Question

It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the above sentences would be:

Accepted Answer

B. From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a "big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and B is the answer.

Fill in the Blanks - Tea Import

Explanation

Practise this under exam conditions