Select the sentence that is grammatically correct:

The correct answer is Option (4) → The new clerk at the post office absented himself from work for three days without informing anyone.

Verbs that need “himself / herself”:

• Some verbs must be followed by a word like himself or herself. The verb “absent” is one of them: we say absent oneself from a place.
• The clerk kept himself away from work. So the sentence needs “absented himself from work”.

Why the Other Options are Incorrect?

Option 1: The new clerk at the post office absented from work for three days without informing anyone. — Incorrect. The verb “absent” cannot stand alone here. It needs “himself” after it.

Option 2: The new clerk at the post office absented him from work for three days without informing anyone. — Incorrect. “Him” would mean some other man. The clerk kept himself away, so “himself” is needed.

Option 3: The new clerk at the post office himself absented from work for three days without informing anyone. — Incorrect. Here “himself” only adds stress to “the clerk”. The verb “absented” still has no “himself” after it.