SSC Notes / General English / Chapter 16
Chapter 16 of 23

Error Spotting (Basic to Advanced Rules)

A consolidated checklist of every grammar rule from Chapters 1-15, organised as the systematic scan sequence used to spot errors fast.

📖 ~15 min read 🔤 SSC General English

Introduction

Error Spotting asks you to identify which underlined part of a sentence (if any) contains a grammatical error. It doesn't test new rules — it tests whether you can quickly recognise violations of the rules already covered in Chapters 1-15. This chapter is your consolidated scanning checklist.

The Systematic Scan Sequence

Scan OrderCheck ForChapter Reference
1. Subject-Verb AgreementSingular/plural mismatch, ignoring phrases between subject and verbCh. 6
2. Tense ConsistencyTense shifts that don't make logical sense within the sentenceCh. 5
3. Pronoun ErrorsWrong case (I/me), pronoun-antecedent mismatch, missing reflexiveCh. 3
4. Preposition ErrorsWrong fixed preposition pairing (married to, good at)Ch. 10
5. Article ErrorsMissing/wrong a-an-the, unnecessary article with uncountable nounsCh. 7
6. Adjective/Adverb ConfusionAdjective used where an adverb is needed (or vice versa)Ch. 8-9
7. Conjunction PairingMismatched correlative pairs, redundant double conjunctionsCh. 11
8. Modal + Base Verb RuleModal followed by "-s/-ed" or "to"Ch. 4

Top 10 Most Frequently Tested Errors

#Error PatternIncorrectCorrect
1Uncountable noun pluralisedinformationsinformation
2Ignoring the true subject (phrase in between)The box of sweets are hereThe box of sweets is here
3Each/every treated as pluralEach of them haveEach of them has
4Double comparativemore tallertaller
5Modal + "to"must to gomust go
6Wrong preposition pairingmarried withmarried to
7Adjective instead of adverbsings beautifulsings beautifully
8Mismatched correlativesneither...orneither...nor
9Wrong pronoun case after prepositionbetween you and Ibetween you and me
10"If" clause with will/wouldIf I would winIf I won
Q. Spot the error: "Neither of the two boys / have completed / their homework / on time."
"Neither" is always singular, regardless of "of the two boys"
Error in part 2: should be "has completed," not "have completed"
Q. Spot the error: "She is one of the best singer / who has / performed / in this competition."
"One of the [plural noun]" requires a plural noun — should be "singers"
Error in part 1: "one of the best singer" should be "one of the best singers"

"No Error" Option — Don't Force a Mistake

💡 Exam Tip: If, after scanning through the full checklist, no part of the sentence violates any rule, confidently select "No Error" — don't second-guess a grammatically correct sentence just because it "feels odd" stylistically.
✅ Practice Focus: The 8-point systematic scan sequence (SVA → tense → pronoun → preposition → article → adj/adv → conjunction → modal) · Top 10 highest-frequency SSC error patterns memorised · Confidence to select "No Error" when genuinely correct.

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