Which of phrases given below each sentence should replace the phrase printed in bold type to make the grammatically correct? If the sentence is correct as it is, mark 'E' as the answer.
Later he became unpopular because he tried to lord it on his followers.
Answer: C
It should read to lord it over.
Lord it over is the idiom, and the it is fixed - it cannot be dropped, and no other preposition will do. It means to behave domineeringly towards.
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The crops are dying; it must not had rained.
Answer: C
It should read must not have.
A deduction about the past uses must have plus the past participle - it must not have rained. Must had is impossible, since must is a modal and takes the bare infinitive.
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The courts are actively to safeguard the interests and the rights of the poor.
Answer: B
It should read have been actively safeguarding.
The original has no main verb at all - are actively to safeguard leaves the sentence hanging. The present perfect continuous supplies one and gives the sense of a course of action still going on.
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The drama had many scenes so humorous that it was hardly possible to keep a straight face.
Answer: E
No correction is required.
So ... that is the correct correlative pair, and hardly possible to keep uses the infinitive properly. Two of the alternatives introduce hardly impossible, which reverses the meaning by accident.
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Hardly does the sun rise when the stars disappeared.
Answer: B
It should read had the sun risen.
Hardly had X happened when Y is the fixed pattern, with the past perfect in the first clause and inversion after hardly. Risen is the participle the perfect requires; rose is the simple past.
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In the sentence below, a part is printed in bold. Choose the alternative that best replaces it. If no improvement is needed, choose ‘No correction required’.
The reason why he resigned is because he was unhappy with the transfer.
Answer: E
Correct answer: is that
The construction the reason…is because states the cause twice, since reason and because both express it. The correct form is the reason is that. So: The reason why he resigned is that he was unhappy with the transfer. The sentence can also simply be recast as He resigned because he was unhappy with the transfer, which is shorter and avoids the difficulty altogether. Is due to and is on account of fail for a different reason: both are followed by a noun phrase, not by a clause. His resignation was due to unhappiness with the transfer is correct English; due to he was unhappy is not. The same redundancy appears in return back, repeat again, revert back, join together and the reason why…is because, which piles three cause words into one sentence.
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In the sentence below, a part is printed in bold. Choose the alternative that best replaces it. If no improvement is needed, choose ‘No correction required’.
Between you and I, the plan is unlikely to succeed.
Answer: B
Correct answer: me
A pronoun following a preposition takes the objective case. Between is a preposition, so the correct form is between you and me. This is the classic over-correction in English. Speakers are told that you and I is right in you and I went - where the pair is the subject - and then apply it after prepositions, where it is wrong. The reliable test is to remove the other person and read what remains: nobody would say between I, which settles the case at once. The same test resolves let you and me and he invited my brother and me. Myself is reflexive and correct only when the subject and object are the same person, as in I hurt myself; it is not a genteel substitute for me. A related point: between is used of two, among of more than two - correct here, since only two people are involved.
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All the allegations levelled against him were found to be baseless.
Answer: E
No correction is required.
Allegations are levelled against a person - the past participle after were, and against as the preposition. Level with means to speak frankly, which is a different idiom entirely.
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In the sentence below, a part is printed in bold. Choose the alternative that best replaces it. If no improvement is needed, choose ‘No correction required’.
The manager, along with his team, have completed the audit successfully.
Answer: C
Correct answer: has completed
Along with is parenthetical and does not change the number of the subject. The subject is the manager, singular, so the verb is has completed. The commas around the phrase are a deliberate clue: material set off in that way can be lifted out without harming the sentence, and doing so leaves the manager has completed the audit. The phrases that behave this way form a set worth memorising: along with, as well as, together with, with, besides, in addition to, including, accompanied by and no less than. The contrast is with and, which genuinely creates a compound plural subject: the manager and his team have completed the audit. Were completed fails on a second count as well, since it is passive and would make the manager the thing completed.
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He hesitated to listen to what his brother was saying.
Answer: E
No correction is required.
Hesitate takes the infinitive - hesitated to listen. Every alternative either reverses the two verbs or puts one in a form the construction will not take.
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