Answer to Question #219122 in English for Fira

Question

Find any grammatical errors in the following examples and explain why.

a. The most impressive monument of Egypt's greatness, and one of the wonders of the world, are the pyramids.

b. They produced various medicines, the power of which were widely advertised.

c. The sharing which the two ministers made of their responsibilities were not successful.

d. The practical results of recognizing this fault was as follows.

e. The services of the Church of England states this to be a truth.

f All special rights of voting in the election was abolished.

g. One of major factors affecting the value of dismonds are their weight.

h. Each of these stones have to be cut and polished.

i. Most of her free time are spent attending concerts and plays or visiting museums and art galleries.

Answer 1

a. The most impressive monument of Egypt's greatness, and one of the wonders of the world, are the pyramids. - subject verb agreement error. The linking verb "are" has been pluralized. It refers to the singular subject noun "monument" and should therefore be in singular form "is". The correct sentence should be: The most impressive monument of Egypt's greatness, and one of the wonders of the world, is the pyramids.

b. They produced various medicines, the power of which were widely advertised. - subject verb agreement problems. The verb after which "were" has been pluralized. The verb reflects the subject noun "power" which is in singular form and should therefore also be in singular form "was". The correct sentence should be: They produced various medicines, the power of which was widely advertised.

c. The sharing which the two ministers made of their responsibilities were not successful. - subject verb agreement problem. The verb "were" is in plural form whereas it links a noun "sharing" that is in singular form. The correct sentence should be: The sharing which the two ministers made of their responsibilities was not successful

d. The practical results of recognizing this fault was as follows. - sentence fragment. The thought process of the sentence is incomplete.

e. The services of the Church of England states this to be a truth. - subject-verb agreement problem. The verb "states" is in singular form while the subject "services" takes a plural form. The correct sentence should be: The services of the Church of England state this to be a truth.

f. All special rights of voting in the election was abolished. - subject-verb agreement problems. The linking verb "was" takes singular form while the subject noun "rights" is in plural form. The correct sentence should be: All special rights of voting in the election were abolished.

g. One of major factors affecting the value of diamonds are their weight. -subject-verb agreement problems. The subject of the phrase is "one" which is in singular form while the linking verb "are" is in plural form. The correct sentence is: One of major factors affecting the value of diamonds is their weight.

h. Each of these stones have to be cut and polished. - subject verb agreement error. The subject in the noun phrase is "each" which is in singular form while the auxiliary verb "have" is in plural form. The correct sentence should be: Each of these stones has to be cut and polished.

i. Most of her free time are spent attending concerts and plays or visiting museums and art galleries. - subject verb agreement problems. The subject word "most" is used as singular with uncountable nouns such as "time" whereas the verb "are" is in plural. The correct sentence should be: Most of her free time is spent attending concerts and plays or visiting museums and art galleries.