SAT OwlQuestion bank / Form, Structure, and Sense
Birds of prey find food mainly by sight. Studies of the peregrine falcon and its close relatives show that ______ retinas contain far more light-sensing cells per square millimeter than human retinas do.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
its
it's
their
they're
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C
The retinas belong to "the peregrine falcon and its close relatives." Two nouns joined by "and" form a plural antecedent, so the plural possessive pronoun "their" is correct.
Choice A matches the nearby singular nouns "falcon" and "its," but the antecedent is the whole phrase "the peregrine falcon and its close relatives," which is plural.
Why the other choices are wrong
- A. "Its" would refer to the falcon alone, but the retinas belong to the falcon and its relatives together, a plural antecedent.
- B. "It's" means "it is," which makes no sense before "retinas."
- D. "They're" means "they are," which doesn't fit before a noun like "retinas."
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