Verb form and tense MCQ - Practice Questions with Answers

The sentence describes a present situation: the passengers are restless after an announcement. The blank must combine naturally with “late”, and “is running late” is the standard expression meaning that the train is behind schedule. “Runs late” can describe a habitual pattern, but here the announcement concerns the present train. “Was late” would create the awkward phrase “was late late” and changes the tense. “Was running late” shifts the announcement into the past, while the main clause keeps the passengers’ present restlessness.

The phrase "for the last one hour" shows an action that began in the past and continues up to the present. The present perfect continuous form "has been sleeping" correctly expresses that duration. "Slept" is simple past and treats the action as finished. "Is sleeping" shows a present action but does not carry the past-to-present duration properly. "Was sleeping" places the action in the past continuous and does not connect it with the present moment. The sentence therefore requires the present perfect continuous tense.