Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: inform
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This sentence completion question tests your knowledge of verb collocations, that is, which verbs naturally follow specific phrases in English. The sentence Sita felt obligated to ______ Geeta describes a sense of duty that Sita experiences towards Geeta, and you must select the verb that gives the most natural and meaningful expression to that duty.
Given Data / Assumptions:
The key phrase is felt obligated to followed by a blank before the object Geeta. The context does not explicitly describe any action like crying or giving, so you must rely on how the phrase feel obligated to is typically used in standard English. Usually, it is followed by a verb that expresses something one should do for another person, often by way of communication, explanation, or assistance.
Concept / Approach:
In everyday usage, feel obligated to is frequently followed by verbs such as tell, inform, help, or repay. Among the given options, inform fits best because it naturally forms the collocation feel obligated to inform someone, often about an important fact or decision. The other verbs either do not take a person as a direct object in this structure or do not convey the idea of a moral or social duty.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the phrase felt obligated to as an indicator of a sense of duty.Step 2: Recognise that the verb you choose must take the person Geeta as its object.Step 3: Test each verb mentally: cry Geeta is ungrammatical; decide Geeta is incorrect; give Geeta needs an object of what is given; support Geeta is possible but less natural with felt obligated to in exam style English.Step 4: Observe that inform Geeta is a standard pattern, meaning to give Geeta important information.Step 5: Conclude that inform is the verb that best fits both grammar and meaning.
Verification / Alternative check:
Substitute the answer into the sentence: Sita felt obligated to inform Geeta. This sentence is smooth, natural, and clearly implies that Sita believed it was her duty to tell Geeta something. If you use support instead, the sentence Sita felt obligated to support Geeta is understandable but has a slightly different nuance and is less typical for exam based collocation questions, which are often built around communication verbs.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
cry cannot take Geeta directly as an object and does not convey a sense of duty. decide usually takes on or about as a preposition or a clause, not a person as direct object. give needs another object, as in give Geeta the book, otherwise the idea is incomplete. support Geeta is grammatically acceptable but is less collocationally strong with felt obligated to in exam focused standard English, and the more precise match is feel obligated to inform someone about something important.
Common Pitfalls:
Candidates sometimes choose verbs based only on emotional tone, such as cry or support, without checking grammatical patterns. Another issue is ignoring the direct object and not asking which verb naturally takes a person after it. Always test the full phrase out loud or in your mind to see whether it sounds like a real sentence you might encounter in formal usage.
Final Answer:
The most appropriate verb to complete the sentence is inform, giving Sita felt obligated to inform Geeta.
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