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: Select the numbered part that bears an error of grammar or diction. If there is no error, mark (5).

The reason the developed nations achieved modernization is that they (1) / are able to rob the developing nations (2) / of all manner of materials, and discard the (3) / leftover garbage in every place imaginable. (4) / No error (5)

  1. (1)

  2. (2)

  3. (3)

  4. (4)

  5. (5)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The sentence is in past indefinite tense. Replace 'are' with 'were'.

Multiple choice

Directions: Select the numbered part that bears an error of grammar or diction. If there is no error, mark (5).

The functions of Earth - to give life to plants and animals, (1) / regulate rainwater, purify waste and (2) / to return it to the soil -- may be said (3) / to form the main artery of Nature's cyclical function. (4) / No error (5)

  1. (1)

  2. (2)

  3. (3)

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

Delete 'to' before 'return', to correct the error of parallelism: “to give… regulate… purify … and return”

Multiple choice

Directions: Select the numbered part that bears an error of grammar or diction. If there is no error, mark (5).

Prudence requires that we should meet (1) / the dangers that threaten us, (2) / by turning all our philosophy, science, and art, (3) / into practical common sense. (4) / No error (5)

  1. (1)

  2. (2)

  3. (3)

  4. (4)

  5. (5)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Delete 'should'. Error of importance. If the modifying clause emphasizes importance of an act, the modified clause should not use auxiliary verb.

Multiple choice

Directions: Select the numbered part that bears an error of grammar or diction. If there is no error, mark (5).

Blind faith in science is a privilege (1) / given only to a human being, (2) / but unfortunately they will perish in the near future (3) / because of scientific progress. (4) / No error (5)

  1. (1)

  2. (2)

  3. (3)

  4. (4)

  5. (5)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Replace 'they will' with 'he will' to correct the error of pronoun agreement for singular noun 'a human being'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The sentence given below has been divided into three parts (a), (b) and (c). One of these parts may contain an error. You have to indicate that part as your answer. If there is no error, indicate (d) as your answer.

His mother is (a)/ in bad mood (b)/ today. (c)/ No error (d)

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

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

The phrase 'in bad mood' is grammatically incorrect. When using mood as a noun phrase with an adjective, it requires an article - it should be 'in a bad mood' or 'in a bad temper'. This is a fixed idiomatic expression in English where the article 'a' is mandatory.

Multiple choice

Directions: The sentence given below has been divided into four parts (a), (b), (c) and (d). One of these parts may contain an error. You have to indicate that part as your answer. If there is no error, indicate (e) as your answer.

These are the fantasies (a)/ of fools which (b)/ are not aware (c)/ of the importance of time. (d)/ No error (e)

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)

  5. (e)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The relative pronoun 'which' is used for things/animals, but 'who' must be used for people. Since 'fools' refers to human beings, the correct pronoun is 'who'. The clause should read 'fols who are not aware' not 'fools which are not aware'. This is a basic relative pronoun rule.

Multiple choice

Directions: The sentence given below has been divided into four parts (a), (b), (c) and (d). One of these parts may contain an error. You have to indicate that part as your answer. If there is no error, indicate (e) as your answer.

Since Ramesh meet (a)/ Sahil last Sunday, (b)/ Sahil has been contacting him (c)/ everyday over the phone. (d)/ No error (e)

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)

  5. (e)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

 Since 'last Sunday' indicates past tense, we need to use past form of the verb 'met'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The sentence given below has been divided into four parts (a), (b), (c) and (d). One of these parts may contain an error. You have to indicate that part as your answer. If there is no error, indicate (e) as your answer.

The writer had (a)/ come to an imaginary (b)/ world who did not (c)/ exist in reality. (d)/ No error (e)

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)

  5. (e)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The relative pronoun 'who' is incorrect here. 'World' is a thing/place, not a person, so it requires 'which' or 'that' as the relative pronoun. The clause should be 'world that did not exist' or 'world which did not exist' - 'who' is only for people.

Multiple choice

Directions: The sentence given below has been divided into four parts (a), (b), (c) and (d). One of these parts may contain an error. You have to indicate that part as your answer. If there is no error, indicate (e) as your answer.

This is a fact, that unemployed (a)/ women were look (b)/ down as (c)/ inferior citizens. (d) No error (e)

  1. (a)

  2. (b)

  3. (c)

  4. (d)

  5. (e)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The phrase 'were look' is grammatically incorrect. Look down is phrasal verb, and in passive voice it requires the past participle 'looked' not base form 'look'. The correct phrase is 'women were looked down upon' or 'women were looked down as'. This tests passive voice formation.