Question

Choose the correct word or phrase that completes the sentence correctly.
He persisted ____ saying so.
(a) In
(b) With
(c) On
(d) For

Answer 1

Hint:Read the given sentence and try to understand the information it is trying to convey. Now go through the options, recall what they signify and choose the one that fits the context of the sentence and helps it to convey the information in the best possible way.

Complete answer: We use prepositions to join the noun or the pronoun with the rest of the sentence. Prepositions help in forming a phrase that usually acts like an adjective, adverb, or a noun.
Let’s look at the functions of different prepositions-
i. In- It is a preposition that is used to indicate while something is happening. For example- In all the chaos I forgot to make the announcement.
ii. With- It is a preposition that is used to indicate feelings and emotions. For example- I sang the song with excitement.
iii. On- It is a preposition that is used to indicate the surface over which an object is kept. For example- Please keep my phone on the bed.
iv. For- It is a preposition that is used to denote the relation between the subject and the rest of the words. For example- He works for his father.
In the context of the question, we can see the use of the word ‘persisted’. When ‘in’ is joined with ‘persisted’, it forms a phrasal verb ‘Persisted in’ which means to do something despite opposition.
Hence, the correct answer is; He persisted in saying so.
Now, let’s examine the given options-
Option a- ‘In’ is the correct option because it forms a phrasal verb with ‘persisted’.
Option b- ‘With’ is an incorrect option because we are not indicating feelings or emotions.
Option c- ‘On’ is an incorrect option because we are not indicating the position of an object.
Option d- ‘For’ is an incorrect option because we are not indicating the relation between the subject and the rest of the words.
The correct answer is Option ‘a’.

Note: Always remember that phrasal verbs are formed by joining a verb with a preposition or an adverb. Phrasal verbs tend to have a different meaning in comparison to the literal meaning of its words.