Parts of the following sentence are given as options. Identify the part that contains a grammatical error. If there is no error, choose ‘No error’.
During an hour-long power cut last night, / the small torch that Dadaji gave me / proved to be an useful gift.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → proved to be an useful gift
“A” or “an” depends on the first sound of the next word, not its first letter. “Useful” begins with the letter u, but it is said with a “yoo” sound. That is not a vowel sound, so it takes a. The part must say a useful gift.
Option 1: During an hour-long power cut last night, — No error. The h in “hour” is silent, so the word begins with a vowel sound and rightly takes “an”.
Option 2: the small torch that Dadaji gave me — No error.
Option 3: proved to be an useful gift — Error. “an” should be “a”.
Corrected: During an hour-long power cut last night, the small torch that Dadaji gave me proved to be a useful gift.