The anthropologist observed that isolated communities often develop unique linguistic features that distinguish them from neighboring regions. The sch...

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

• The anthropologist observed
  • that isolated communities often develop unique linguistic features
    • that distinguish them from neighboring regions.

• The scholar was eager to determine ______
  • when migration patterns shifted in the twentieth century.

• Where the blank shows:
  • [whether: did these dialects persist / these dialects persisted] + [? / .]

Understanding the Meaning

Let's start with the first sentence:

The anthropologist observed that isolated communities often develop unique linguistic features

• that distinguish them from neighboring regions.

This is giving us background:

• Isolated communities develop their own special language characteristics
• These features make them different from nearby areas

Now the second sentence:

The scholar was eager to determine ______

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

• Choice A: did these dialects persist?
• Choice B: these dialects persisted
• Choice C: did these dialects persist.
• Choice D: these dialects persisted?

So we're deciding between:

• Question word order ("did these dialects persist") vs statement word order ("these dialects persisted")
• Question mark vs period

To see what works here, let's think about what "determine" needs!

The key insight: "determine"

When you say someone wants to "determine" something, you're saying they want to find out or establish a fact. This verb takes what's called an embedded clause or indirect question - not a direct question.

Think about similar structures:

• Direct question: "Did these dialects persist?" (This is asking someone directly)
• Embedded in a sentence: "The scholar wanted to determine WHETHER these dialects persisted" (This is stating what the scholar wanted to find out)

What do we notice about embedded questions?

• When you embed a question inside another sentence, you use statement word order
• You DON'T use question word order (with "did")

Compare:

• "I wonder where she is" ✓ (statement order)
• "I wonder where is she" ✗ (question order doesn't work here)

Similarly:

• "...to determine these dialects persisted" ✓ (statement order)
• "...to determine did these dialects persist" ✗ (question order doesn't work)

Also, what about the punctuation?

• The overall sentence is making a STATEMENT about what the scholar wanted to determine
• It's not asking a question
• So it should end with a period, not a question mark

So we need: statement word order + period = Choice B

The complete sentence reads:

"The scholar was eager to determine these dialects persisted when migration patterns shifted in the twentieth century."

• The phrase "when migration patterns shifted in the twentieth century" tells us the time period being investigated
• The scholar wanted to find out: did these dialects continue to exist when people started moving around differently in the 1900s?

GRAMMAR CONCEPT APPLIED

Embedded Questions (Indirect Questions) vs. Direct Questions

When you embed a question within another sentence - especially after verbs like "determine," "wonder," "ask," "know," "understand" - it becomes an indirect question (called an embedded clause in grammar terms) and follows different rules than a direct question.

Direct Question - Standing alone:

• Uses question word order (auxiliary verb comes first)
• Ends with a question mark
• Example: "Did the dialects persist?"

Indirect Question - Embedded in a sentence:

• Uses statement word order (subject comes before verb)
• No question mark (unless the entire sentence is a question)
• Example: "The scholar wanted to determine whether the dialects persisted."

The Pattern:

• "I wonder where she is" ✓ (NOT "where is she")
• "They asked what time it was" ✓ (NOT "what time was it")
• "She wants to know if they arrived" ✓ (NOT "if did they arrive")

In this question:

• "The scholar was eager to determine these dialects persisted"
• "Determine" requires an embedded clause
• Therefore: statement word order ("these dialects persisted")
• The whole sentence is a statement, so: period at the end