Sentence Correction for Competitive Exams

General English forms an essential part of exams ranging from university entrances to ability testing and recruitment examinations such as GRE, SSC, CAT and GMAT Exam amongst others. It typically tests the candidate’s grasp over grammar usage, understanding of tone and mood, vocabulary, comprehension and a host of other skills. Questions on sentence correction typically tend to be tricky owing to its clever usage of words and complex structures. In this blog, we will try to break down the most prominent forms of questions under sentence correction along with illustrating some significant samples to help you understand them better.

Sentence Correction: Types

The question patterns implemented in a majority of competitive exams are, up to a certain extent, quite alike. Further, it should be noted that sentence correction questions can be asked as MCQs or as part of a reading comprehension passage. The most common types of these questions are:

1. Most Appropriate Choice
2. Most Opposite Choices
3. Jumbled Sentences
4. Phrase Correction

Solved Examples

Let’s understand how to solve Sentence correction questions in the competitive exams with the help of the following examples:

Example 1
Select an appropriate replacement of the phrase in bold or mark D if no correction required. Irrespective of the fact that climate change does not alter our day to day activities, their effects are undoubtedly affecting the ecosystem.

1. his effects are very much affecting the ecosystem
2. its effects are very much affecting the ecosystem
3. her effects are very much affecting the ecosystem
4. No correction required

Solution:
The subject in the question is Climate Change, so just looking at the options the only pronoun suitable for climate change is it not his or her, the rest of the line is the same for all options.

Therefore, the correct answer is option – 2

Example 2
Select an appropriate replacement of the phrase in bold or mark D if no correction required. The formula for cracking competitive exams is not applying shortcuts but going by full-fledged strategy.

1. but going by the full-fledged strategy
2. but going by the only full-fledged strategy
3. but going by a full-fledged strategy
4. No correction required

Solution:
The difference in options is among the articles. “The” is a particular article, it is kind of pointing out someone or something. It applies when you have only one option in many (e.g. The Sun). But in this question, there can be infinitely many strategies for infinitely many examinees. So the answer is “a” as it is a general article.

Therefore, the correct option is – 3

Example 3
Select an appropriate replacement of the phrase in bold or mark D if no correction required. The apex court on Sunday asked a report from the government regarding the rampant bribery culture in state bureaucracy.

1. regarding the rampant bribery culture between state bureaucracy
2. regarding the rampant bribery culture among state bureaucracy
3. regarding the rampant bribery culture surrounded by the state bureaucracy
4. No correction required

Solution:
In and Among are prepositions that describe something that is inside. But Between and Surrounded are sort of position based preposition. So it eliminates options 1 and 3. Among is generally used for people (1st and 2nd person) and not for something like given in this question.

Therefore, the correct option is – 4

Example 4:
Fill in the blank. Sanitation cannot be a separate ideal without reference to other _______ of deprivation.

1. Forms
2. Things
3. Constructions
4. Style

Solution:
In this question, there are subtypes of the subject, deprivation. Things and Constructions automatically remove themselves as they are not that can describe subtypes. There can be many subtypes and Style is a singular word. So it also gets eliminated. The remaining option is Forms.

Therefore, the correct option is -1

Example 5:
Cyberbullying can cause kids to avoid using their phone or computer, or appear __ when receiving email or text.

1. Ebullient
2. Relaxed
3. Casual
4. Stressed

Solution:
Bullying is a negative phrase and options 1, 2, 3 are all positive phrases. So they cannot fit in the answer.

Therefore, the correct option is – 4

Also Read: How to Score Good Marks in Exam

Sentence Correction Rules

Misplaced Modifier 

Misplaced modifiers are one of the most important sentence correction rules. A misplaced modifier refers to misplaced words or phrases that often lead to incorrect sentences that are illogical and hard to read. For example, ‘Tired of all of the nights in hotels, delight overcame by Mitch when his boss finally said he didn’t have to travel anymore. The word delight is the modifier in the above sentence and its misplacement makes the sentence incorrect. The correct usage of the word is ‘Tired of all of the nights in hotels, Mitch was delighted when his boss finally said he didn’t have to travel anymore.

