<p><em>Contrasting with</em> <em>most other</em> fifteenth-century rulers, Portuguese kings <em>could count on</em> the support of the aristocracy <em>in any</em> overseas ventures.</p>
<p>Could one of you fellow CC'ers lend me a hand with this sentence!? I don't get why it's the answer that it is.</p>
<p><em>Contrasting with</em> <em>most other</em> fifteenth-century rulers, Portuguese kings <em>could count on</em> the support of the aristocracy <em>in any</em> overseas ventures."</p>
<p>If I'm correct, then the correct answer is "Contrasting with," which should be replaced with "In contrast with." "Contrasting" cannot be used because this is the present participle and implies action (like swimming, running, jogging, etc.) -- the kings, themselves, are not in the act of "contrasting." In order to explain an actual contrast (as in, the opposite of a comparison), you need to use "in contrast."</p>
<p>Thanks, that helps a bunch.</p>
<p>Should be " in contrast to". "Contrast with" only works wheh you say "I contrasted Portuguese kings with Spanish kings and came to these conclusions...."</p>
<p>To convince yourself, enter " in contrast with" and " in contrast to" on Google. Any one Google usage may be wrong, but the majority get it right and supply a range of helpful contexts.</p>
<p>P.S. just tried it myself --"in contrast with" gets over 1 million hits but "in contrast to" gets over 9 million!</p>