# Error Spotting and Sentence Improvement — A Checklist That Works

Source: https://skills101.in/learn/verbal/error-spotting — Skills101 free tutorial (Verbal Ability (English)). Updated 2026-11-09.

"Spot the error" and "improve the sentence" questions combine everything from the earlier lessons. Instead of reading and "feeling" the error, run a **checklist**.

![A sentence split into subject, verb and object: find the verb and its subject first — most errors are around them](https://skills101.in/learn-img/verbal/sentence-parts.svg)

## The 7-point checklist

1. **Subject–verb agreement** — is the verb singular/plural to match the real subject?
2. **Tense** — do the time words match the verb? Any "have seen … yesterday"?
3. **Articles** — a/an by sound; "the" where something is specific.
4. **Prepositions** — fixed pairs (discuss ∅, married to, senior to, prefer … to).
5. **Pronouns** — right case (me/I, him/he) and agreement ("Everyone … **his or her**").
6. **Comparisons** — "more better" ✗, "than" vs "to", comparing like with like.
7. **Word choice** — commonly confused words (affect/effect, lose/loose, fewer/less).

## 10 worked examples

| # | Sentence | Error → fix | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Each of the players **have** a kit. | → **has** | each = singular |
| 2 | I **have met** him last week. | → **met** | no present perfect with "last week" |
| 3 | She is **a** honest person. | → **an** | vowel sound |
| 4 | He is senior **than** me. | → **to** | senior to |
| 5 | Between you and **I**, the plan failed. | → **me** | object after a preposition |
| 6 | This laptop is **more faster** than mine. | → **faster** | no double comparative |
| 7 | **Less** people came this year. | → **Fewer** | fewer for countable nouns |
| 8 | The climate of Shimla is better than Delhi. | → **than that of** Delhi | compare climate with climate |
| 9 | Hardly had I reached **than** it rained. | → **when** | hardly … when; no sooner … than |
| 10 | He did not **went** to college. | → **go** | did + base verb |

## Commonly confused words

| Word | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| affect / effect | verb / noun | Stress **affects** sleep; it has an **effect** on sleep. |
| lose / loose | misplace / not tight | Don't **lose** your ID; the belt is **loose**. |
| fewer / less | countable / uncountable | **fewer** bugs, **less** time |
| its / it's | belongs to it / it is | The app updated **its** icon; **it's** fast. |
| advice / advise | noun / verb | Take my **advice**; I **advise** you. |
| principal / principle | head of school / rule | the **principal**; a basic **principle** |

## Sentence improvement

These questions underline a part and give replacements (often with "No improvement"). Apply the same checklist to the underlined part only, and choose **"No improvement"** confidently when nothing is wrong — it is the right answer more often than students think.

## Common mistakes

- Reading quickly and "feeling" the answer instead of checking each point.
- Ignoring the possibility of "No error".
- Missing errors in comparisons (comparing climate with a city).

## Quick recap

- Run the 7-point checklist: agreement, tense, article, preposition, pronoun, comparison, word choice.
- Learn the confused-words table.
- "No error / No improvement" is a real option — trust your checklist.


Practice quiz and free certificate: https://skills101.in/learn/verbal/error-spotting