Verb-subject Agreement

The verb-subject agreement is an essential part of sentence making. It is also one of the most common errors in sentence correction questions. If the subject is singular, then the verb must be singular. Similarly, if the subject is plural then the verb must be plural as well. 

Correct Verb Tense

Sentence correction questions often concentrate on the correct usage of verb tenses. Tenses are important to make coherent sentences in the English language and must be used carefully. There are types of tenses- past, present and future. Tenses indicate some action taking place or will take place. For example, by the time the teacher arrived, the students had fled. 

Illogical Comparison 

The sentence correction section consists of questions that mention sentences with an illogical comparison. Jimmy’s restaurant has more customers than Bob does. This sentence is incorrect in nature because it compares Jimmy’s restaurant with Bob and not his restaurant. 

Parallelism 

Parallelism refers to the repetition of the same grammatical form in two or more parts of a sentence. For example, ‘I like to draw, painting and dance at night’ is incorrect. The correct structure is: I like to draw, paint and dance at night or I like drawing, painting and dancing at night.

Also Read: Sentence Correction Questions & Rules for English

Practice Sentence Correction Questions

Now that you have understood how to solve sentence correction questions, here is a list of some additional practice problems to ace your preparation:

1: Select the correct order.

1. the sliding production points to an 
2. clearly, manufacturers of white goods
3. absence of the traditional festival-eve restocking bump
4. are struggling to find demand for their wares and 

1. III, IV, I, II
2. I, II, III, IV
3. II, IV, III, I
4. II, I, III, IV

2. Depression today not only describes ________ the hard economic state of affairs sweeping our world but the human state of mind.

1. Eulogises
2. Describes
3. Criticizes
4. Deletes

3. Pick the correct order:

1. current events and how they 
2. a small part of the book of Revelations.
3. The book looks at 
4. relate to Biblical prophecy, especially 

1. III, I, IV, II
2. I, III, IV, II
3. III, IV, I, II
4. II, III, IV, I

4. Pick the most appropriate word to the word in bold.

TeetoInc, an information standards organization that helps small brands identify their products for commerce, recently spoke with small business owners who have run successful creative campaigns.

1. Recollect
2. Recognise
3. Discern
4. Discriminate

5. Pick the most opposite word to the word in bold.

Her friend explained how down payment assistance programs give first-time homebuyers money to pay for a portion or all of their down payment, with some programs even helping with closing costs.

1. Obscure
2. Translate
3. Expound
4. Benign

6. Virat, who he is my best friend, is a Batsman.

1. who
2. best
3. he
4. None of the above

7. I don’t eat of either egg or fish

1. Eat
2. Of
3. Either
4. None of the above

 8. Arrange the below mentioned Jumbled word question in a coherent and logical manner?

A. To sort that out, the government decided to make an underground railway track.
B. London, unlike other countries, has still kept its original red Trams.
C. The Infrastructure was placed in 1970.
D. They are driven in the middle of the road, arising in traffic jam problems.

Options:

A. BDAC
B. ACBD
C. BCDA
D. NOTA

For an explanation read: Jumbled Words question

9. In the below mentioned jumbled words question, the first and the last sentence are numbered 1 and 6. The other sentence is split into 4 parts- P, Q, R, S. Arrange these fours part to form a meaningful sentence. 

The last of the Mughals _______________

A.of his wealthy and powerful ancestors 
B.Through the Mughal coffers
C.King Bahadur Shah Zaffar held a legacy 
D.until the East India Company made its way

____________ And rendered them useless

1. PQRS
2. RPSQ
3. RQSP
4. RPQS

10. Choose the proper sequence using the parts of the sentences mentioned below.

A. Sita wondered if 
B. because he was so rich 
C. work hard for a living
D. Ram would ever 

1. ABCD
2. ABDC
3. ACBD
4. ADCB

11. The bank will honour the claim of the purchaser up to a certain amount only.

• Up to a certain amount
• Up to a certain amount
• No replacement needed

12. The central committee was divided in their opinion regarding the regulations for the National Health Protection Scheme.

