.........rich has its own problem

Analyze the question

The sentence is incomplete: "......... rich has its own problem." The gap needs a word or phrase that works as the subject of the verb "has". It looks like the original sentence is "Being rich has its own problems."

Explain the concept

A gerund is the -ing form of a verb that works as a noun. It can be the subject of a sentence.

• Swimming is good exercise.
• Being honest pays in the long run.

Here "Being rich" is a gerund phrase meaning "the state of being rich". It acts as the subject, and "has" is its verb.

Solution

1. The verb is has, so the sentence needs a subject.
2. A gerund phrase can be that subject, so we need the -ing form of "to be", which is being.
3. Check the other options: • B. Been is a past participle. It needs an auxiliary such as has/have/had and cannot start the sentence as a subject. • C. On being is a prepositional phrase meaning "upon being". A prepositional phrase cannot be the subject of "has", so the sentence would be ungrammatical. • D. On been is wrong because "been" cannot follow a preposition like this.

Answer: "Being rich has its own problem(s)." The correct option is A.

Tip

When a sentence has no subject before the verb, look for a gerund (-ing word). "Been" almost never stands alone. It needs has/have/had before it. Also, "being" is the gerund of "be", so any "state of being" idea, such as being rich, poor, or tall, uses it.