Spotting Errors in English Made Easy for IBPS PO

English Language plays an important role in the IBPS PO exam. Among all the topics, Spotting Errors is one of the most common and high-scoring sections. It checks your grammar knowledge and understanding of sentence structure. If you are well-prepared, this topic can help you boost your overall score. In this article we will discuss Spotting Errors in English Made Easy for IBPS PO Exam.

Spotting Errors for IBPS PO

In this topic of the English Language Section in the IBPS PO Exam, a sentence is given, usually divided into four or five parts. One part may contain an error in grammar, tense, article, preposition, subject-verb agreement or other basic rules. You need to find the part that has the mistake. Sometimes, a sentence may be error free too.

Types of Errors Asked in IBPS PO

Understanding the types of errors commonly asked in the exam helps in smart preparation. Here are some types of errors asked in the IBPS PO Exam:-

Subject-Verb Agreement
Ensure the subject and verb agree in number and person.
Example: She go to school every day.
Correct: She goes to school every day.

Tenses
The verb tense must match the time reference in the sentence.
Example: I am going to Delhi yesterday.
Correct: I went to Delhi yesterday.

Articles and Determiners
Use of ‘a’, ‘an’, and ‘the’ must be correct.
Example: He is an honest man.

Prepositions
Incorrect prepositions can change the meaning of a sentence.
Example: She is good in English.
Correct: She is good at English.

Pronoun Errors
Pronouns should correctly refer to the subject or object.
Example: Everyone should do their work.
Correct: Everyone should do his or her work.

Adjective vs Adverb
Watch the correct usage of adjectives and adverbs.
Example: She sings beautiful.
Correct: She sings beautifully.

Conjunctions
Know how to connect clauses correctly using conjunctions.
Example: He is both intelligent and also hardworking.
Correct: He is both intelligent and hardworking.

Tips to Master Spotting Errors for IBPS PO

Read Grammar Rules Daily
Set aside 15 to 20 minutes each day to go through basic grammar rules. Focus on areas like tenses, subject-verb agreement, articles, prepositions, and conjunctions.

Practice from Previous Year Papers
Solving previous year papers helps you understand the pattern of questions and the frequently asked grammar areas. This also builds familiarity with the exam format and boosts your confidence. Try to solve at least 10 error spotting questions daily.

Eliminate Options
While attempting a question, read the sentence as a whole first. If a particular part of the sentence sounds  grammatically incorrect, mark it for further review. Use elimination by checking each part of the sentence against known grammar rules.

Read Newspapers and Editorials
Reading a good English newspaper every day improves your sentence construction and helps you learn grammar through real examples. Editorials, in particular, are rich in complex sentence structures.

Build a Grammar Notebook
Maintain a notebook where you write down important grammar rules along with 1 or 2 examples. You can also list out errors you made in practice sets with corrections. Reviewing this notebook regularly will strengthen your retention.

Take Online Mock Tests
Mock tests simulate the real exam experience. They help you build speed and accuracy under time pressure. After each test, analyze your mistakes, especially in error spotting, and revise the rules related to them.

Revise Regularly
No matter how much you study, revision is the key. Set one day in a week to revise all grammar rules and common errors. This helps in keeping the concepts fresh in your mind and reduces silly mistakes during the exam.