Select the best words for the blanks in the following sentence: 'The patient wanted to ____ down on the bed, but first she had to ____ her tray of food on the table.'

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: In this sentence, 'lie' is the correct word for the patient wanting to recline on the bed, and 'lay' is the correct word for placing the tray of food on the table. Therefore, 'lie, lay' is the proper sequence of words for the actions described in the sentence. Choice B is incorrect because 'lie' should be used for reclining, not 'lay'. Choice C is incorrect as 'laid' is the past tense of 'lay,' not the present tense. Choice D is incorrect; 'lain' is the past participle of 'lie,' not the present tense.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: 'But' is the conjunction in this sentence. A conjunction is a word that connects clauses or sentences. In this case, 'but' links two contrasting ideas: the little girl wanting a cookie and her decision not to take one. The other options are not conjunctions; 'little' is an adjective, 'take' is a verb, and 'the' is a definite article.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: In the sentence 'The nurse helped the patient with the medication,' the direct object is 'patient' because it receives the action of being helped. The direct object typically answers the question 'whom' or 'what' after the verb. In this case, 'the patient' is the one being helped by the nurse, making it the direct object. Choices A, B, and D are incorrect. 'Helped' is the verb, 'nurse' is the subject performing the action, and 'medication' is part of a prepositional phrase and does not directly receive the action of the verb.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: In the sentence, 'The nurses went to the conference room,' 'nurses' is the subject. The subject of a sentence is typically the noun or pronoun that carries out the action or is described in the sentence. In this case, 'nurses' is the noun performing the action of going to the conference room. Choices A, B, and C are not the subject. 'Conference' and 'room' are objects of the prepositions 'to' and 'the,' while 'went to' is the verb phrase indicating the action performed by the subject.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: 'the students watched the snow begin to fall.' In this sentence, the structure is correct with the subject 'the students' followed by the verb 'watched' and the object 'the snow begin to fall' in a grammatically appropriate manner. Choices B, C, and D have issues with verb tense agreement and sentence structure, making them grammatically incorrect. Choice B changes the active voice to passive, choice C lacks a verb for the subject 'snow,' and choice D does not complete the action initiated in the introductory participial phrase.