English Language

Spotting Errors

4,734 Questions
All Noun, Article, and Determiner Usage 629 Subject-Verb Agreement 529 Preposition and Phrasal Verb Choice 510 Tense and Time Sequence 429 Pronoun Agreement and Case 415 Adjective and Adverb Form 372 Idiom and Confusable Word Choice 367 Verb Complement and Mood 347 Sentence Structure and Modifier Placement 296 Conjunction and Connector Choice 228 Parallel Structure 220 Redundancy and Negation 148

Spotting Errors Questions

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) I have tried (b) to meet him several times: (c) he isn't never at home. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

This sentence segment is incorrect because: 'isn't' is a contraction of 'is not' and then it also has 'never' in the segment. There cannot be two negations in a sentence and the reason why we keep 'never' is because it would be consistent with the previous part of the sentence, where we were informed that the author has tried to meet him several times. It should be 'he is never at home'.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) He is proficient in Hindi (b) and can speak English, (c) but he does not know to read and write English. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The sentence segment should be ‘but he cannot read and write English’. ‘Cannot’ denotes ability or lack of ability in reading and writing English. The use of ‘he does not know’ is not required as the modal auxiliary verb to be used here is ‘can’ or ‘cannot’ since it gives more information about the ability of the main verb that it governs.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Every woman in the world (b) fervently hopes that their child (c) will be a normal and healthy baby. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

This sentence segment is incorrect because it does not have antecedent agreement. The sentence begins with ‘every woman’ where it is used as a singular noun, thus the pronoun used should also be singular and not plural. The correct sentence segment will be ‘fervently hopes that her child’.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Neither of them (b) send their papers (c) in rime for the last seminar. (4) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The verb tense required in this place should be the past participle sent. The correct segment will read sent their papers.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) There is not many traffic (b) along the street (c) where I live. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The correct sentence segment should read there is not much traffic. Many is used with countable nouns and much is used with uncountable nouns. Since traffic is uncountable, we will use mush instead of many.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) He took (b) leave of (c) four days. (4) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The correct segment will be leave for. For is a preposition of time and of is a preposition of number. Since the duration is specified, for will be used instead of of.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) The front page story was about a schoolgirl, (b) that had hurt herself, (c) while saving a child in an accident. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The correct sentence segment will read ‘who had hurt herself,’ the pronoun ‘that’ is used in third person for non living things and the pronoun ‘who’ is used in third person for living things. Thus, it will be ‘who’ and not ‘that’.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) The police arrived and discovered (b) a large number of hoarded sugar (c) in his shop. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Sugar is an uncountable noun and the storage form is not shown thus we cannot use number. The correct segment will be, a large amount of sugar.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Raju doesn't come to our house because our dog barks at him (b) and licks him (c) although I have often told him not to afraid of it. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The verb 'to be' will be used in conjunction with the verb 'afraid'. The correct segment will be 'although I have often told him not to be afraid of it'.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Running across the playground, my pen fell in the mud; (b) fortunately, I noticed it (c) and picked it up. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The pause after fortunately is not required. The correct segment will be fortunately I noticed it. Comma is used to take a short pause and here we do not need to pause as it was fortunate for the author to have noticed his pen in the mud.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) The last thing that the fond mother (b) gave her only son (c) was his blessing. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

This segment is incorrect as it does not have antecedent agreement. The sentence begins with mother, a feminine gender. Hence, the pronoun used should also be feminine. The correct segment will be was her blessing.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) As a dramatist, (b) Shaw is superior than (c) any other twentieth century writer. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Correct usage is 'superior to'.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) To his innovative ideas and practices in farming (b) he was given (c) the Krishi Pandit Award last year. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The preposition ‘to’, indicates the place, person, or thing that someone or something moves towards, or the direction of something, a limit, relationship or a time or a period. The preposition ‘for’ is used to indicate the use of something. Since, he has used innovative ideas and practices in farming, ‘for’ will be used. The correct segment will be ‘for his use of innovative ideas and practices in farming’.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Molly speaks (b) French well (c) isn’t it? (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The subject is of feminine gender, thus the pronoun used will also be feminine. The correct sentence segment will be ‘doesn’t she?’ We cannot use it with a human so we use ‘doesn’t’.

Multiple choice

Directions: Each question in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labeled (a), (b) and (c). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your answer in the answer sheet against the corresponding letter i.e. (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your answer should be indicated as (d).

(a) Mutton is more hard (b) to digest (c) than vegetables. (d) No error

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The comparative degree of more hard is harder. Thus, the correct segment will be mutton is harder.