Foundation
English
Verb
Tenses
Question
Fill in the blank with the most suitable option:
A: His office is empty. He must have gone home.
B: But his briefcase is here. He ______________ home.
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Solution
The correct answer is Option B.
COULDN'T HAVE GONE is used to express the certainty of an event. In the given sentence, the speaker is saying that since the briefcase is here, it is certain that he hasn't gone home, though the office is empty.
Thus Option B is the correct answer.
The remaining options are incorrect because:
MIGHT NOT GO expresses possibility.
OUGHT NOT GO expresses obligation.
COULD HAVE GONE expresses that he has gone home, but the sentence is trying to claim and express the exact opposite.