Understanding the Passage and Blank 3

The passage discusses the strong emotional attachment that sports fans have for their favourite teams. It mentions that this phenomenon is observed globally but is particularly prominent in certain countries. We need to select the most appropriate word to fill in blank number 3, which connects the phrase "This phenomenon" with "common across the globe".

Let's look at the sentence fragment around blank 3:

"This phenomenon, 3 ______ common across the globe, is more seen in countries like Brazil, India, the US and even the UK..."

The sentence implies a contrast: the phenomenon is common globally, *but* it is *more* evident in specific countries. The word in the blank needs to introduce the idea of global commonality before highlighting the greater prevalence in certain places.

Analyzing the Options for Blank 3

Let's examine each option to see which one fits grammatically and logically in blank 3:

• though: 'Though' can be used as a conjunction meaning 'although' or 'even though'. It can introduce a clause (often a reduced clause) that presents a contrasting idea. "This phenomenon, though common across the globe," works grammatically and sets up the contrast with "is more seen in countries...".
• in spite of: This is a prepositional phrase meaning 'despite'. It is followed by a noun, pronoun, or gerund (-ing form of a verb). "in spite of common" is grammatically incorrect because 'common' is an adjective, not a noun or gerund here.
• as: 'As' can have various meanings depending on the context (reason, time, manner, role). While "as common across the globe" is grammatically possible in some constructions, in this parenthetical structure "This phenomenon, as common...", 'as' doesn't clearly convey the intended meaning of concession before the contrast that follows. It might imply "because it is common" or "while it is common," neither of which fits the logical flow as well as 'though'.
• despite: Like 'in spite of', 'despite' is a preposition and must be followed by a noun, pronoun, or gerund. "despite common" is grammatically incorrect because 'common' is an adjective here.

Selecting the Most Appropriate Option

Comparing the options, 'though' is the only word that fits correctly both grammatically and contextually in blank 3. It introduces a concessional idea ("although it is common globally") which is then contrasted with the observation that the phenomenon is more pronounced in specific countries.

Therefore, the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 3 is 'though'.

The completed part of the sentence is:

"This phenomenon, though common across the globe, is more seen in countries like Brazil, India, the US and even the UK..."

Revision Table: Blank 3 Analysis

Additional Information: Conjunctions of Concession

Words like 'though', 'although', and phrases like 'in spite of' and 'despite' are used to express concession, meaning they introduce a statement that contrasts with the main statement but does not prevent it from being true.

• Though / Although: Used to connect two contrasting clauses. They are followed by a subject and a verb, or can introduce reduced clauses as seen in the passage.
• In spite of / Despite: These are prepositions and are followed by a noun, a pronoun, or a gerund (-ing form of a verb).

Example:

• Though he was tired, he finished the race. (Clause: he was tired)
• Tired though he was, he finished the race. (Reduced clause)
• In spite of being tired, he finished the race. (Gerund: being tired)
• Despite his tiredness, he finished the race. (Noun: his tiredness)

In the given passage, the structure "This phenomenon, ______ common across the globe," requires a word that can introduce a descriptive phrase or a reduced clause showing concession, which 'though' does effectively.