In the following question, some part of the sentence may have errors. Find out which part of the sentence has an error and select the appropriate option. If a sentence is free from error, select 'No Error'. Early marriages not only leads to high-population (1)/ and thwart the progress of our young population, (2)/ but also entail an enormous amount of trouble to young mothers. (3)/ No error (4)
1
Understanding the Grammar Error in the Sentence
The question asks us to identify the part of the sentence that contains a grammatical error. Let's break down the sentence part by part:
- Part (1): Early marriages not only leads to high-population
- Part (2): and thwart the progress of our young population,
- Part (3): but also entail an enormous amount of trouble to young mothers.
- Part (4): No error
Analyzing Part (1) for Errors
Part (1) of the sentence reads: "Early marriages not only leads to high-population".
Let's examine the subject and the verb in this part.
- The subject of the sentence is "Early marriages". This is a plural subject because it refers to multiple instances or the general concept of early marriages.
- The verb used is "leads". The verb form "leads" is the third-person singular form of the verb "lead".
In English grammar, the verb must agree with its subject in number. This is known as subject-verb agreement. A plural subject requires a plural verb form, and a singular subject requires a singular verb form.
Since "Early marriages" is a plural subject, the verb should be in its plural form, which is "lead". The singular form "leads" is incorrect here.
Therefore, the error lies in the use of "leads" instead of "lead". The corrected phrase would be "Early marriages not only lead to high-population".
While "high-population" might also be considered slightly awkward phrasing (perhaps "high population growth" or "high population density" would be clearer depending on context), the most direct and significant grammatical error in this part is the subject-verb agreement.
Analyzing Parts (2) and (3)
The sentence uses the correlative conjunctions "not only... but also...", connecting three clauses/phrases:
- ...not only leads to high-population...
- ...and thwart the progress...
- ...but also entail an enormous amount...
All these verbs should agree with the main subject "Early marriages".
- In part (2), the verb is "thwart". "Thwart" is the base form of the verb, which functions as the plural form in the present tense (e.g., They thwart, Marriages thwart). This agrees with the plural subject "Early marriages". So, part (2) seems correct in terms of verb agreement.
- In part (3), the verb is "entail". "Entail" is also the base form of the verb, functioning as the plural form (e.g., They entail, Marriages entail). This agrees with the plural subject "Early marriages". So, part (3) also seems correct in terms of verb agreement.
The primary error is confirmed to be in part (1) due to the incorrect subject-verb agreement ("marriages leads").
Conclusion
Based on the analysis, the error is in part (1) because the plural subject "Early marriages" is followed by the singular verb form "leads". The correct verb should be "lead".
The part of the sentence with the error is (1).
| Part | Text | Analysis | Error? |
|---|---|---|---|
| (1) | Early marriages not only leads to high-population | Subject "Early marriages" (Plural) vs. Verb "leads" (Singular). Incorrect agreement. | Yes |
| (2) | and thwart the progress of our young population, | Verb "thwart" (Plural) agrees with "Early marriages". | No |
| (3) | but also entail an enormous amount of trouble to young mothers. | Verb "entail" (Plural) agrees with "Early marriages". | No |
Revision Table: Key Grammar Concepts
Let's quickly review the main grammar point tested in this question.
| Concept | Explanation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject-Verb Agreement | A verb must agree in number (singular or plural) with its subject. Singular subjects take singular verbs (often ending in -s in the present tense), while plural subjects take plural verbs (base form in the present tense). | Singular: The cat sleeps. (cat - singular, sleeps - singular verb) Plural: The cats sleep. (cats - plural, sleep - plural verb) |
| Correlative Conjunctions (not only... but also...) | These conjunctions connect grammatically equal elements. If subjects are connected by these, the verb agrees with the subject closer to it. If phrases or clauses with the same subject are connected, the verb must agree with that subject. In this question, the subject "Early marriages" is shared across the "not only" and "but also" parts. | Subjects joined: Not only John but also his sisters are coming. (Verb agrees with "sisters") Phrases with same subject: She not only sings but also dances. (Verb agrees with "She") |
Additional Information: Common Subject-Verb Agreement Issues
Subject-verb agreement is a frequent area for errors. Here are a few points to keep in mind:
- Plural Subjects: Subjects that are plural nouns (e.g., books, cars, ideas) take plural verbs (e.g., read, run, develop).
- Singular Subjects: Subjects that are singular nouns (e.g., book, car, idea, he, she, it) take singular verbs (e.g., reads, runs, develops).
- Subjects connected by "and": Usually take a plural verb (e.g., John and Mary are here).
- Subjects connected by "or", "nor", "either...or", "neither...nor": The verb agrees with the subject closest to it (e.g., Neither the students nor the teacher is ready).
- Indefinite Pronouns: Some indefinite pronouns are always singular (e.g., everyone, everybody, anyone, anybody, no one, nobody, something, everything, nothing, each, either, neither) and take singular verbs. Some are always plural (e.g., several, few, both, many) and take plural verbs. Some can be singular or plural depending on the noun they refer to (e.g., some, any, none, all, most).
- Phrases Between Subject and Verb: Phrases like "along with", "as well as", "in addition to", "together with" do not change the number of the subject. The verb agrees only with the main subject (e.g., The student, along with the teachers, is going on a trip).
Mastering subject-verb agreement is crucial for correct sentence construction.
Important Questions from Error Spotting
Direction: Each item in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labelled (a), (b) and (c) Read each sentence to determine whether there is an error in any underlined part and indicate your response in the Answer Sheet against the corresponding letter, i.e., (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your response should be indicated as (d).
A honest mistake (a) / is no more than that; (b) / just an honest mistake. (c) / No error (d)Direction: Each item in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labelled (a), (b) and (c) Read each sentence to determine whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your response in the Answer Sheet against the corresponding letter, i.e., (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your response should be indicated as (d).
A company of five thousand soldiers , (a) / having marched tirelessly for over five days , (b) / have just moved into their cantonment . (c) / No error (d)Direction: Each item in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labelled (a), (b) and (c) Read each sentence to determine whether there is an error in any underlined part and indicate your response in the Answer Sheet against the corresponding letter, i.e., (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your response should be indicated as (d).
Every person who believes in principles (a) / must stand up to fight (b) / for their convictions . (c) / No error (d)Direction: Each item in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labelled (a), (b) and (c) Read each sentence to determine whether there is any error in any underlined part and indicate your response in the Answer Sheet against the corresponding letter, i.e., (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your response should be indicated as (d).
The Olympic Games reflects(a) / the highest spirit of (b) / human endeavour and achievement . (c) / No error (d)Direction: Each item in this section has a sentence with three underlined parts labelled (a), (b) and (c) Read each sentence to determine whether there is an error in any underlined part and indicate your response in the Answer Sheet against the corresponding letter, i.e., (a) or (b) or (c). If you find no error, your response should be indicated as (d).
The principal of the school (a) / stressed the need for discipline (b) / amongst the students. (c) / No error (d)
