IPMAT Indore 2023 · Verbal Ability · Question 9

The error: wrong complement after insist. The verb insist never takes a to-infinitive. It takes one of two patterns:

insist on + gerund: “she insisted on paying for the meal”

insist that + subjunctive: “she insisted that she pay for the meal”

“Insisted to pay” is neither.

Why the subjunctive looks odd but is right. After verbs of demand and insistence (insist, demand, suggest, recommend, require, propose), the that-clause takes the bare form of the verb, with no -s even for a third-person singular subject. So it is “that she pay”, not “that she pays” — this is the English subjunctive, and option (c) uses it correctly.

Why the others fail:

(a) that she had paid — past perfect; this reports a completed action, not an insistence about what should happen.

(b) that she will be paying — future continuous; wrong tense and not subjunctive.

(d) on and paid — “insisted on and paid for the meal” is clumsy and leaves on without its gerund object.

Answer: Option 3

Shortcut. Two patterns to carry: insist on + -ing, or insist that + bare verb. Neither allows a to-infinitive, so the error is visible without reading the options.

Then the subjunctive test settles (c). After insist/demand/suggest/recommend, the that-clause verb loses its ending: that she pay, that he go, that they be present. A verb in that slot carrying an -s is a sign of a wrong option — which is why (b)’s “will be paying” and (a)’s “had paid” are both out.