Identify the noun clause in the following sentence:
The residents of our building argued for a whole evening over which family should pay to repair the lift.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → which family should pay to repair the lift
Noun clause after a preposition:
- A noun clause can be the object of a preposition. The preposition comes just before the clause but is not part of it.
- Here the clause comes after “over” and tells what the residents argued over. It runs from “which” to the last word, “lift”.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: The residents of our building argued for a whole evening — Incorrect. This is the main clause. It makes sense on its own.
Option 2: over which family should pay to repair the lift — Incorrect. This part takes in the preposition “over”. The preposition belongs to the main clause, not to the noun clause.
Option 4: which family should pay — Incorrect. This is only part of the clause. It leaves out “to repair the lift”.