Good grammar is quiet: when it's right, nobody notices; when it's wrong, everybody does. On the Civil Service Exam, grammar and sentence-correction questions ask you to catch and fix the errors that trip up even fluent speakers — the mismatched verb, the dangling phrase, the comma doing a job too big for it. The reassuring truth is that a small set of error types accounts for the vast majority of these questions. Learn to spot those, and you'll fix sentences quickly and confidently — on the exam and in your own writing.
Grammar and sentence-correction questions ask you to identify an error in a sentence, choose the correct version, or fill a blank with the right verb form. Rather than testing obscure rules, they concentrate on a handful of high-frequency error types: subject-verb agreement, verb tense, pronoun use, parallel structure, modifiers, and punctuation between clauses.
On the Civil Service Exam, these items are a substantial part of the Verbal section, and the skill also powers Paragraph Organization and clear official writing. Because the same error types repeat, targeted practice pays off far more than trying to review "all of grammar."
The difficulty is intermediate. Many errors sound fine because they mirror casual speech, so the exam rewards a reader who checks the structure deliberately — matching each verb to its true subject, each pronoun to its antecedent, and each clause to correct punctuation. This lesson gives you that checklist.
After completing this lesson you will be able to:
You should be comfortable with:
A quick refresher on the foundation: a clause has a subject and a verb. An independent clause expresses a complete thought and could stand alone as a sentence ("The rain stopped"). A dependent clause cannot ("when the rain stopped"). Much of grammar — especially punctuation between clauses — depends on telling these apart. Keep the idea of "complete thought vs. incomplete" in mind throughout.
Correct grammar is a daily, career-long asset:
The exam tests grammar because clear writing is a core workplace skill — and errors have real consequences.
We'll cover the high-frequency error types in the order they most often appear.
The verb must match the subject in number (singular/plural), even when words come between them.
Incorrect: "The list of items are on the table." (The subject is "list" — singular — not "items.") Correct: "The list of items is on the table."
The trick is that a phrase like "of items" sits between the subject and verb to lure you into matching the nearer noun. Find the true subject and ignore the in-between words.
Trickier cases:
Analogy: Think of the subject and verb as dance partners who must match steps. Distracting words in between are other dancers on the floor — don't accidentally match your partner's steps to a stranger's.
Match the verb to the subject and to the time signal in the sentence.
Time-clue words tell you the tense: "every day" → present habit; "at the moment/now" → continuous; "yesterday/last week" → past.
Tense consistency: don't shift tense mid-sentence without reason.
Incorrect: "She walked to the store and buys milk." (past then present) Correct: "She walked to the store and bought milk."
A pronoun must match its antecedent in number and be clear about what it refers to.
Number: "Each employee must submit his or her report" (formal writing treats the singular "each" as singular). Ambiguous: "Maria told Sarah that she passed." (Who passed — Maria or Sarah?) Rewrite to make it clear.
Also mind case: use the subject pronoun (I, he, she, we, they) for the doer, and the object pronoun (me, him, her, us, them) for the receiver. "Between you and me" (object of "between"), not "between you and I."
Items in a list or comparison should share the same grammatical form.
Incorrect: "She enjoys reading, to write, and painting." (mixes -ing forms with an infinitive) Correct: "She enjoys reading, writing, and painting."
The moment you write a series, make every item the same shape — all -ing words, or all nouns, or all infinitives.
A descriptive phrase should sit next to the word it describes.
Misplaced: "Running down the street, the bus was missed by John." (implies the bus was running) Correct: "Running down the street, John missed the bus."
Dangling: "After finishing the report, the printer broke." (the printer didn't finish the report) Correct: "After finishing the report, I found that the printer broke."
Whenever a sentence starts with an -ing or -ed phrase, the thing right after the comma must be the one doing that action.
A comma splice joins two complete sentences with only a comma — too weak on its own. A run-on joins them with nothing at all.
Incorrect (splice): "The rain stopped, we went outside." Fix options: add a conjunction — "The rain stopped, so we went outside"; use a semicolon — "The rain stopped**;** we went outside"; or make two sentences — "The rain stopped. We went outside."
The rule: two independent clauses need a conjunction (and, but, so, or…) with the comma, or a semicolon, or a period.
The exam loves near-twins:
Many errors mirror everyday speech, so they sound correct. "The list of items are…" sounds acceptable but is wrong. Train yourself to check the structure — subject-verb match, pronoun reference, clause punctuation — rather than trusting your ear alone.
With the checklist built, let's picture, tabulate, and drill.
Grammar runs on rules rather than formulas:
| Rule | Correct form |
|---|---|
| Subject-verb agreement | verb matches the true subject's number |
| Each/every/either/neither | singular verb |
| Neither…nor / either…or | verb agrees with the nearer noun |
| Third-person present | add -s/-es (he walks) |
| Tense consistency | keep the same tense unless time changes |
| Pronoun case | subject (I/he) does; object (me/him) receives |
| Parallel structure | all list items share one form |
| Modifier placement | next to the word it describes |
| Two clauses | comma + conjunction, semicolon, or period |
| When you see… | Check for… |
|---|---|
| a phrase between subject and verb | subject-verb agreement (ignore the phrase) |
| "each," "every," "neither," "either" | singular verb |
| a blank with a time word ("every day," "now," "yesterday") | the matching tense |
| a pronoun far from its noun | clear, matching reference |
| a list (A, B, and C) | parallel structure |
| an opening -ing/-ed phrase + comma | the right noun right after the comma |
| two complete thoughts joined by a comma | comma splice — fix the join |
| its/it's, their/there, fewer/less, who/whom | the correct twin |
Step 1 — Find the subject and verb, ignoring any words between them, and check agreement. ↓ Step 2 — Check the verb tense against the sentence's time clues and keep it consistent. ↓ Step 3 — Trace each pronoun to a clear, number-matching antecedent. ↓ Step 4 — Scan lists for parallel structure and opening phrases for correct modifier placement. ↓ Step 5 — Check clause punctuation (no bare comma between two complete thoughts) and confused-word pairs.
