Vocabulary and structure: choose the verb that best completes a definition-style sentence about brevity Complete the sentence with the most idiomatic verb: "True brevity ______ in saying only what needs to be said." Choose the correct option.

Given data

• Sentence frame: "True brevity ______ in saying only what needs to be said."
• We must supply the verb that makes the definition natural and idiomatic.

Concept/Approach
English commonly uses the fixed pattern "X lies in Y" to state where the essence of something is found. Thus, "True brevity lies in saying only what needs to be said." This is an established collocation in careful written English.

Option analysis
lies — correct: idiomatic definition form "lies in". ✅consists — would require "consists of", not "consists in" here; also less idiomatic for this aphoristic sentence.results — would change the meaning to an outcome, not an essence.persists — semantic mismatch; persistence is not the intended meaning.

Common pitfalls

• Writing "consists of saying" — reads clumsily in a maxim; "lies in" is the fixed expression.
• Choosing a verb that requires a different preposition, breaking the grammar.

Final Answer
lies