Select the most appropriate option to replace the underlined part of the sentence:
At the swimming pool, the coach made the beginners to float on their backs for ten minutes.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → made the beginners float
“Make” + person + verb without “to”:
- When make means to get someone to do something, it is followed by the person and then the simple form of the verb.
- The given sentence says “made the beginners to float”. This is wrong: no “to” comes after “make” + person.
- Complete sentence: At the swimming pool, the coach made the beginners float on their backs for ten minutes.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: made the beginners floating — Incorrect. After “make” + person, the verb takes its simple form, not the -ing form.
Option 3: made the beginners to floating — Incorrect. After “make” + person, the simple form “float” comes with no “to” before it.
Option 4: made the beginners floated — Incorrect. After “make” + person, the verb takes its simple form, not the past form.