Error Detection (Spotting Errors)

Format

Sentence divided into 4 parts (A, B, C, D). Find which part has error.

Example:

• (A) He don’t know
• (B) how to swim
• (C) in deep water
• (D) No error

Answer: (A) - “don’t” should be “doesn’t”

Common Error Types

1. Subject-Verb Agreement

❌ He don’t know ✅ He doesn’t know

❌ One of my friend ✅ One of my friends

❌ Each of the boys were present ✅ Each of the boys was present

2. Tense Errors

❌ I am knowing him since 2010 ✅ I have known him since 2010

❌ She has went to school ✅ She has gone to school

3. Pronoun Errors

❌ Everyone should do their duty ✅ Everyone should do his/her duty

❌ Me and my friend went ✅ My friend and I went

4. Preposition Errors

❌ I am good in English ✅ I am good at English

❌ He is suffering with fever ✅ He is suffering from fever

5. Article Errors

❌ He is a intelligent boy ✅ He is an intelligent boy

❌ The honesty is best policy ✅ Honesty is the best policy

6. Adjective/Adverb Errors

❌ She speaks English good ✅ She speaks English well

❌ He is more stronger ✅ He is stronger

Important Rules

Rule 1: Collective Nouns

Usually take singular verb:

• The team is ready
• The committee has decided

Rule 2: Uncountable Nouns

Take singular verb:

• The news is good
• The furniture is expensive

Rule 3: Pair Conjunctions

• Either…or → verb agrees with nearest subject
• Neither…nor → verb agrees with nearest subject

Example:

• Either he or you are responsible
• Neither he nor I am going

Rule 4: Infinitives

After modal verbs, use base form: ❌ He can sings ✅ He can sing

Sentence Improvement

Format

Part of sentence is underlined. Choose best replacement or “No improvement needed”

Example: “He has been living here since 2010”

• (A) is living
• (B) was living
• (C) No improvement
• (D) lives

Answer: (C) No improvement “has been living” is correct for action continuing from past

Common Improvement Areas

1. Voice Change

If passive is better than active or vice versa

2. Tense Correction

Using appropriate tense for context

3. Word Choice

Better vocabulary or more appropriate word

4. Redundancy Removal

Removing unnecessary words

Solved Examples

Example 1: “One of my friend are coming”

• Error in: “One of my friend are”
• Correction: “One of my friends is”
• Errors:
  1. “friend” → “friends” (after “one of”)
  2. “are” → “is” (subject is “one”, not “friends”)

Example 2: “I have read this book yesterday”

• Error: “have read”
• Correction: “read” (simple past)
• Reason: “yesterday” indicates simple past, not present perfect

Example 3: “He is senior than me”

• Error: “senior than”
• Correction: “senior to”
• Reason: “senior/junior/superior/inferior” take “to”, not “than”

Quick Tips

For Error Detection:

1. Check S-V agreement first (most common)
2. Look for preposition combinations
3. Check tense consistency
4. Identify pronoun references
5. Scan for articles (a/an/the)

For Sentence Improvement:

1. Read complete sentence with each option
2. Check grammatical correctness
3. Consider meaning preservation
4. Choose most concise option
5. “No improvement” is also valid answer

Common Preposition Combinations

Practice Strategy

Daily Practice (30 minutes)

• 20 error detection questions
• 10 sentence improvement questions
• Review mistakes thoroughly

Focus Areas:

1. Week 1: S-V agreement
2. Week 2: Tenses
3. Week 3: Prepositions
4. Week 4: Mixed practice

💡 Pro Tip: Read each sentence aloud (mentally). Your ear will catch many errors! Master grammar rules first, then error detection becomes easy.