Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in January 2013, making ________...

Let's begin by understanding the meaning of this sentence. We'll use our understanding of pause points and segment the sentence as shown - understanding and assimilating the meaning of each segment bit by bit!

Sentence Structure

• Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretary-general
• of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
• in January 2013,
• making (?) the first time
• the organization would appoint a Vietnamese leader.

Understanding the Meaning

The sentence starts by telling us about an appointment:

• 'Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in January 2013'
  • So we have a specific person who took on a leadership position
  • This happened in January 2013

Now the sentence continues with what this appointment means:

• 'making ______ the first time the organization would appoint a Vietnamese leader'

This is where we have the blank. Let's look at our choices:

1. these (plural)
2. those (plural)
3. this (singular)
4. some (indefinite)

To see what works here, let's understand what this phrase is telling us!

The phrase 'making [blank] the first time...' is explaining the significance of Minh's appointment:

• His appointment is MAKING something be 'the first time'
• What's 'the first time'?
  • The first time ASEAN would appoint a Vietnamese leader

So the blank needs to refer back to what we just read about - the appointment event itself. It's saying "his appointment is making THIS EVENT the first time..."

What do we notice about what we need?

• We're referring to a single event - Minh's appointment
  • So we need a singular pronoun (not plural)
• We're referring to something we just mentioned in the previous part of the sentence
  • So we need something that points to something nearby and recent
• "This" is singular and refers to something just mentioned
  • Perfect fit: "making this the first time"

The correct answer is C. this because it's a singular demonstrative pronoun that refers back to the single event we just read about - Minh becoming secretary-general.

GRAMMAR CONCEPT APPLIED

Using Demonstrative Pronouns to Refer to Events or Ideas

Demonstrative pronouns (called demonstratives in grammar terms) like "this," "that," "these," and "those" can refer back to entire events, situations, or ideas that were just mentioned. When choosing which one to use, you need to consider two things:

1. Number - Singular vs. Plural:

• "this" and "that" = singular (refer to one thing)
• "these" and "those" = plural (refer to multiple things)

2. Distance - Near vs. Far:

• "this" and "these" = near/recent (something just mentioned or happening now)
• "that" and "those" = far/distant (something mentioned earlier or in the past)

In this question:

• The event being referred to = Minh's appointment (singular event)
• When it was mentioned = in the immediately preceding clause (recent/near)
• Therefore: "this" (singular + near) is the correct choice

Pattern:

• Statement about an event → making this [explanation of significance]
• Example: "The team won the championship, making this the first victory in a decade."
• "this" = the championship win (singular, just mentioned)