Choose the correct word to complete the following sentence:
These days, three thousand rupees ______ not enough to buy a good pair of school shoes.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → is
Subject-verb agreement with an amount of money:
- An amount of money thought of as one sum takes a singular verb.
- “Three thousand rupees” is one sum here, not many separate notes. “These days” shows the present. So the verb is is.
- Complete sentence: These days, three thousand rupees is not enough to buy a good pair of school shoes.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: are — Incorrect. “Are” is plural, but an amount taken as one sum is singular. Example: The ten-rupee notes in my wallet are torn.
Option 3: were — Incorrect. “Were” is plural, but an amount taken as one sum is singular. Example: The coins in the piggy bank were counted by Riya.
Option 4: was — Incorrect. “Was” is singular, but it shows the past. The sentence is about now (“these days”). Example: Ten rupees was enough for a cinema ticket in 1975.