With its towering, six-spired exterior of granitelike quartz monzonite, the Salt Lake Temple is one of the most instantly recognizable...

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

Sentence 1:

• With its towering, six-spired exterior
• of granitelike quartz monzonite,
• the Salt Lake Temple
• is one of the most instantly recognizable structures
• in the state of Utah.

Sentence 2:

• However,
• many people
• do not know
• that [?] built
• over the course of forty years,
• with construction beginning in 1853
• and ending in 1893.

Understanding the Meaning

Let's start with the first sentence:

• 'With its towering, six-spired exterior of granitelike quartz monzonite'
  • This is describing the appearance of the Salt Lake Temple
  • It has a tall exterior with six spires, made of a granite-like stone
• 'the Salt Lake Temple is one of the most instantly recognizable structures in the state of Utah'
  • This tells us the Salt Lake Temple is a very well-known, distinctive building
  • It's singular - we're talking about one specific temple

Now the second sentence: 'However, many people do not know that...'

Here we've reached the blank. Let's look at our choices:

1. "it was"
2. "one was"
3. "they were"
4. "both were"

So we're deciding between singular pronouns (it, one) and plural pronouns (they, both).

What do we need here?

• The sentence is saying people don't know something about what was built
• This must be referring back to the Salt Lake Temple from the first sentence
• The Salt Lake Temple is singular
• When we refer back to a specific building we've already named, we use "it"

So we need: it was

Now let's read the rest to see the complete picture:

• 'built over the course of forty years, with construction beginning in 1853 and ending in 1893'
  • This is giving us the time frame for the temple's construction
  • It took forty years to build
  • Started in 1853, finished in 1893

The complete meaning is: While the Salt Lake Temple is very recognizable, many people don't know that it was built over such a long period - forty years.

What do we notice about the structure here?

• We need a pronoun that refers back to "the Salt Lake Temple"
• "The Salt Lake Temple" is singular, so we need a singular pronoun
• Since we've already specifically named the temple, "it" is the natural pronoun to use (not "one")
• The verb "was" agrees with the singular pronoun "it"

The correct answer is Choice A: "it was"

GRAMMAR CONCEPT APPLIED

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement: Making Sure Pronouns Match What They Refer To

When you use a pronoun (like "it," "they," "one," or "both"), it must correctly refer back to something you've already mentioned—this is called its antecedent (in grammar terms). The pronoun needs to match its antecedent in two key ways:

1. Number Agreement: Singular antecedents need singular pronouns; plural antecedents need plural pronouns

Example 1:

• Antecedent: The museum (singular)
• Correct: The museum opened in 1995. It features modern art.
• Incorrect: The museum opened in 1995. They feature modern art.

Example 2:

• Antecedent: The architects (plural)
• Correct: The architects completed the design. They received an award.
• Incorrect: The architects completed the design. It received an award.

2. Appropriate Pronoun Choice: Use the pronoun that fits the type of antecedent

For a specific, previously-named object or place, use "it":

• Example: The bridge spans the river. It was completed in 1950.

Use "one" when referring to something generally or selecting from a category:

• Example: If you want to visit a historic bridge, one was built in 1950.

In this question:

• Antecedent: "the Salt Lake Temple" (singular, specific building)
• Correct pronoun: "it" (singular, refers to a specific previously-named place)
• Correct verb: "was" (singular, agrees with "it")
• Complete: "many people do not know that it was built over the course of forty years"