural nouns, and 'the one' is less common in formal comparisons involving 'of'.
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Q12The data from the 2023 study are more reliable than ____ from the 2010 study.
Answer: A. those
The clue is the plural verb 'are', which indicates 'data' is being treated as a plural noun here. Therefore, the plural demonstrative pronoun 'those' is needed to refer back to 'data'. 'That' is singular.
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Q13The salary of a junior developer is lower than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) of a senior manager.
Answer: C. that
We use 'that' to substitute for the singular noun 'salary'. Using 'those' would be incorrect as it is plural, and 'the one' is generally avoided in this specific 'X of Y' comparative structure.
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Q14The architectural designs of this building resemble ____ of the museum in the city center.
Answer: C. those
The noun 'designs' is plural, so we use the plural demonstrative pronoun 'those' as a substitute. 'That' is used only for singular nouns.
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Q15Choose the grammatically correct version: 'The quality of the imported components is superior to the one of the locally sourced parts.'
Answer: B. The quality of the imported components is superior to that of the locally sourced parts.
In formal comparisons using the structure 'the [noun] of...', we use 'that' for singular nouns and 'those' for plural nouns. Since 'quality' is singular, 'that of' is the correct choice. 'The one' is incorrect in this specific comparative structure.
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Q16Choose the grammatically correct version: 'The director asked us to prepare a summary, and we did so it immediately.'
Answer: A. The director asked us to prepare a summary, and we did it immediately.
We can use 'did it' or 'did so' as pro-forms, but we cannot combine them into 'did so it'. 'Did it' correctly substitutes for the verb phrase 'prepare a summary'.
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Q17Choose the grammatically correct version: 'He was told to sign the contract, but he didn't do before the deadline.'
Answer: B. He was told to sign the contract, but he didn't do so before the deadline.
The verb 'do' cannot stand alone as a substitute for a verb phrase; it needs a pro-form like 'so' or 'it'. 'Didn't do so' is the correct formal substitution for 'sign the contract'.
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Q18Choose the grammatically correct version: 'I told them to leave the office, and they did so it.'
Answer: C. I told them to leave the office, and they did so.
'Did so' is a complete substitute for the verb phrase 'leave the office'. Adding 'it' as in 'did so it' is a grammatical error because 'so' already acts as the object/pro-form.
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Q19Choose the grammatically correct version: 'She wanted to finish the task, but she couldn't do.'
Answer: A. She wanted to finish the task, but she couldn't.
In English, we can end a clause with a modal auxiliary like 'couldn't' (ellipsis). We cannot follow a modal with a bare 'do' (as in 'couldn't do') to substitute for a verb phrase; we would need 'couldn't do so' or 'couldn't do it'.
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Q20Choose the grammatically correct version: 'The client asked for a discount, but we refused to do.'
Answer: D. The client asked for a discount, but we refused to do so.
'Refused to do so' is the standard formal substitution pro-form, where 'do so' substitutes for the entire action of granting the discount. 'Refused doing' and 'refused doing so' are both grammatically incorrect because the verb 'refuse' exclusively takes a to-infinitive, not a gerund. 'Refused it to' reverses the correct word order and is ungrammatical.
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Q21Select the correct sentence for a formal business report.
Answer: D. She has never been to London, and nor has her husband.
In formal writing, negative agreement with 'nor' requires subject-verb inversion: 'nor has her husband'. 'She has never been to London, and her husband hasn't neither.' uses a double negative ('hasn't neither'). 'She has never been to London, and neither her husband has.' omits the inversion ('neither her husband has' is wrong word order). 'She has never been to London, and nor hasn't her husband.' also creates a double negative ('nor hasn't') by combining the negative 'nor' with the negative auxiliary 'hasn't'.
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Q22Select the correct sentence for a professional email.
Answer: C. He didn't finish the report, and neither did I.
Negative agreement with 'neither' requires subject-verb inversion. 'Neither did I' is correct. 'I didn't too' is wrong because 'too' is for positive sentences; 'either' would be needed for a negative sentence.
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Q23Select the correct sentence for a meeting transcript.
Answer: A. I am happy to help, and so is my colleague.
For positive agreement, 'so' requires inversion: So + Auxiliary + Subject. Since the first clause uses the verb 'to be' ('I am'), the second clause must also use 'to be' ('so is my colleague').
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Q24Select the correct sentence for a formal presentation.
Answer: C. They can attend the meeting, and so can we.
Positive agreement using 'so' requires subject-verb inversion. 'So can we' matches the modal auxiliary 'can' from the first clause and follows the correct word order.
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Q25The climate in the north is much colder than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) in the south.
Answer: A. that
The singular noun 'climate' is substituted by 'that'. 'Those' is plural, and 'the ones' is generally used for countable objects, not abstract mass nouns like climate.
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Q26The profit margins in this sector are higher than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) of the retail sector.
Answer: B. those
The plural noun 'margins' is substituted by the plural demonstrative pronoun 'those'. 'That' is singular and would be grammatically incorrect here.
