Extract:
What word is best to substitute for the underlined words in the following sentence?
Mr. Menotti’s wife collected Mr. Menotti’s belongings for the ride home.
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A
her
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B
him
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C
he
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D
his
The word "his" best substitutes for "Mr. Menotti's" because the possessive pronoun must modify the noun "belongings."
A) her
"Her" is feminine possessive—incorrect gender to replace masculine "Mr. Menotti's." Pronoun gender must match antecedent gender.
B) him
"Him" is objective case pronoun—cannot function as possessive modifier before a noun. "Him belongings" creates ungrammatical construction lacking possessive form.
C) he
"He" is subjective case pronoun—cannot function as possessive modifier. "He belongings" creates ungrammatical construction.
D) his
"His" is masculine singular possessive pronoun correctly replacing "Mr. Menotti's" before the noun "belongings." Dependent possessive pronouns modifying nouns require this form matching antecedent gender and number.
Conclusion
Possessive pronouns modifying nouns require dependent forms ("my," "your," "his," "her," "its," "our," "their") matching antecedent gender and number. Masculine singular antecedent "Mr. Menotti" demands masculine singular possessive "his" before the noun "belongings."