'lay in the fact that he proposed the idea' is wordy and awkward. E is the correct choice because you need 'lay' and not 'laid'.

givemeanid

If we say E is correct then is proposal of a grammatically correct idiom?

I m confused b/w A and E.
Can somebody please explain Y E is correct /

Thanks,
Iwill

I think

".... his tremendous originality lay ...." should instead be as follows

".... his tremendous originality lays ...."

I think originial sentence is wrong.

Please correct me.

Could anyone help me in this question.

Darwin was not the first to advance a theory of evolution; his tremendous originality lay in the fact that he proposed the idea of natural selection as the means by which evolution worked.
(A) lay in the fact that he proposed the idea
(B) lay in the fact of his proposing the idea
(C) laid in the fact of his proposing the idea
(D) laid in his proposal
(E) lay in his proposal

Could any of the experts please help, why the answer is not C and what is the difference between C and E.