Choose the Assertive form of the given sentence:
How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank!
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → The moonlight very sweetly sleeps upon this bank
Exclamatory to assertive:
- How + adjective/adverb is replaced by very + the same word.
- Here "sweet" tells how the moonlight sleeps, so it is used as an adverb; in plain prose it becomes very sweetly.
- Normal word order (subject + verb) returns, and the exclamation mark becomes a full stop; the meaning stays the same.
Example: How beautifully she sings! → She sings very beautifully.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: The moonlight very sweet sleeps on this bank — Incorrect. The adjective "sweet" cannot modify the verb "sleeps" in plain prose; the adverb "sweetly" is needed.
Option 3: The moonlight does not sleep sweetly upon this bank — Incorrect. The negative reverses the meaning; the exclamation praises the moonlight.
Option 4: Very sweet moonlight sleeps upon this bank — Incorrect. "Very sweet" now describes the moonlight (a noun), not the way it sleeps, and "the" is lost.