Sentence Correction

🟢 Lite — Quick Review (1h–1d)

Rapid summary for last-minute revision before your exam.

Sentence Correction — Key Facts for MDCAT

Sentence correction questions test your ability to identify and fix grammatical errors. In MDCAT, questions typically present a sentence with four underlined options (A, B, C, D). If no option is correct, choose “No error.”

Common Error Types:

1. Subject-Verb Agreement:

   • Each of the boys has passed. (Each = singular)
   • Neither the teacher NOR the students were present. (Proximity rule — verb agrees with closer subject)
   • Everyone is here. (Everyone = singular)
   • The team are playing well. (British English allows plural for team; US English singular — choose based on MDCAT convention)

2. Verb Tense Errors:

   • She has gone to Lahore yesterday. ✗ → went ✗
   • By the time I arrived, she had left. ✓ (Past Perfect for action completed before another past action)
   • If I had money, I would buy a car. (Second conditional — past simple in if-clause)

3. Pronoun Errors:

   • Between you and I ✗ → me ✗ (Object pronoun after preposition)
   • This is her book. ✓ (Possessive pronoun — no apostrophe)
   • Who is calling? ✗ → Whom is calling? ✗ (Whom = object — after preposition “to whom”)
   • The committee has submitted its report. (Collective noun — singular in US English)

4. Article Errors:

   • She is a honest girl. ✗ → an honest ✗ (Vowel sound after article)
   • He is the best student in the class. ✓ (Superlative with “in” or “of”)
   • An European country. ✗ → A European ✗ (“yoo-ROH-pee-an” — consonant sound)

⚡ Exam tip: For sentence correction, read the entire sentence aloud mentally and identify what “sounds wrong.” If nothing sounds wrong, check subject-verb agreement and tense consistency first. In MDCAT Pakistan, British English conventions generally apply (e.g., collective nouns may take plural verbs in some contexts).

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🟡 Standard — Regular Study (2d–2mo)

Standard content for students who want genuine understanding.

Sentence Correction — Complete Study Guide

Run-On Sentences and Comma Splices:

• Run-on: Two independent clauses joined without punctuation. “I love reading I go to the library daily.”
• Comma splice: Two independent clauses joined ONLY by a comma. “I love reading, I go to the library daily.”
• Fixes: Use semicolon; use comma + conjunction (and/but/or/nor/for/yet/so); make two separate sentences; use subordinating conjunction

Parallel Structure (Faulty Parallelism): Elements in a series should be grammatically parallel:

• ✗ She likes reading and to write. → ✓ reading and writing.
• ✗ The job requires organised, efficiency, and to be punctual. → ✓ organisation, efficiency, and punctuality.
• ✓ The committee discussed whether to reduce the budget and how to allocate the savings.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers:

• ✗ Walking to school, the rain surprised me. → ✓ Walking to school, I was surprised by the rain.
• ✗ She served sandwiches to the guests on paper plates. (ambiguous — guests on plates?) → ✓ She served on paper plates sandwiches to the guests.
• Limiting modifiers (almost, only, just, nearly) should be placed directly before the word they modify: ✗ He only ate vegetables → ✓ He ate only vegetables (or vegetables only).

Preposition Errors:

• ✗ He objected to with the plan → ✓ objected to the plan
• ✗ He is good in mathematics → ✓ at mathematics
• ✗ She married with John → ✓ married John / married to John
• Different from/to/than: British English allows “different to/than”; American English prefers “different from” — MDCAT generally uses “different from.”

Comparative and Superlative Errors:

• ✗ She is more smarter than him → ✓ smarter than he (or her)
• ✗ He is the best among the two → ✓ better of the two (best is for 3+)
• ✗ She is most beautiful → ✓ more beautiful (two-syllable adjectives can use either; “most” for 3+)
• ✓ This is the most beautiful view I have ever seen.

