Identify the underlined phrase in the sentence. After several minutes, I finally located my car keys.
A. prepositional
B. participal
C. gerund
D. infinitive
A. prepositional
To identify the underlined phrase in the sentence, we need to understand the different types of phrases and their characteristics.
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and its object, and it functions as an adjective or adverb in a sentence. For example, "in the house" is a prepositional phrase in the sentence "The cat is in the house."
A participial phrase consists of a participle (a verb form ending in -ing or -ed) and its modifiers, and it functions as an adjective in a sentence. For example, "crying uncontrollably" is a participial phrase in the sentence "The baby, crying uncontrollably, couldn't be comforted."
A gerund phrase consists of a gerund (a verb form ending in -ing that functions as a noun) and its modifiers. For example, "swimming in the ocean" is a gerund phrase in the sentence "Her favorite activity is swimming in the ocean."
An infinitive phrase consists of an infinitive (the base form of a verb usually preceded by "to") and its modifiers, and it can function as a noun, adjective, or adverb in a sentence. For example, "to eat ice cream" is an infinitive phrase in the sentence "She loves to eat ice cream."
Now, looking at the given sentence, "After several minutes, I finally located my car keys," we can see that the underlined phrase is "After several minutes." This is a prepositional phrase because it starts with the preposition "after" followed by the noun phrase "several minutes." In this sentence, the prepositional phrase functions as an adverb, providing information about when the action of locating the car keys took place.