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Q27The software update is more complex than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) of the previous version.
Answer: D. that
To avoid repeating the singular noun 'update', we use the demonstrative pronoun 'that'. 'Those' is incorrect because the subject is singular.
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Q28The environmental regulations in this country are stricter than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) in neighboring regions.
Answer: A. those
'Regulations' is a plural noun, so 'those' is the correct demonstrative pronoun for substitution. 'That' is only for singular nouns.
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Q29The feedback from the clients was more positive than ____ (using a demonstrative pronoun) from the employees.
Answer: C. that
'Feedback' is an uncountable (singular) noun in English. Therefore, we use 'that' to substitute it. 'Those' and 'the ones' are plural and cannot be used.
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Q30The energy consumption levels are lower than ____ recorded last year.
Answer: A. those
The subject 'levels' is plural, so we use the plural substitute 'those'. 'That' would refer to a singular noun.
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Q31He wanted to resign, but he didn't ____ (use formal substitution) because he needed the salary.
Answer: B. do so
The formal substitution for the verb phrase 'resign' is 'do so'. While 'do it' is common in conversation, 'do so' is more appropriate for formal or professional contexts.
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Q32They were expected to arrive on time, and most of them ____ (standard VP ellipsis).
Answer: D. did
In standard verb phrase ellipsis, we use the auxiliary verb ('did') to represent the whole phrase 'arrived on time'. While 'did so' is substitution, 'did' is the most common form of ellipsis in this context.
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Q33She asked him to call her back, and he ____ (use formal substitution) without hesitation.
Answer: C. did so
The phrase 'did so' formally substitutes for the action 'call her back'. In formal contexts, this is preferred over 'did it' or simple ellipsis ('did').
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Q34I told the staff to be prepared for the audit, and they ____ (use formal substitution).
Answer: C. did so
'Did so' substitutes for the verb phrase 'be prepared'. Note that 'so' can substitute for phrases beginning with 'be', whereas 'did it' is strictly for active verbs.
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Q35The technician was asked to check the server, and he ____ (use formal substitution) after the meeting.
Answer: C. did so
'Did so' is the standard formal substitute for the specific action 'check the server'. 'Has done' changes the tense incorrectly, and 'did it' is less formal.
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Q36Choose the grammatically correct version: 'He said he would help us, and so did he.'
Answer: C. He said he would help us, and so he did.
To confirm that someone actually performed an action they promised, we use 'so' + subject + auxiliary ('so he did'). Using inversion ('so did he') is only used to add a different subject (e.g., 'He helped, and so did I').
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Q37Choose the grammatically correct version: 'She has never been to Paris, and so has I.'
Answer: B. She has never been to Paris, and nor have I.
In negative agreement, we use 'neither' or 'nor' with subject-verb inversion. The auxiliary 'have' must agree with the new subject 'I'. 'So have I' is for positive agreement, which does not match the negative 'never'.
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Q38Choose the grammatically correct version: 'He didn't agree with the proposal, and neither I did.'
Answer: D. He didn't agree with the proposal, and neither did I.
'Neither' requires subject-verb inversion: 'neither' + auxiliary + subject. 'Neither did I' is the correct form.
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Q39Choose the grammatically correct version: 'I am not going to the event, and neither my brother is.'
Answer: C. I am not going to the event, and neither is my brother.
When starting with 'neither' to show agreement with a negative statement, you must invert the subject and auxiliary: 'neither is my brother'.
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Q40Choose the grammatically correct version: 'They were late for the flight, and so we were.'
Answer: A. They were late for the flight, and so were we.
Positive agreement with 'so' requires subject-verb inversion: 'so' + auxiliary + subject. 'So were we' is the correct structure.
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Q41Select the correct sentence for a formal research paper.
Answer: C. The findings of this experiment differ from those of the previous one.
The plural noun 'findings' requires the plural demonstrative pronoun 'those' for substitution. 'That' is singular and would be incorrect.
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Q42Select the correct sentence for a formal proposal.
Answer: C. The budget for this project is lower than that of the previous project.
The singular noun 'budget' is substituted by 'that'. Using 'the budget is lower than the previous project' is a common logical error (you are comparing a money amount to a project itself).
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Q43Select the correct sentence for a business report.
Answer: C. The results of the survey are more conclusive than those of the pilot study.
The plural noun 'results' is substituted by 'those'. 'That' is singular and 'the ones of' is generally considered less formal than 'those of' in academic and business writing.
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Q44Select the correct sentence for a formal email.
Answer: C. The requirements for the position are similar to those of the previous job.
The plural noun 'requirements' is correctly substituted by 'those'. 'That' is singular and does not match the plural antecedent.
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Q45Select the correct sentence for an academic essay.
Answer: C. The structure of the novel is more complex than that of the play.
The singular noun 'structure' is substituted by 'that'. 'Those' is for plural nouns, and 'the structure is more complex than the play' is a faulty comparison because it compares a 'structure' to a 'play' rather than two structures.
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