Which word completes the sentence: The Emperor Napolean got by on four hours of sleep a night, and the scientist Thomas Edison claimed it was ________ waste of time?

Which word completes the sentence: The Emperor Napolean got by on four hours of sleep a night, and the scientist Thomas Edison claimed it was ________ waste of time?

• A. the
• B. an
• C. a
• D. some

Answer: (C)

The main idea here is choosing the right article before a singular countable noun. A waste of time is a single, countable idea, so you need an indefinite article to introduce it. Since waste begins with a consonant sound, the correct choice is a, not an. Using the definite article the would imply a specific, known waste of time, which isn’t what the sentence is expressing. Some would be odd here because it’s used with plural nouns or with uncountable nouns to mean “some amount,” not with a singular countable noun like waste. So the natural phrasing is: it was a waste of time.

The main idea here is choosing the right article before a singular countable noun. A waste of time is a single, countable idea, so you need an indefinite article to introduce it. Since waste begins with a consonant sound, the correct choice is a, not an. Using the definite article the would imply a specific, known waste of time, which isn’t what the sentence is expressing. Some would be odd here because it’s used with plural nouns or with uncountable nouns to mean “some amount,” not with a singular countable noun like waste. So the natural phrasing is: it was a waste of time.