By the time Hawaiian king Kamehameha III ______ the throne, the number of longhorn cattle, ﬁrst introduced to the islands in
1793, had drastically increased, and so too had the need for paniolo (Hawaiian cowboys) to manage the wild herds that then
roamed throughout the volcanic terrain.
ascended
will ascend
ascends
is ascending
Choice A is the best answer. "Ascended" is in the simple past tense. Since Kamehameha became king in the past, this makes
the most sense.
Choice B is incorrect. "Will ascend" is in the future tense, but we wouldn’t know about Kamehameha III’s ascent if it hadn’t
happened yet. The information in the sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described
happened in the past. Choice C is incorrect. "Ascends" is in the simple present tense. However, the information in the
sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described happened in the past. Choice D is incorrect.
"Is ascending" is in the continuous present tense, which we use to show that something is ongoing, but this doesn’t make
sense here—the information in the sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described happened
in the past.