Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: spectrum
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This is a vocabulary fill in the blank question focusing on a common academic and business expression. You are asked to select the best word to complete the sentence: "The survey provided the company with a wide __________ of feedback on its products." This type of question checks whether you are familiar with typical noun phrases that appear in reports, articles and corporate communication.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
In English, the expression "a wide spectrum of" is widely used to mean "a broad range of" or "a great variety of". We often talk about "a wide spectrum of opinions", "a wide spectrum of interests" or "a spectrum of feedback". Therefore, "spectrum" is the natural collocation in this academic style sentence. The other words in the options list do not collocate correctly with "wide" and "of feedback" in this context.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the sentence meaning: the company received feedback of many different kinds through the survey.Step 2: Recognise that "a wide ______ of" usually signals words like "range", "variety" or "spectrum".Step 3: Examine the options and note that "spectrum" is commonly used with "wide", especially in formal writing.Step 4: Test "a wide spectrum of feedback" and see that it sounds natural and idiomatic.Step 5: Reject options that fail to fit smoothly into the phrase: "a wide option of feedback", "a wide choices of feedback", "a wide colours of feedback" are all ungrammatical or unnatural.
Verification / Alternative check:
Consider equivalent sentences: "The survey provided the company with a wide range of feedback on its products" and "The survey provided the company with a wide spectrum of feedback on its products." Both are acceptable, and "spectrum" closely parallels "range" in meaning. If you substitute other options, the sentence either becomes incorrect or loses the intended meaning. For example, "a wide option of feedback" is wrong because "option" is usually countable and used differently, and "a wide choices of feedback" is grammatically incorrect because "choices" is plural and needs another structure.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
"Option" typically refers to a single choice or alternative in expressions like "You have one option" or "various options", but we do not say "a wide option of feedback". "Choices" is plural and would require phrasing like "a wide range of choices", not "a wide choices of feedback". "Colours" is used literally for colours or figuratively for moods or features, but "a wide colours of feedback" is grammatically wrong and semantically odd. None of these form the standard collocation expected in this context.
Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes ignore the preposition "of" and focus only on words like "wide", which leads them to pick any word that sounds related to variety. Another pitfall is translating directly from a mother tongue expression and picking "options" or "choices" without checking the exact English phrase pattern. To avoid such mistakes, pay attention to fixed phrases like "a wide spectrum of", "a broad range of" and "a variety of" used in formal texts.
Final Answer:
The correct option is spectrum, giving the well formed expression "The survey provided the company with a wide spectrum of feedback on its products."
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