IBPS PO Spotting Error Sentence Improvement Qns 6

Q.1) Despite two rounds of talks with Goa Collector Siddharth and senior police officers, the family refusing to accepts the body and get the autopsy done.

1. a) refuse to permitted
2. b) refuse to accepting
3. c) refused to permits
4. d) refused to accept
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option d)

The subordinate clause “Despite two…….officers” is correct.

In the main clause “the family ………… done” the main (action) verb is in continuous form – refusing- but it is without supporting verb. So the highlighted phrase needs correction.

Family is a collective noun. If it refers to members it is treated as plural. The verb should be `refuse’ in the present tense and `refused’ in the past tense.

In the highlighted phrase `to’ should be followed by basic form of verb.

So options a, b, and c are wrong. Option d) is the correct replacement.

Q.2) Water would loaded into the central tank of the ship from fire tenders during the restoration work to bring back the vessel to the designated place.

1. a) should loaded into
2. b) has to been loaded into
3. c) had to be loaded into
4. d) was load into
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option c)

If the sentence is a statement of fact the highlighted phrase should be `would be loaded into’. None of the options a, b, c, and d lead to this correction.

So if we take the sentence as a report on an event, it should be in past tense.

Options c and d lead to reporting of a past event.

In d) we should have `was loaded into’ (passive form). So d) also is wrong.

So c) is the answer. It reports the past event as a necessity – `water had to be loaded into’.

Q.3) The Telangana police had earning praise for their work, mainly in the use of technology to combat crime.

1. a) have been earning
2. b) have earn
3. c) has to be earn
4. d) have to be earned
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option a)

The sentence is a simple sentence with `earning ‘ as main action verb.

The highlighted phrase is wrong because it should be `had earned (past perfect)’ or `had been earning (past perfect continuous)’

Options b, c, and d are grammatically wrong.

Option a) is correct and it is in present perfect continuous form which is used to report an action from the past which is still continuing.

Q.4) Schools were asked to ensures that sharp items do not make their way into school transport.

1. a) were ask to ensured
2. b) were ask to ensuring
3. c) had asked to ensuring
4. d) have been asked to ensure
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option d)

The highlighted phrase is wrong because `to’ is not followed by a basic form of verb.

`were asked to ensure’ is the correct passive form in the past tense. Options a, b and c do not help as they are wrong.

Option d) in present perfect tense form in the passive voice is correct. This form is used to report a fact or a recently concluded action.

Q.5) Guardians of students have been asked to monitor their wards and ensure they are not engaged in the game.

1. a) ensure that are not engaged
2. b) ensuring they were engaged
3. c) ensured they are not engaging
4. d) ensures that they are not engage
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option e)

The main clause “Guardians of ……..asked” in present perfect tense, is correct.

The object of the verb `asked’ is “to monitor their wards and ensure they are not engaged in the game” has two infinitives, “to monitor and to ensure” in the correct form.

Since the preposition `to’ is same for both the infinitives, it is not repeated before the verb `ensure’. `their wards is the direct object of the verb `monitor’ and there is no error. Object of the verb `ensure’ is the clause `they are not engaged in the game’ in which `that’ is omitted which is also correct.

Therefore there is no error in the sentence and the highlighted phrase does not require replacement.

Q.6) Peace rallies are taken into the residents of Kurseong, Darjeeling, and Mirik demanding the restoration of peace in the hills.

1. a) were taken in
2. b) are take out by
3. c) were taken out by
4. d) are take by
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option c)

From the meaning of the sentence the correct form of the highlighted phrase should be “are taken out by” which will describe the events currently happening in the town. Option b) and c) which are in the present tense are syntactically incorrect. If option a) and c) are in simple past tense which is used to report a completed action in the past.

But option a) when substitutes the highlighted phrase will give a different meaning- “taken in’ means made to believe.

So option c) which is in the correct form is the answer.

Q.7) Sekan will join at least 90 women entrepreneurs in the park which are expected by inaugurated by November, after nearly a year of delay.

1. a) that is expected to be
2. b) which is expecting by
3. c) that are to be expected to
4. d) which expected by
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option a)

The antecedent of the relative pronoun `which’ in the highlighted phrase is `park’ which is a singular noun. So the verb in the relative clause should be `is’

Moreover, since the relative clause identifies the park, the relative pronoun is definitive and so `that’ should be used in the place of `which’.

So the correct substitute is “that is expected to be “which is option a)

Q.8) The new rules, if they come into force, may not have any substantially impacts in quality of credit rating in India.

1. a) substantial’s impact in the qualities
2. b) substantial impact on the quality
3. c) substantially impact at the quality
4. d) substantial impacts in the qualities
5. e) No improvement is required

Ans: Option b)

The highlighted phrase has four errors.

The adverb `substantially’ preceding the noun `impacts’ should be replaced by the adjective `substantial’.

The noun impact is non countable and so does not have plural form.

`Impact on’ is the right phrasal form to denote influence. So the preposition `in’ should be substituted by `on’. `Quality’ is a singular common noun and so must have an article preceding it.

Since we are referring to a specific quality, that is of the credit rating, the definite article, `the’ should precede the word `quality’

So the correct syntactic form of the highlighted phrase is “substantial impact on the quality”

Q.9) Belgian political economist Gustave de Molinari is often considered to be one of the first anarcho-capitalists in the modern world.

1. a) was considered as to be
2. b) is considered often to be
3. c) had often considered to be
4. d) has often considered as
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option e)

The sentence is in passive form.

The phrase “often considered to be” is syntactically correct and means `he is regarded as’.

The last part of the sentence, `one of the ………. Modern world’ is also correct.

Q.10) The police said arms and ammunition carried by the militants have recovering from the encounter site.

1. a) had recovered from
2. b) had been recovered from
3. c) have to recovered from
4. d) has been recovered from
5. e) No improvement is required.

Ans: Option b)

The sentence implies that arms and ammunition possessed by the militants were recovered from the encounter site.

The reported speech “arms and ammunition …………encounter site” is in the passive voice in the present perfect tense.

When time of action is not important, present perfect tense is used to report a fact.

The highlighted phrase is syntactically wrong. It should be “have been recovered from”. None of the options a, b, c, and d have this replacement. But the sentence has two past tense verbs `said’ and `recovered’

When there are two past actions which happened at different time points in the past, the earlier action is reported in the past perfect tense and the later action in simple past tense. Here recovery of arms and ammunition is the earlier action.

Therefore, we can have the replacement “had been recovered from” which is option b)

Answer keys:  1. (d) 2. (c) 3. (a) 4. (d) 5. (e) 6. (c) 7. (a) 8. (b) 9. (e) 10. (b)