New curfew laws have bridled people's tendency to go out at night. Which form best completes the blank?

New curfew laws have bridled people's tendency to go out at night. Which form best completes the blank?

• A. Bridle
• B. Bridling
• C. Bridled
• D. Bridlely

Answer: (C)

This sentence uses a present perfect construction: have + past participle. After have, English requires the past participle form to show a completed action whose effect continues to the present. The verb brid le means to restrain or curb, so the action is that the curfew laws have already restrained people’s tendency to go out at night. The past participle form fits best: bridled. Using bridling would imply an ongoing action and would require have been bridling for the progressive sense, which isn’t the intended meaning here. Bridle (the base form) isn’t correct after have, and bridlely isn’t a valid form.

This sentence uses a present perfect construction: have + past participle. After have, English requires the past participle form to show a completed action whose effect continues to the present. The verb brid le means to restrain or curb, so the action is that the curfew laws have already restrained people’s tendency to go out at night. The past participle form fits best: bridled. Using bridling would imply an ongoing action and would require have been bridling for the progressive sense, which isn’t the intended meaning here. Bridle (the base form) isn’t correct after have, and bridlely isn’t a valid form.