Word Choice Errors (Common in MDCAT):

Wrong	Correct	Reason
He is good in maths	good at maths	Fixed collocation
I am interested to learn	in learning	Fixed collocation
She advised him to go	She advised that he go (subjunctive)	After “advise,” use subjunctive
He persuaded me to buy	He suggested that I buy	Persuade ≠ suggest

Conditional Sentence Errors:

• ✗ If I would have known → ✓ If I had known (Second conditional: past simple in if-clause)
• ✗ If I will have money → ✓ If I have money (First conditional: present simple in if-clause)

⚡ Common mistakes: Forgetting that prepositions are NOT interchangeable — each verb has specific prepositions it takes (good AT something, interested IN something). Confusing “than” (comparison) with “then” (time sequence). Using “who” instead of “whom” when the pronoun is the object of the verb or preposition.

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🔴 Extended — Deep Study (3mo+)

Comprehensive coverage for students on a longer study timeline.

Sentence Correction — Advanced Notes

Subjunctive Mood: The subjunctive uses the base form of the verb (without -s in third person) to express wishes, demands, suggestions, hypothetical situations.

• She suggested that he be promoted. (NOT “is”)
• It is essential that she arrive on time. (NOT “arrives”)
• I wish I were taller. (NOT “was”)
• If I were rich, I would travel. (Second conditional — subjunctive “were” used)

shall vs will:

• In formal British English, “shall” is used with first person for future (I shall, we shall)
• “Will” expresses determination or willingness
• In modern usage, will is commonly used for all persons — this is generally accepted in MDCAT
• But: “I shall return” = firm promise; “I will return” = simple future

The -ing Form vs Infinitive After Verbs:

Verbs that take V-ing (gerund): Enjoy, avoid, mind, suggest, consider, finish, stop, keep, miss, risk, practice, imagine, deny, admit

• ✗ I enjoy to read → ✓ reading

Verbs that take to + V1 (infinitive): Decide, promise, refuse, agree, hope, plan, offer, seem, appear, want, wish, expect, would like/like to

• ✗ I decided going → ✓ to go

Verbs that take both (different meanings):

Verb	V-ing	to + V1
Remember	Recall an action (past)	Future intention
Stop	Cease an action	Interrupt to do something else
Try	Make an attempt (regardless of outcome)	Attempt with effort
Go on	Continue current action	Begin new action
Forget	Did not recall	Did not remember to do
Regret	Past action	Polite expression before information

Absolute Construction: A noun + participle phrase that modifies the whole sentence. Grammatically independent.

• ✗ Weather permitting, we will go. (Weather = noun; permitting = participle)
• ✗ Judging from his expression, he is angry.
• ✗ Given the circumstances, we did well.

** cleft Sentences (Emphatic Structure):**

• It was John who solved the problem. (NOT “who is solving”)
• It is hard work that I need. (NOT “what I need”)
• It was because he was late that he missed the train. (NOT “why he missed”)

Double Negatives: ✗ I don’t have nothing → ✓ I don’t have anything / I have nothing ✗ She hardly never → ✓ She hardly ever / She never

Note: Some dialects use double negatives for emphasis, but standard English treats this as grammatically incorrect.

Ellipsis and Substitution: Avoid repetition by using ellipsis (…) or substitution words:

• John likes classical music and Mary does too / likes it too / does so too
• ✗ John likes classical music and so Mary does. → ✓ John likes classical music and so does Mary.
• She said she would come, but I don’t think she will. (NOT “she won’t”)

Idiomatic Sentence Structures:

Correct	Incorrect	Notes
He is accused of stealing	accused for stealing
He is married to Sarah	married with Sarah
I agree to the plan	agree with the plan (when about an idea)
I differ from his opinion	differ with his opinion (when disagreeing)
The cause of the problem	cause for the problem
I am proud of my son	proud for my son (for someone’s benefit)

MDCAT Question Patterns: MDCAT Pakistan sentence correction questions typically present one sentence with four underlined options (A, B, C, D). Common errors tested: (1) subject-verb agreement, (2) verb tense and sequence, (3) pronoun case and reference, (4) article usage, (5) parallelism, (6) comparative forms, (7) preposition collocations, (8) word choice. 5–8 questions per paper. High-frequency errors: subject-verb agreement with collective nouns and “each/every,” tense in if-clauses, and who/whom distinction.

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