Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate option.
How long ago did you __________________?

• A. have painted your house
• B. had your house painted
• C. have your house painted
• D. have your house paint

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

have your house painted

The given sentence lacks a verb. Thus, the answer must contain a verb in it. Further, the word 'ago' is usually used to indicate an action that is being discussed currently but has been completed in the past. Thus, the answer must be in the present perfect tense.

Option A is incorrect. 'have painted your house' is grammatically incorrect because according to rules of usage, in questions having present perfect tense,z the subject or a pronoun referring to the subject, must be in the middle of the auxiliary 'have' and the main verb.

Option B is incorrect. 'had your house painted' is in the past perfect tense. Thus, it makes the sentence grammatically incorrect.

Option C is correct. 'have your house painted' is in the present perfect tense. Further, the pronoun 'your' which refers to the subject, is also present in between the auxiliary and main verb. Thus, it is the correct answer.

Option D is incorrect. In 'have your house paint', 'have' indicates perfect tense, but the main verb 'paint' is not in its past participle form. Thus, it is grammatically incorrect.