Choose the option that best completes the sentence: The committee _____ the decision yesterday.

**The reasoning** This is about **subject-verb agreement** and **tense consistency**. The time marker "yesterday" tells us we need the **simple past tense**. "Committee" is a collective noun (singular), so it takes a singular verb. In the past tense, "made" works for both singular and plural subjects — which is why it's perfect here. The structure is: Subject (The committee) + Verb (made) + Object (the decision) + Time (yesterday). **Why the wrong options tempt you** - **A) make** — Present tense, plural form. You might pick this if you're thinking "committee = many people." But grammatically, "committee" is treated as one unit. - **C) makes** — Present tense with 's' for singular. Wrong timing! "Yesterday" demands past tense, not present. - **D) making** — This is a present participle. It can't stand alone as the main verb without a helping verb like "is" or "was." **Quick takeaway** When you see time words like "yesterday," "last week," or "ago," immediately think **past tense** — and for regular verbs with collective nouns, that means "-ed" forms like "made."