Question

Find the correct match of grammatical function with usage for the word THEN.

Item	Function
1	Noun
2	Adjective
3	Adverb
4	Conjunction

Item	Usage
5	He was the then King of Nepal.
6	I have not heard about him since then.
7	He is not feeling well, then how can he possibly go for the picnic.
8	He was not a graduate then.

• A. 1-8, 2-5, 3-7, 4-7
• B. 1-6, 2-5, 3-8, 4-7
• C. 1-7, 2-5, 3-6, 4-8
• D. 1-8, 2-7, 3-6, 4-5

Hint:

Test each 'then' by asking if it names a time, describes a noun, modifies a verb, or joins two clauses.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Another way to solve this is to fix the definition of each part of speech first, then test the sentences against those definitions rather than the other way round.

1. Noun: names a person, thing, or idea, and can follow a preposition. "Since then" fits this, since "then" here names a point in time and follows the preposition "since".
2. Adjective: describes a noun, usually placed right before it. "The then King of Nepal" fits this, since "then" sits before "King" and tells us which King.
3. Adverb: modifies a verb, often answering "when". "He was not a graduate then" fits this, since "then" tells us when he was not a graduate, modifying "was".
4. Conjunction: joins two clauses. "He is not feeling well, then how can he possibly go for the picnic" fits this, since "then" here connects the two ideas and means "in that case".

Matching definitions to sentences this way gives Noun-6, Adjective-5, Adverb-8, Conjunction-7, the same as 1-6, 2-5, 3-8, 4-7.

Let's summarize:

• Testing definitions against sentences confirms the same match reached by testing sentences against definitions.
• The grammatically consistent pairing is 1-6, 2-5, 3-8, 4-7, option (2).

The source answer key for this question marks option (4) instead. Since that pairing does not agree with the grammatical roles shown above, it is flagged here for a manual check against the original paper; the answer field follows the source key pending that check.