Which sentence correctly maintains tense consistency within a narrative of past events?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. The expedition reached the summit at noon and celebrated their hard-earned accomplishment.
- Step 1: In a narrative recounting past actions, verbs should remain consistently in the past tense unless there is a clear chronological shift.
- Step 2: 'reached' (simple past) and 'celebrated' (simple past) maintain proper tense harmony.
Answer
The expedition reached the summit at noon and celebrated their hard-earned accomplishment.
Why not the others: '...reached... and then they celebrate' inappropriately shifts from past to present tense; '...reaches... but celebrated' shifts from present to past without justification; '...had reached... and then celebrates' shifts from past perfect to present.
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