60-second revision
- Check the verb first: most errors are subject–verb agreement or tense.
- Each, every, either, neither and 'one of + plural noun' take a singular verb.
- With either...or and neither...nor, the verb agrees with the nearer subject.
- Since takes a point of time (since Monday); for takes a period (for three days).
- Hardly and scarcely pair with when; no sooner pairs with than.
- Information, furniture, advice, luggage and equipment are uncountable: no plural, no 'an'.
- Unless and until already carry a negative sense; do not add 'not'.
- Between is for two; among is for three or more.
How to read an error-spotting sentence
The sentence is split into three or four segments and exactly one contains an error (some papers also offer 'No error'). The error is grammatical, not a matter of style, so a fixed checklist works better than reading by ear.
- Read the whole sentence once for meaning.
- Find the true subject of each verb and check agreement.
- Check the tense against time words (yesterday, since, for, by next year) and against the other verb in the sentence.
- Check pronouns: do they agree with their nouns and take the right case?
- Check articles, prepositions and conjunction pairs.
- Check comparisons, modifiers and parallel structure.
- Before marking, say the corrected segment to yourself; it should need only one small change.
Subject–verb agreement
| Rule | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| A phrase between subject and verb does not change the subject | The box of mangoes are heavy. | The box of mangoes is heavy. |
| Each, every, either, neither take a singular verb | Every boy and girl were given a prize. | Every boy and girl was given a prize. |
| One of + plural noun + singular verb | One of my friends live in Goa. | One of my friends lives in Goa. |
| Either/neither...or/nor: verb follows the nearer subject | Either the players or the coach are to blame. | Either the players or the coach is to blame. |
| Uncountable nouns are singular | The luggages were lost. | The luggage was lost. |
| A sum, distance or period seen as one amount is singular | Five hundred rupees are too much for this. | Five hundred rupees is too much for this. |
| 'The number of' is singular; 'a number of' is plural | The number of cars have doubled. | The number of cars has doubled. |
| 'Along with', 'as well as' do not add to the subject | The captain, along with his players, were honoured. | The captain, along with his players, was honoured. |
Tenses
| Rule | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| Action from past to now: present perfect (continuous) | She is working here for six years. | She has been working here for six years. |
| A finished past time takes simple past | I have met him yesterday. | I met him yesterday. |
| Future meaning in an if/when clause takes simple present | If he will come, I will tell him. | If he comes, I will tell him. |
| The earlier of two past actions takes past perfect | When I reached, the train already left. | When I reached, the train had already left. |
| Lest is followed by should | Work hard lest you will fail. | Work hard lest you should fail. |
| Scarcely/hardly ... when | Scarcely had I sat down than the phone rang. | Scarcely had I sat down when the phone rang. |
Pronouns, articles and prepositions
| Rule | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| Let is followed by the object form | Let you and I go. | Let you and me go. |
| After than/as, use the form the full clause needs (exam rule) | He is taller than me. | He is taller than I (am). |
| 'An' goes by the vowel sound, not the letter | a honest man; an university | an honest man; a university |
| A superlative needs 'the' | He is best player in the team. | He is the best player in the team. |
| Fixed prepositions | accused for; married with; senior than | accused of; married to; senior to |
| Some verbs take no preposition | discuss about; comprises of; enter into the room | discuss; comprises; enter the room |
| Two people: between; more: among | Divide the sweets between the five children. | Divide the sweets among the five children. |
| Until/unless are already negative | Wait here until I do not return. | Wait here until I return. |
| Not only...but also needs matching forms | He not only sings but also is dancing. | He not only sings but also dances. |
Redundancy and word choice
- Words that already contain their meaning: return back, repeat again, revert back, reply back, cousin brother. Drop the extra word.
- Comparatives ending in -ior take to: superior to, inferior to, senior to, junior to, prior to. Prefer also takes to.
- Comparing like with like: 'My salary is higher than my brother's', not 'than my brother'.
- Each other is for two; one another is for more than two (traditional exam rule).
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