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Complete the eccentric detective's dramatic speech to his loyal assistant. Select ALL the grammatically correct options that apply.
"I would surely be rotting in a damp cell right now, __________ your brilliant deduction!"
The correct answers are were it not for and if it were not for.
If it were not for is a fixed conditional phrase used to say that someone or something prevents a hypothetical situation from happening. Because it is an unreal situation, it uses the subjunctive were.
Just like other "were" conditionals, you can invert it by dropping "if": Were it not for.
"Was it not for" is grammatically incorrect because conditional inversion strictly requires the subjunctive "were."