In this English sentence improvement question, you must choose the most appropriate word to replace the underlined verb in the sentence The fugitive was finally stopped at the airport, so that the sentence accurately describes the legal act of catching a person who is trying to escape. Select the option that best fits this formal context and choose No improvement only if the original wording is already correct.

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: apprehended

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This question tests vocabulary choice in a legal or police context. The sentence refers to a fugitive, which is a person who has escaped from custody or is running away to avoid arrest. The current verb stopped is too general and does not fully capture the idea of formal capture or arrest. You need to select the verb that clearly expresses the action taken by the authorities when they catch such a person at an airport or any other checkpoint.


Given Data / Assumptions:

  • The sentence frame is The fugitive was finally stopped at the airport.
  • The underlined word is stopped, which needs a more precise synonym.
  • The options are compromised, comprehended, apprehended, and No improvement.
  • The context is law enforcement and the capture of a person on the run.


Concept / Approach:
We need a verb that specifically means to arrest or capture someone who is trying to escape. General verbs like stop can apply to many situations, but examination questions often expect more precise vocabulary. The word apprehend, used in the passive form apprehended, is a standard legal term for catching and taking someone into custody. The other options relate to very different meanings and do not match the legal context implied by fugitive. Therefore, our approach is to match the specialised meaning in the sentence with the correct verb from the options.


Step-by-Step Solution:
First, focus on the word fugitive and recall its meaning as a person who is escaping from law or punishment. Second, ask what normally happens when authorities catch a fugitive at an airport or border, and note that they arrest or apprehend that person. Third, examine each option and check which one has the meaning of arrest or capture in a legal context. Fourth, recognise that apprehended is widely used in news reports and legal writing to describe the act of catching a fugitive. Finally, replace stopped with apprehended to produce the improved sentence The fugitive was finally apprehended at the airport.


Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, you can imagine a newspaper headline such as Fugitive apprehended at city airport after long chase. This usage sounds completely natural and matches common patterns in English reporting. On the other hand, a headline like Fugitive compromised at the airport or Fugitive comprehended at the airport would sound wrong. Consulting a dictionary confirms that apprehend includes the sense of arrest or capture, especially of a criminal, which fits perfectly with fugitive in the sentence.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, compromised, means to endanger, weaken, or reach a settlement by giving up something. It does not describe the physical act of arresting a person.

Option B, comprehended, means understood, which is about mental grasp rather than physical capture, so it does not fit the context of catching a fugitive.

Option D, No improvement, keeps the vague verb stopped, which fails to convey the formal, legal sense of arrest that the sentence implies and that the test is checking.


Common Pitfalls:
Learners often rely on very general verbs like stop, get, or do, which can work in many casual sentences but are not precise enough for examination standards. Another common problem is choosing words that look similar but have different meanings, such as confuse comprehend with apprehend. Paying attention to common collocations in news language, like apprehend a suspect or arrest a fugitive, helps in building accurate vocabulary for such questions.


Final Answer:
The verb that correctly expresses the act of arresting and taking a fugitive into custody is apprehended.

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