In this sentence arrangement question, three labelled parts X, Y and Z must be arranged to complete the main sentence: "We drank a little and flung ____". Choose the most logical order of X, Y and Z to form a coherent and grammatically correct sentence.

Introduction / Context:
This question tests your ability to arrange jumbled parts of a sentence into a coherent and grammatically correct order. You are given a main clause, "We drank a little and flung", followed by three labelled segments X, Y and Z. Your task is to choose the order in which these segments should appear to complete a clear, logical sentence. Such sentence arrangement questions check your understanding of narrative flow, grammar and punctuation.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The fixed beginning is: "We drank a little and flung".
• X = "soon were all asleep"
• Y = "sand, thoroughly tired out, and"
• Z = "ourselves down on the"
• You must pick one of the given sequences (ZXY, YZX, YXZ, ZYX) to form a correct and natural sentence.

Concept / Approach:
To solve jumbled sentence questions, you should look for logical connectors, subject verb order and natural phrase groupings. Here, the pronoun "ourselves" in Z clearly refers back to "We drank a little and flung", giving "flung ourselves down on the ...". This suggests that Z must come immediately after the main clause. The word "sand" in Y obviously completes "down on the sand" and is followed by a descriptive phrase "thoroughly tired out, and". Finally, X beginning with "soon were all asleep" logically comes at the end as the final result of lying down. Therefore, the natural sequence is Z → Y → X.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Attach each segment mentally to the main clause and check which one fits directly after "We drank a little and flung".Step 2: Notice that "ourselves down on the" (Z) fits perfectly: "We drank a little and flung ourselves down on the ...".Step 3: Next, see that Y "sand, thoroughly tired out, and" completes the phrase "down on the sand" and adds a participial phrase describing their tiredness.Step 4: Finally, X "soon were all asleep" describes what happened after lying down on the sand, so it should close the sentence.Step 5: Put it all together: "We drank a little and flung ourselves down on the sand, thoroughly tired out, and soon were all asleep." The sequence is therefore Z Y X.

Verification / Alternative check:
Check the other possible orders briefly. If you start with Y or X directly after the main clause, you get "We drank a little and flung sand, thoroughly tired out, and ..." or "We drank a little and flung soon were all asleep", both of which are obviously wrong in terms of sense and grammar. Only Z can follow the verb "flung" logically, because "flung ourselves" is a natural reflexive construction in English. The correct flow of action is: lie down on the sand, be very tired, then fall asleep. This matches the ZY X order.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, ZXY, would give "We drank a little and flung ourselves down on the soon were all asleep sand, thoroughly tired out, and", which is chaotic and ungrammatical. Option B, YZX, starts with "sand, thoroughly tired out, and", which cannot directly follow "flung" and breaks the phrase "down on the sand". Option C, YXZ, similarly puts "sand" right after "flung" without "down on the", making the sentence confusing and grammatically incorrect. None of these maintain a smooth narrative order of actions.

Common Pitfalls:
A common error is to rely only on the letters or on guesswork rather than reading the full reconstructed sentence. Another pitfall is ignoring small linking words like "on the" and "sand" that clearly belong together, or ignoring the reflexive pronoun "ourselves". Always look for natural pairs, such as verb + object ("flung ourselves") and preposition + object ("on the sand"), and then add descriptive or result clauses afterwards. This method makes sentence arrangement much easier.

Final Answer:
The most logical and grammatically correct order of the segments is ZYX, giving the complete sentence: "We drank a little and flung ourselves down on the sand, thoroughly tired out, and soon were all asleep.".