In this article, we shall learn how to ace error spotting in the English Language section of bank exams. Aspirants who are willing to apply for the various Government exams apart from the bank exams must also go through these concepts of spotting the error carefully, as English language is a vital part of the syllabus for most of these exams. English language is a subject where even people who are proficient in the language end up making mistakes in the grammar section. It is a normal tendency but the error-spotting section is not hard to master. Practising some guidelines is all that is needed to excel in this topic of the English Language syllabus.
1. I. Many such initiatives were taken up II. by China in its cities to reduce exposure III. to PM2.5 that produces morbidity from cardiovascular IV. and respiratory diseases and leads to premature death.
A) Only I B) Only I and II C) Only III and IV D) Only II, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: All the sentences are grammatically as well as contextually correct.
Ans: E
2. I. Memories of the killing of II. thousands people in the aftermath of III. the 2007 elections should evens score the IV. urgency of bringing the current fluid situation within control.
A) Only I and IV B) Only II and III C) Only I and III D) Only II, III and I E) No error
Explanation: Sentence II: ‘thousands people in the aftermaths of’ - the sentence is incorrect because of use of 's' in thousand. 's' is used in thousand when it is used without any other plural subject. E.g.: Thousands were injured in the train accident yesterday. But if thousand is used with another plural subject, 's' is omitted.E.g.: There are thousand ways to solve this problem. Correct sentence: thousand people in the aftermaths of Sentence III: the 2007 elections should evens score - the use of the word "evens score" is inappropriate here, as it means to repay. The correct word which goes with the context is 'underscore', which means to underline or emphasize. Correct sentence: the 2007 elections should underscore the
Ans: B
3. I. A comprehensive solution demands II. that the government of Delhi, Punjab, III. Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, assisted of the Centre, IV. address farm residue burning from construction dust.
A) Only II and IV B) Only III C) Only I and III D) Only II, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence II: that the government of Delhi, Punjab, - the sentence talks about the government of more than one city, thus "government" should be replaced with 'governments'. Correct sentence: that the governments of Delhi, Punjab, Sentence III: Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, assisted of the Centre, - the sentence has an error with respect to use of wrong preposition. Assistance means help which is always rendered by someone. Hence "of" should be replaced with preposition 'by'. Correct sentence: Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, assisted by the Centre,Sentence IV: address farm residue burning from construction dust. Use of preposition "from" in the sentence is illogical, because burning of farm residue and construction dust are two entirely different things. For such purpose, a conjunction is used and not the preposition. Hence "from" will be replaced by 'and'. Correct sentence: address farm residue burning and construction dust.
Ans: D
4. I. If supreme court II. decide not to uphold the latest victory III. for the incumbent, the absence of a genuine contest IV. could prove to be a critical factor.
A) Only II B) Only III C) Only I and II D) Only I, II and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence I: If supreme court this is erroneous with respect to omission of article 'the' before supreme court. Certain words like Supreme, latest etc. denotes the superlative degree of adjective and preceded by 'the'. Correct sentence: If the supreme court Sentence II: decide not to uphold the latest victory - this sentence is also having an error with respect to wrong usage of verb. As per the singular subject which is "supreme court" here, the verb should be singular here. Correct sentence: decides not to uphold the latest victory
Ans: C
5. I. The Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council had spelt out II. a 'clear road map' for the government to ramp up job creation III. and infrastructure financing avenues while investing IV. more resources on health, education and skill development.
A) Only IV B) Only I and II C) Only II and III D) Only II, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence IV: more resources on health, education and skill development. Here, usage of the verb 'on' is erroneous here as the correct preposition that follows the verb 'invest' is 'in' and not 'on'. E.g.: He invested his money in stocks. Correct sentence: more resources in health, education and skill development.
Ans: A
6. I. Both revenue and profits, when compared to II. the results reported for the first quarter have shown III. signs of improvement that suggests IV. a slow but steady pick-up in demand in the wider economy.
A) Only I B) Only I and II C) Only III D) Only II, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence III: signs of improvement that suggests - in this fragment, the singular case of the verb 'suggest' is erroneous. Instead of 'suggests' it should be 'suggest' to make it grammatically correct. Correct sentence: signs of improvement that suggest. The other fragments are absolutely correct and has no error in it.
Ans: C
7. I. It is unconscionable for governments, through indifference and inaction, II. to be subjected to citizens to such toxic air, and cause extreme suffering III. especially among people with respiratory ailments IV. and impaired lung function.
A) Only I and II B) Only II and IV C) Only II D) Only I, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence II: to be subjected to citizens to such toxic air, and cause extreme suffering usage of the passive voice form of the inifitive 'to subject' is erroneous here. Correct sentence: to subject to citizens to such toxic air, and cause extreme suffering Other three fragments are absolutely correct and thus have no error in them.
Ans: C
8. I. Studies of police reforms have highlighted the need to make II. the investigation process more scientific and rooted III. in forensic analysis, but custodial torture and IV. extracted confessions continue to be reported.
A) Only I B) Only I and II C) Only III and IV D) Only II, III and IV E) No error
Explanation: Sentence I: Studies of police reforms have highlighted the need to make - in this fragment, usage of the preposition 'of' is erroneous. 'Studies' are done 'on' different subjects so 'on' would be a better choice here in place of 'of'. Correct Sentence: Studies on police reforms have highlighted the need to make Sentence II: the investigation process more scientific and rooted - here, the adverb of comperative degree 'more' should be there with both the adjectives. Correct fragment: the investigation process more scientific and more rooted The other two fragments are absolutely error free.
Ans: B
