Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[rayt]

Dear teacher,

I have got a sentence like as below:

There are job applicants who, although dressed tastefully, arrive five or ten minutes late for an interview, ____ that the interviewer has moved on to the next candidate.

a. only to find
b. never to find
c. find
d. found

I was told the answer is <a>. Could please advise me why it is not "find" nor "found"??

Thank you very much.

[IanT]

With "find" you would also need "and". Like this:

There are job applicants who, although dressed tastefully, arrive five or ten minutes late for an interview, and find that the interviewer has moved on to the next candidate.

That would be correct, but "only to find" sounds better. "Only to find" is a connection which suggests that people are surprised by what they find. It has no relation to the normal meaning of "only".

"Found" would also need "and" but would still not be correct because the sentence is in the present.

Hope helps,
Best wishes,
Ian
_________________
All my answers refer to British English.

www.EnglishSwearing.com - How to use all the bad words! ... and ... www.throdworld.com - Silly verses to make you happy.

You decide the price for both!