Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate option:
Tom is ___________ Helen. [Basic]

• A. as tall than
• B. as tall as
• C. so tall as
• D. so tall than

Answer 1

The correct option is B as tall as

The given sentence is made up of two clauses "Tom is..." and "Helen".

('Helen' is an elliptical clause, which means a clause that has been shortened from 'Helen is' to 'Helen'.)

The blank is to be filled with a conjunction that can connect the clauses by expressing a comparison between them.

Option B: 'As tall as' is a conjunction that expresses comparison. It compares two things or people that are equal in degree or quality (positive degree of comparison). It completes the sentence and hence, B is correct.

Option A: 'As tall than' is grammatically incorrect, because 'as...as' is a set pair of conjunctions that expresses the positive degree, whereas 'than' expresses the comparative degree. Hence option A is wrong.

Options C and D: 'So tall as' and 'so tall than' are both grammatically incorrect phrases. 'So' is a conjunction that is generally paired with 'that' and expresses result or consequence. It does not express comparison ('as' and 'than'). Hence these options are incorrect.