Why Step 1 matters most: subject-verb agreement is both the most common error and the most disguised (by in-between phrases). Always locate the true subject first.
Format: identify the correct sentence or the needed correction.
Example 1. Which is correct: (a) "The box of chocolates are on the table." (b) "The box of chocolates is on the table." Solution: (b). The subject is "box" (singular); "of chocolates" is a distractor. Difficulty: ★☆☆☆☆
Example 2. Fill in: "He ___ to the gym every morning." (go / goes) Solution: goes — third-person singular adds -s. Difficulty: ★☆☆☆☆
Example 3 (each = singular). Correct the verb: "Each of the players ___ a uniform." (have / has) Solution: has — "each" is always singular. Difficulty: ★★☆☆☆
Example 4 (neither…nor). Choose the verb: "Neither the teacher nor the students ___ ready." (was / were) Solution: were — the verb agrees with the nearer noun, "students." Difficulty: ★★★☆☆
Example 5 (parallelism). Fix: "The job requires typing, filing, and to answer calls." Solution: "The job requires typing, filing, and answering calls." (all -ing forms) Difficulty: ★★★☆☆
Example 6 (misplaced modifier). Fix: "Covered in mud, Ana washed the dog." Thinking: The opening phrase should describe the muddy one — the dog, not Ana. Solution: "Ana washed the dog, which was covered in mud." (or "Covered in mud, the dog was washed by Ana.") Difficulty: ★★★★☆
Example 7 (comma splice). Fix: "The meeting ended early, everyone went home." Solution: "The meeting ended early, so everyone went home." (or a semicolon/period.) Difficulty: ★★★☆☆
Example 8 (pronoun case). Choose: "The prize was shared between Ben and ___." (I / me) Solution: me — object of "between." Difficulty: ★★★☆☆
Example 9 (agreement with a collective noun). Choose: "The committee ___ reached a decision." (have / has) Solution: has — the committee acts as one unit here. Difficulty: ★★★★☆
Example 10 (tense consistency). Fix: "He opened the door and sees a stranger." Solution: "He opened the door and saw a stranger." (keep the past tense) Difficulty: ★★★☆☆
Example 11 (confused words). Choose: "The new rule will ___ everyone's schedule." (affect / effect) Solution: affect — a verb meaning "to influence." ("Effect" is the noun result.) Difficulty: ★★★★☆
Example 12 (dangling modifier). Fix: "While driving to work, the radio suddenly stopped." Thinking: The radio wasn't driving; name the driver. Solution: "While driving to work, I noticed the radio suddenly stopped." (or "While I was driving to work, the radio suddenly stopped.") Difficulty: ★★★★★
Choose the correct option or the needed fix.
Grammar and sentence correction reward spotting a small set of repeat errors. Match each verb to its true subject (ignoring in-between phrases), remembering that each/every/either/neither are singular and neither…nor agrees with the nearer noun. Keep tense consistent and matched to time clues; give every pronoun a clear, number-matching antecedent and the right case. Keep lists parallel, place modifiers next to what they describe, and never join two complete thoughts with a bare comma (use a conjunction, semicolon, or period). Master the twin words (its/it's, affect/effect, fewer/less, who/whom). Above all, check the structure rather than trusting your ear — that's how you catch the errors that "sound fine."
| Error type | Fix |
|---|---|
| Subject-verb | match the true subject |
| Each/every/either/neither | singular verb |
| Neither…nor | agree with nearer noun |
| Tense | keep consistent; match time clue |
| Pronoun | clear antecedent; right case |
| Parallelism | same form for all list items |
| Modifier | beside the word it describes |
| Comma splice | + conjunction / semicolon / period |
| Twins | its/it's, their/there/they're, affect/effect, fewer/less, who/whom |
How do I find the subject when there are many words? Ignore any phrase starting with "of," "with," "along with," etc., between the subject and verb. The subject is the main noun the sentence is really about ("the list of items").
Why is "Each of them have" wrong? "Each" is grammatically singular, so it takes a singular verb: "Each of them has." The plural "them" is a distractor.
When do I use a semicolon? To join two complete, closely related sentences without a conjunction: "The rain stopped; we went outside." Both sides must be able to stand alone.
How do I remember affect vs. effect? "Affect" is usually a verb (an Action); "effect" is usually a noun (the End result). "The rain will affect the game; the effect was a delay."
What's a dangling modifier? An opening descriptive phrase whose real subject is missing or misplaced, so it seems to describe the wrong thing: "While driving, the radio stopped" (the radio wasn't driving). Name the doer right after the comma.
Tick them all and grammar becomes a quick, dependable strength — and your professional writing will read as clean and competent.
Put it to the test with 2,175 practice questions on this topic.