Error Spotting Questions for Bank Exams
DIRECTIONS: In each of these questions, a sentence has been divided into four parts and marked a. b, c and d. One of these parts contains a mistake in grammar Idiom or syntax. Identify that part and mark it as the answer.
1.
(a) The only persons in the theatre
(b) on that stormy night
(c) were the staff of the theatre
(d) and me.
Answer: (d) and I
When a noun (or pronoun) is used as the Subject of a verb, it is said to be in the Nominative Case and when it is used as the Object of a verb, it is said to be in the Objective (or Accusative) case.
In the sentence given, the staff and the person speaking form the subject of the verb ‘were’ and hence the Nominative Case of the First Person-Singular i.e. ‘I’ should be used instead of the Accusative Case i.e. ‘me’.
Note- To find the Nominative Case put Who? or What? before the verb. To find the Accusative Case put whom? or What? Before the verb and its subject. For e.g. Hari broke the window. (Object).
The window was broken. (Subject)
The Nominative generally comes before the verb and the Accusative after the verb. Hence they are distinguished by the order of words, or by the sense.
2.
(a) Sunita is more talkative than
(b) anybody in the class because
(c) he is not afraid of the teacher
(d) who is his own brother.
Answer: (b) than any other boy in the class.
When a comparison is instituted by means of a Comparative followed by ‘than’, the thing compared must be always excluded from the class of things with which it is compared, by using ‘other’ or some such words.
3.
(a) There is only the banana
(b) and one apple in the refrigerator
(c) so let us go to the market
(d) and buy some more fruits.
Answer: (a) a banana
The reference here is to one banana and not a particular one.
4.
(a) Like his brother who did not wear his helmet
(b) and was injured in the accident
(c) Rajan was always careful
(d) and wore his helmet without fail.
Answer: (a) Unlike his brother
The adverb unlike is to be used here as logical reasoning suggests.
5.
(a) We were not worried about being late
(b) since we knew that our other friends
(c) would have been caught in a worse traffic jam
(d) than us.
Answer: (d) than we had been
The past perfect tense ‘had been’ is used here to denote an action completed before a certain moment in the past.
6.
(a) The part of Madras that interested us the most
(b) were the beach and the museum
(c) which we recommend to all friends
(d) who plan to visit that city.
Answer: (a) The parts of Madras…
A verb must agree with its subject in number and person. The plural ‘parts’ fits in with the verb ‘were’. Thus, if the subject is of the Singular Number, First Person, the verb must be of the Singular Number, First Person; as, I am here. I was there. I have a bat. I play cricket.
7.
(a) Although Greek and Latin were
(b) of extreme important during their day
(c) they had become dead languages
(d) by the beginning of the fifteenth century.
Answer: (b) of extreme importance…
‘Importance’ is a noun; ‘important’ is an adjective.
8.
(a) Amphibians are creatures which
(b) live equally effortlessly
(c) in water and land are found
(d) in all the continents of the world
Answer: (c) and land and are found
The cumulative conjunction ‘and’ is needed here to add one statement to another.
9.
(a) Near the pond was standing
(b) a dog, a donkey and a cow
(c) but when I threw a stone at them
(d) it was only the dog that ran away
Answer: (a) were standing
10.
(a) Psychiatrists claim that the dream process
(b) can offer insights into
(c) how the brain has worked, though
(d) it cannot be taken as the final evidence.
Answer: (c) how the brain works.
The simple present tense is needed as part (b) indicates.
11.
(a) Collecting money for the new school
(b) may not be very easy
(c) but if everyone does their best
(d) we can still reach the target.
Answer: (c) everyone does his best
12.
(a) The chairman reviewed the many details
(b) connecting with the profitability
(c) of the Company and then decided that
(d) further expansion was not desirable.
Answer: (b) connected with
The past tense is to be used as part (a) indicates.
13.
(a) On entering the meeting hall
(b) loud cheers greeted the Prime Minister
(c) who acknowledged them with a smile
(d) and waved back happily at the gathering.
Answer: (a) On his entering the meeting hall
14.
(a) I am sure that if you were me
(b) and had been talked to in a similar manner
(c) you would also have lost your temper
(d) and talked back as I did.
Answer: (a) that if you were I
15.
(a) He would not listen to us at all
(b) and it was quite apparent that
(c) he had other different sources of information
(d) than what we were relying on
Answer: (c) other sources of information/different sources of information.
The tautology is to be removed.
16.
(a) We were shown two houses yesterday
(b) by the broker who is helping us in this regard
(c) but we found that none of them was suitable
(d) for our specific requirements
Answer: (c) …….them were suitable
17.
(a) Although politicians may be dishonest
(b) in their professional life
(c) it is probably unfair to brand them
(d) as dishonest in their private dealings too.
Answer: (b) ….their professional lives
The plural form of the noun is to be used as part (a) indicates.
18.
(a) I had no particular fancy for tea
(b) or coffee; so, when given a choice
(c) I opted for a cold drink which
(d) I am fond of.
Answer: (c) In a cold drink ‘a’ is redundant.
19.
(a) If only I would have studied that one chapter
(b) just on the eve of the examination
(c) I could have answered all the questions
(d) and obtained over eighty percent marks.
Answer: (a) If only I had studied….
20.
(a) Despite all the threatening and cajoling
(b) the accused denied to disclose
(c) who his accomplices were
(d) in the bank robbery (theft of the bank’s cash).
Answer: (b) ….accused refused to disclose
One denies an accusation and refuses a request or plea.