Q.1-10): A sentence is shown in four parts marked as (a), (b), (c) and (d) in each question. Read the sentences carefully and select the part which is grammatically wrong. If every part of the sentence is grammatically correct then, choose ‘No error’ (e) as the answer.
Q.1) One soldier killed and five (a)/ others were injured when (b)/ militants opened fire on an Army convoy (c)/ on the Srinagar-Jammu highway on Saturday morning. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option a)
The main clause is in the passive voice. So “One soldier killed” is incorrect and it should be “One soldier was killed”
Q.2) “Other companies such as Videocon (a)/ and Etisalat has already left (b)/ the industry because of (c)/ this hyper-competitive pressure,” he added. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option b)
The only main action verb is ‘left’.
The sentence is in the present perfect tense as indicated by “has already left”
But the subject of this verb is “Videocon and Etisalat” which is plural.
So in part b) we should have “have already left”
Q.3) A genetic mutation (a)/ is already known to (b)/ cause light coloration in (c)/ horses, chicken and fish. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option a)
Genetic mutation is uncountable. So it does not require the article `a’
Q.4) It would have (a)/ been so much best (b)/ if the government provided (c)/ us some facilities. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option b)
There is an implied comparison between the present situation and the situation after some facilities are provided. So correct usage is “so much better”
Q.5) Though Darwin learn a lot (a)/in the intellectual environment that the university fostered, (b)/it was clear to his father that Darwin didn’t harbor (c)/any intentions of continuing with medicine. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option a)
The main clause “it was clear……. Medicine” is in the past tense.
So the subordinate clause “Though Darwin….. fostered” should also be in the past tense. So the verb in part a) should be ‘learned’
Q.6) Iran is working to restore a lost link (a)/in its network of alliances in West Asia, trying to bring Hamas (b)/full back into the fold after the Palestinian militant group had a bitter fall-out (c)/with Iranian ally Syria over that country’ s civil war. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option c)
Part a) – Iran is working to restore a lost link – NO error
Where? – in its network of alliances in West Asia – NO error
Why? Or for what purpose? – trying to bring Hamas fullback into the fold after the Palestinian militant group had a bitter fall-out with Iranian ally Syria over that country’s civil war
Here ‘get back’ is a phrasal verb. ‘Full’ is used to indicate to what extent?
It plays the role of an adverb. So it should be ‘fully’
Q.7) “We have very big differentiation, (a)/ we have a complete suite that is (b)/ not provided by nobody else and that is (c)/ the reason we are the fastest growing in the market,” said Shailender. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option c)
The sentence conveys the meaning that its fastest growth in the market is attributed to its incomparable provision of the complete suit. It means nobody else provides that.
There are two negatives “not provided” and “nobody else” This does not convey the meaning “nobody else provides”. So it should be “not provided by anybody”
Q.8) Puerto Rican officials could not communicate with more than half the towns (a)/in the U.S. territory as they rushed to evacuate tens (b)/of thousands of people downstream(c)/ of a failing dam and the massive scale of the disaster wrought by Hurricane Maria started to become clear.(d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option e)
“Puerto Rican officials could not communicate with more than half the towns in the U.S. territory”– the main clause in simple past tense is OK.
“As they rushed to evacuate tens of thousands of people downstream of a filing dam and the massive scale of the disaster wrought by the Hurricane Maria started to become clear”– the subordinate clause (within it two clauses connected by ‘ and’ ) is also correct.
Q.9)Saudi rulers are also start to reform areas (a)/that was once the exclusive domain of the clergy, (b)/such as education and the law, and have promoted (c)/elements of national identity that have no religious component.(d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option a)
The second clause “have promoted elements of ……… component ”indicates that the sentence is in the present perfect tense as it is just reporting a fact of what is happening in Saudi Arabia. So in the first clause, we should have either “are also starting” or “have also started”
Q.10) Amid this dismal backdrop, (a)/ Aftab Mustafa’ s tidy, rustic dwelling on the edge (b)/ of the slope leading down to the village’ s (c)/ two large ponds almost feel like a luxury. (d)/ No error. (e)
Ans: Option d)
The main clause “Aftab Mustafa’s tidy….. almost feel like a luxury” has ‘dwelling’ a singular noun as the subject “feel” the main verb. It can be in the present tense or the past tense if it is taken as a report filed by somebody on his past experience. Then the verb will be “felt”.
Answer Key: 1. (a) 2. (b) 3. (a) 4. (b) 5. (a) 6. (c) 7. (c) 8. (e) 9. (a) 10. (d)
