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: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5).

  1. Marketing strategies, in theory

  2. make good sense:

  3. in actuality, however

  4. it is sometimes difficult to implement.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

What is/are difficult to implement? Marketing strategies - plural. Hence, part (4) should take pronoun 'they are'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. Do not confuse the dilettante,

  2. who has a certain amount of talent or ability,

  3. with the tyro,

  4. being the inexperienced beginner in some art.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Both fragments have to be parallel in structure. Rephrase (4) as 'who is the inexperienced beginner in some art'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. I made up my mind to

  2. wheedle him, coax him

  3. and convincing him

  4. to join us for the picnic.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

All the three infinitive verbs given in the sentence have to be similar in their grammatical form: wheedle, coax and convince.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. She shut down her computer,

  2. exited from the office,

  3. proceeding to make

  4. her way to the car park.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

All the three infinitive verbs given in the sentence have to be similar in their grammatical form: shut down, exited and proceeded.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into five parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error.

After the house was painted, the workers were served lemonade and then ate food.

  1. The workers were served lemonade and then ate food.

  2. lemonade was served to the guests and ate food.

  3. lemonade was served to the guests who then ate food.

  4. workers were served the lemonade and eating food.

  5. workers who then ate good were served lemonade.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The original suffers lack of parallelism (were served…. and …….ate).  (C) corrects faulty parallelism without introducing any new error.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. Citizens in the coastal cities responded directly to the war crisis

  2. in four distinct ways: Writing petitions to their readers,

  3. augmenting their towns' defences, selling ships

  4. to the government and armed their vessels for self- defence.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

To make the sentence parallel, we will have to use the same formation of gerunds throughout the sentence: writing, augmenting, selling and arming.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. The death penalty is also called for in cases of attempt

  2. to kill anyone investigating or prosecuting his or her activities;

  3. advising, directing, authorizing or

  4. to assist in the murder of someone.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The error lies in the faulty parallelism.  All the verbs mentioned should be in the same

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. The only way to deter crime is

  2. to prevent it from happening,

  3. rather than enforcing harsh punishment

  4. to “scare” off potential crimes.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The original sentence lacks in parallelism. Both the verbs should be in the same verb form: 'prevent…rather than enforce'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The following sentence has been split into four parts. One of the parts may have an error of grammar or syntax. Select the part having the error. If there is no error, select (5)

  1. I have always studied the works of William Shakespeare

  2. not only for their characterization

  3. but also because they have very

  4. interesting plots.

  5. No error
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Parallel construction demands 'not only for their characterisation…but also for their very…'