• Had been divided
• has divided
• were divided 
• No correction required

13. A federal government climate-change report released last year shows the Pacific Northwest is already seeing damage from rising temperatures.

• Seeing the damaging rising temperature
• Seen damaging rising temperature
• No change 
• No correction required 

14. The small child does whatever his father was done.

• has done
• did
• does
• No correction required

Also Read: Must-Know GMAT Sentence Correction Rules

15. There are not many men who are so famous that they are frequently referred to by their short names only

• initials
• signatures
• pictures
• No correction required

16. The man to who I sold my house was a cheat.

• to whom I sell
• to who I sell
• to whom I sold
• No correction required

17. All the allegations levelled against him were found to be baseless.

• level against
• level with
• levelling with
• No correction required

18. Tax evaders should heavily punished as they do it intentionally.

• should be heavy fined
• shall have heavy fine
• should be heavily fined
• No correction required

19. The oxygen content of Mars is not (a)
    sufficient enough to support life (b)
    as we know it. (c)
    no error (d)

20. Diya goes to the bed (a)
    at eight (b)
    every night (c)
    no error (d)

21. As soon the movie started (a)
    she developed (b)
    an irritating headache (c)
    no error (d)

22. Unless you do not listen to his advice (a)
    I am not going (b)
    to help you (c)
    no error (d)

23. A little quantity of sugar (a)
    is required to meet (b)
    the present demands. (c)
    no error (d)

24. The prosecution failed in establish in every case today.

• to
• on
• as
• upon

25. Since around 1970, with world population of 3.5 billion, they have doubled it to our current level of over 7 billion in 2012.
    1. with world population of 3.5 billion, they have doubled it
    2. with a world population of 3.5 billion, doubling it
    3. when the world’s population was 3.5 billion, doubling it
    4. when the world’s population was 3.5 billion, it has doubled
    5. when the world’s population were 3.5 billion, they have doubled it

26. The crime has growth rapidly in Russia since the disintegration of the communist system.
    1. rapid crime has grown
    2. crime has grown rapidly
    3. crimes grow rapidly
    4. No correction required
       
27. If I would have realised the nature of job earlier, I would not have accepted it.
    1. If I have had
    2. In case I would have
    3. Had I been
    4. Had I
       
28. The crime has growth rapidly in Russia since the disintegration of the communist system.
    1. rapid crime has grown
    2. crime has grown rapidly
    3. crimes grow rapidly
    4. No correction required

Tips and Tricks for Sentence Correction

• Brush Up for Grammar: The best way to ace sentence correction questions is to revise English grammar rules and practise questions. Candidates can check basic grammar rules online or buy books for revising their English language basics.
• Elimination Method: To ace GMAT sentence correction questions, candidates should use the elimination method used commonly in MCQ exams. By narrowing down your options, you increase your chances of getting the correct answer.
• Practice: The most common trick to ace any section of an exam is to practice well and consistently. Students should try to solve all previous question papers and sample papers. 
• Memorise Common Idioms: This is a common tip on how to ace sentence correction section in competitive exams. Students can memorise common idioms and phrases so that they can solve the questions quickly during tough exams like GMAT and CAT.

Sentence Correction for GMAT 

Sentence Correction questions popular appear in competitive exams like GMAT and CAT. These are easy to score in and can fetch amazing marks for students aiming for a high score. Acing this section will not only improve your English skills but also bring you one step closer to your dream business school. Click here to know more on how to ace sentence correction for GMAT and CAT!

Learn Sentence Correction with Leverage Live

Sentence correction and other categories of General English questions require a carefully planned approach towards grammar learning as well as vocabulary. If you are looking to appear for any competitive exam and are struggling with the preparation process, take assistance from our experts at Leverage Edu and Leverage Live to get the best study material and helpful tips to successfully ace the test and clear it with flying colours.