Sentence Correction & Error Detection - English Grammar & Vocabulary

📌 What is Sentence Correction?

Sentence correction (also called sentence improvement) tests your ability to identify grammatically incorrect parts of a sentence and choose the correct alternative. Error detection asks you to find which part contains an error.

This topic appears in virtually every BCS Preliminary, Bank Recruitment, and NTRCA exam. Typically 5–10 questions come directly from this area.

💡 Golden Rule

Read the entire sentence first — don't jump to the underlined part. Then scan systematically: Subject-Verb Agreement → Tense → Pronoun → Article → Modifier → Parallelism → Redundancy → Preposition → Word Usage.

🧠 Master Mnemonic — STAMP-RW

Subject-Verb agreement → Tense → Article / Adjective / Adverb → Modifier placement → Parallelism & Preposition → Redundancy → Word usage. Check each in order and you'll catch 95% of errors!

📌 Error Type 1: Subject-Verb Agreement

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Rule
Each of the boys have a pen.	Each of the boys has a pen.	Each / Every / Either / Neither → singular verb
Bread and butter are his breakfast.	Bread and butter is his breakfast.	Combined concept → singular verb
The committee have decided.	The committee has decided.	Collective noun (acting as one) → singular
A number of students was absent.	A number of students were absent.	"A number of" → plural; "The number of" → singular
The news are shocking.	The news is shocking.	Uncountable / always-singular nouns → singular verb
Mathematics are difficult.	Mathematics is difficult.	Subjects ending in -ics (physics, politics) → singular
One of the boys are absent.	One of the boys is absent.	"One of + plural noun" → singular verb
Ten miles are a long distance.	Ten miles is a long distance.	Distance / time / money as a unit → singular

💡 Exam Alert — Tricky Singulars

These nouns look plural but take a singular verb: news, mathematics, physics, economics, politics, ethics, innings, gallows, measles, mumps, rickets, billiards, draughts.

These take a plural verb: cattle, people, police, clergy, gentry, peasantry, scissors, trousers, spectacles.

📌 Error Type 2: Tense Errors

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Rule
I am knowing the answer.	I know the answer.	Stative verbs → no continuous tense
He has came yesterday.	He came yesterday.	Definite past time → simple past (not present perfect)
If I will go, I will tell him.	If I go, I will tell him.	No "will" in if-clause (Type 1 conditional)
I have been waiting since two hours.	I have been waiting for two hours.	"Since" → point; "For" → duration
He told that he is busy.	He told that he was busy.	Reported speech → tense backshift
I am living here since 2010.	I have been living here since 2010.	"Since/For" + duration → perfect / perfect continuous
When I will reach, I will call you.	When I reach, I will call you.	No future tense in time-clause (when/before/after/until)
He did not went to school.	He did not go to school.	After did/does/do → base form (V₁)

🧠 Stative Verbs — "LOVE KNOWS NO PROGRESS"

Love, Know, Need, Own, Prefer, Remember, Owe, Guess, Recognise, Exist, Seem, Suppose — these verbs describe states, not actions, and are never used in continuous tenses.

📌 Error Type 3: Pronoun Errors

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Rule
Neither he nor I are going.	Neither he nor I am going.	Verb agrees with the nearer subject
Every student must bring their book.	Every student must bring his/her book.	Every → singular pronoun
You and me should go.	You and I should go.	Subject position → subjective case (I/he/she/we/they)
Between you and I, it's a secret.	Between you and me, it's a secret.	After preposition → objective case (me/him/her/us/them)
He is taller than me.	He is taller than I (am).	After "than/as" → subjective case (implied verb)
Myself went to the market.	I went to the market.	Reflexive pronouns cannot be subjects
One should do his duty.	One should do one's duty.	"One" → "one's" (not his/her)

💡 Quick Test — Subject or Object?

Remove the other person from the sentence: "You and me should go" → "Me should go"? No! → Use I.
"She invited you and I" → "She invited I"? No! → Use me.

