In this English sentence improvement problem, you must correct the structure of the sentence The girl to whom he got married to is an actress, where the underlined phrase contains an unnecessary preposition. Select the option that produces a grammatically correct and natural sentence while preserving the original meaning that he married that particular girl, and choose No improvement only if no change is needed.

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: got married

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This question examines correct verb and preposition usage with marry. Many learners confuse patterns like marry, get married, and be married, and they may add an unnecessary preposition after the verb. The sentence The girl to whom he got married to is an actress contains a repetition of the preposition to, which makes the structure ungrammatical. You have to choose the option that removes this fault and results in standard English usage.


Given Data / Assumptions:

  • The original sentence is The girl to whom he got married to is an actress.
  • The underlined part is got married to.
  • The options include got married with, got married, got betrothed in, and No improvement.
  • The intended meaning is that he married that girl and she is an actress.


Concept / Approach:
In English, marry can be used transitively as marry someone or in the phrase get married to someone. When the indirect object is already introduced by to whom, we do not repeat the preposition after the verb. The combination to whom and to after got married creates a double preposition which is incorrect. The best solution is to keep to whom and remove the second to, so the verb phrase becomes got married and the single preposition to is already present in the relative pronoun phrase to whom. Therefore, we search for the option that simply uses got married without any extra preposition.


Step-by-Step Solution:
First, separate the sentence into the relative clause to whom he got married to and the main clause is an actress. Second, observe that to whom already contains the preposition to, indicating the person he married. Third, notice that the verb phrase got married to repeats the preposition to, which leads to an awkward and incorrect structure to whom he got married to. Fourth, recall that when the relative pronoun includes the preposition, the verb usually stands without another preposition, so the correct structure is to whom he got married. Finally, see that the option got married gives the sentence The girl to whom he got married is an actress, which is grammatically sound.


Verification / Alternative check:
You can compare other correct examples such as The man to whom she is engaged is a doctor or The person to whom I spoke was very polite. In these sentences, the preposition appears only once with the relative pronoun. If you add another preposition after the verb, the result sounds unnatural. In addition, many grammar books present get married to someone or marry someone as standard forms, and when a relative clause already holds the preposition, it is not repeated. Reading similar structures in reliable texts will confirm that to whom he got married is the accepted pattern.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, got married with, is incorrect because English does not usually use married with to indicate the partner; married with commonly appears in phrases like married with two children, which has a different meaning.

Option C, got betrothed in, changes the meaning, because betrothed refers to engagement, not marriage, and the preposition in does not fit this context.

Option D, No improvement, would keep the redundant to and preserve the error to whom he got married to, which the exam expects you to correct.


Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is mixing the patterns marry someone and get married to someone, which leads to hybrid forms like get married with someone or marry with someone. Another pitfall is believing that every verb of relationship necessarily requires a preposition, which is not true in English. Learners should memorise the basic correct patterns and then notice how relative pronouns with prepositions work, so that they do not repeat the same preposition twice in the same clause.


Final Answer:
The correct and natural structure removes the repeated preposition and uses a simple verb phrase, so the best choice is got married.

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