Predatory animals differ widely in how they _____ food for their young. Some leave dead prey nearby for their young...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Predatory animals differ widely in how they _____ food for their young. Some leave dead prey nearby for their young to consume, some bring live prey to their young, and some feed their young directly from their own mouths.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
avoid
guess
provide
describe
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Predatory animals differ widely in how they' |
|
| '_________ food for their young.' |
|
| 'Some leave dead prey nearby for their young to consume, some bring live prey to their young, and some feed their young directly from their own mouths.' |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Predatory animals use widely different methods when it comes to getting food to their young.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes that there's variety in how predatory animals handle food for their offspring, then demonstrates this variety through three distinct feeding approaches that range from indirect (leaving prey nearby) to direct (mouth-to-mouth feeding).
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- Looking at our examples, we see three different ways predatory animals get food to their young - leaving it nearby, bringing it to them, or feeding them directly
- The missing word needs to capture what all these methods accomplish
- They're all ways of getting food to the young, supplying food, or making food available
- The word should describe the overall function that connects all these different methods
avoid
- 'Avoid' means to stay away from or prevent
- This contradicts the examples - the animals aren't avoiding food for their young, they're actively getting it to them
guess
- 'Guess' relates to making uncertain predictions
- The examples show deliberate, purposeful actions, not guessing behaviors
- Makes no logical sense with 'food for their young'
provide
- 'Provide' means to supply or make available
- Perfectly matches our prethinking - all three examples are different ways of providing food
- Leaving prey nearby = providing access, bringing live prey = providing directly, mouth feeding = providing through transfer
describe
- 'Describe' means to give details about something
- The examples aren't about communication or explanation - they're about actual food-related actions