📌 Error Type 4: Article Errors

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Rule
He is a honest man.	He is an honest man.	A/An depends on sound, not spelling (honest = vowel sound)
She is an university student.	She is a university student.	"University" starts with /juː/ (consonant sound) → "a"
He plays the cricket well.	He plays cricket well.	No article before games/sports
Gold is a precious metal.	Gold is a precious metal. ✓ BUT: The gold of this ring is pure.	General sense → no article; specific → "the"
The man is mortal.	Man is mortal.	Generic/universal truth → no article
I go to the school every day.	I go to school every day.	No article for purpose-based institutions (school/church/hospital)
He is an European.	He is a European.	"European" = /jʊərə-/ consonant sound → "a"
He gave me an one-rupee note.	He gave me a one-rupee note.	"One" = /wʌn/ consonant sound → "a"

🧠 Remember — A/An Rule

"A" or "An" is decided by sound, not letter. Words starting with silent "h" (hour, honest, heir) take "an". Words starting with vowel letters but consonant sounds (university, uniform, European, one, once) take "a".

📌 Error Type 5: Parallelism

When listing items or comparing, maintain the same grammatical structure throughout.

📝 Examples

✗ He likes reading, writing and to swim.
✓ He likes reading, writing and swimming.

✗ She is intelligent, hard-working and has honesty.
✓ She is intelligent, hard-working and honest.

✗ Not only he is a singer but also a dancer.
✓ He is not only a singer but also a dancer.

✗ The teacher asked the students to read the text, to underline the key words, and that they should write a summary.
✓ The teacher asked the students to read the text, to underline the key words, and to write a summary.

✗ This book is more interesting and easy to read.
✓ This book is more interesting and easier to read.

💡 Correlative Pair Parallelism

With correlative conjunctions, the structure after each part must be parallel:

not only … but also — He is not only a teacher but also a writer.
either … or — You can either stay or leave.
neither … nor — She neither called nor texted.
both … and — He is both talented and humble.
whether … or — Tell me whether he came or not.

📌 Error Type 6: Dangling & Misplaced Modifiers

A dangling modifier has no logical subject; a misplaced modifier is placed too far from the word it modifies.

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Error Type
Walking along the road, a car hit him.	Walking along the road, he was hit by a car.	Dangling modifier
I only eat vegetables on Fridays.	I eat only vegetables on Fridays.	Misplaced "only"
Being a rainy day, I stayed home.	It being a rainy day, I stayed home. / As it was a rainy day, I stayed home.	Dangling participle
She nearly earned ₹50,000.	She earned nearly ₹50,000.	Misplaced adverb
Sitting in the garden, the flowers were beautiful.	Sitting in the garden, I found the flowers beautiful.	Dangling modifier

🧠 Dangling Modifier Quick Check

After a participial phrase (e.g., "Walking along the road, …"), the very next noun must be the person/thing performing that action. If it isn't — the modifier is dangling!

📌 Error Type 7: Comparison Errors

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Rule
She is more taller than her sister.	She is taller than her sister.	Double comparison: never use "more" + "-er"
He is the most fastest runner.	He is the fastest runner.	Never use "most" + "-est"
He is senior than me.	He is senior to me.	senior / junior / superior / inferior / prior → "to" (not "than")
The climate of Dhaka is hotter than Sylhet.	The climate of Dhaka is hotter than that of Sylhet.	Compare like with like (climate with climate)
He is more better than his brother.	He is better than his brother.	good → better → best (irregular — no "more")
Of the two sisters, she is tallest.	Of the two sisters, she is the taller.	Between two → comparative; among three+ → superlative
No any other boy is as tall as Rahim.	No other boy is as tall as Rahim.	Don't use "any" after "no"

💡 Exam Alert — Irregular Comparisons

📌 Error Type 8: Verb Pattern Errors

Certain verbs demand specific patterns (gerund, infinitive, or preposition + gerund). Exam questions frequently test these.

Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓	Pattern
He insisted to go.	He insisted on going.	insist on + V-ing
She prevented him to come.	She prevented him from coming.	prevent … from + V-ing
I am used to go there.	I am used to going there.	"be used to" + V-ing (not infinitive)
He suggested me to go.	He suggested that I (should) go.	suggest + that-clause (subjunctive)
She made him to work.	She made him work.	make / let / have + bare infinitive
I enjoy to play cricket.	I enjoy playing cricket.	enjoy / avoid / deny / mind + V-ing
He told to me a story.	He told me a story.	tell + object (no "to")
Please discuss about the topic.	Please discuss the topic.	discuss = transitive (no preposition)

💡 Verbs Followed by Gerund (V-ing)

enjoy, avoid, deny, suggest, mind, consider, risk, finish, practise, admit, appreciate, delay, imagine, keep, miss, postpone, quit, recall, resist, tolerate

💡 Verbs Followed by Infinitive (to + V₁)

agree, decide, expect, hope, intend, learn, manage, offer, plan, pretend, promise, refuse, seem, want, wish, afford, arrange, attempt, choose, fail, prepare, tend

