Fill in the blank with the correct noun clause:
On our first day at the new gym, nobody explained ______.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → how the rowing machine worked
Noun clause as the object:
- A question can become a noun clause that is the object of a verb. The question word stays, and the words go into statement order.
- Complete sentence: On our first day at the new gym, nobody explained how the rowing machine worked.
- The clause answers “explained what?”. “Did” is dropped, and the subject “the rowing machine” comes before the verb “worked”.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: how did the rowing machine work — Incorrect. The option says “how did the rowing machine work”. This is question order. Inside a noun clause the subject comes before the verb, and “did” is dropped.
Option 3: that how the rowing machine worked — Incorrect. The option puts “that” before “how”. The clause already has its joining word, “how”, so the extra “that” is wrong.
Option 4: how the rowing machine worked it — Incorrect. Here “worked” means “ran”, and it takes no object. So the extra “it” is wrong.