📌 Error Type 9: Redundancy & Wordiness

Redundant ✗	Correct ✓	Why
return back	return	"return" already means "come/go back"
repeat again	repeat	"repeat" already means "do again"
revert back	revert	"revert" already means "go back"
free gift	gift	a gift is by definition free
past experience	experience	experience is always from the past
advance forward	advance	"advance" means "move forward"
cooperate together	cooperate	"co-" already implies together
exact same	same / exact	"same" already implies exactness
end result	result	a result comes at the end
each and every	each / every	both mean the same; pick one
basic fundamentals	fundamentals / basics	"fundamental" already means "basic"
close proximity	proximity	"proximity" means closeness

📌 Error Type 10: Commonly Confused Words

Set A — Classic Pairs

Word	Meaning	Word	Meaning
Accept	To receive	Except	Other than
Affect	To influence (verb)	Effect	Result (noun)
Beside	By the side of	Besides	In addition to
Emigrate	Leave a country	Immigrate	Enter a country
Principal	Head / main	Principle	Rule / belief
Stationary	Not moving	Stationery	Writing materials
Complement	Complete / go well	Compliment	Praise

Set B — More Exam-Tested Pairs

Word	Meaning	Word	Meaning
Advice	Suggestion (noun)	Advise	To suggest (verb)
Practice	Habit (noun)	Practise	To do regularly (verb)
Loose	Not tight	Lose	To be deprived of
Eligible	Qualified	Illegible	Cannot be read
Altogether	Completely	All together	Everyone in a group
Ensure	Make certain	Insure	Protect (insurance)
Disinterested	Impartial / unbiased	Uninterested	Not interested
Lie	To recline (lay, lain)	Lay	To put down (laid, laid)
Farther	Physical distance	Further	Additional / abstract

📌 Most Repeated Exam Sentences

These exact patterns appear again and again in BCS, Bank, and NTRCA exams:

#	Incorrect ✗	Correct ✓
1	He hanged the picture on the wall.	He hung the picture. (hang–hung–hung for objects; hang–hanged–hanged for execution)
2	The cattles are grazing.	The cattle are grazing. (cattle = always plural, no "s")
3	He gave me an useful information.	He gave me useful information. (information = uncountable; "useful" = /juː/ → "a")
4	I prefer tea than coffee.	I prefer tea to coffee. (prefer A to B)
5	He is one of the boys who has passed.	He is one of the boys who have passed. (who refers to "boys" → plural)
6	Let you and I go.	Let you and me go. (after "let" → objective case)
7	No sooner did he come when I left.	No sooner did he come than I left. (No sooner … than / Hardly … when)
8	The sceneries are beautiful.	The scenery is beautiful. (scenery = uncountable)
9	He is comparatively better.	He is comparatively good / He is better. (don't mix comparative adverb + comparative adjective)
10	He said me a story.	He told me a story. (say → no indirect object; tell → requires indirect object)

📌 Error Detection — Step-by-Step Strategy

💡 3-Pass Technique

Pass 1 — Structure: Check subject-verb agreement, tense consistency, pronoun case.
Pass 2 — Vocabulary: Check word choice, confused words, redundancy, idiom correctness.
Pass 3 — Logic: Read the full sentence for meaning — does it say what it intends?

📝 Worked Example — Error Detection

Sentence: "(A) Each of the boys (B) were given (C) a prize by (D) the chief guest."

Pass 1 — "Each" → singular → verb should be "was given" (not "were"). → Error in Part (B).

📌 Common Exam Mistakes

#	Mistake	What to Do
1	Choosing the option that "sounds right"	Apply grammar rules systematically — don't trust your ear alone
2	Not checking the "No Error" option carefully	About 15-20% of sentences have no error — check thoroughly before selecting it
3	Ignoring articles (a/an/the)	Article errors are the most common yet overlooked — always scan for them
4	Missing the subject behind a long phrase	"The cost of all these items have risen" — subject is "cost" (singular)
5	Forgetting "than" vs "to" with Latin comparatives	superior/inferior/senior/junior/prior/posterior → always "to" (never "than")
6	Confusing "say" and "tell"	say + something; tell + someone + something
7	Missing parallelism in long sentences	In lists of 3+ items, every item must follow the same pattern
8	Treating "information/furniture/advice" as countable	These are uncountable — never add "s" or use "a/an" directly