Spot the error and choose the correct sentence.
He talks as if he is the King.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → He talks as if he were the King
"As if" with an unreal situation:
- "As if" and "as though" introduce a situation that is imaginary or contrary to fact.
- Such a clause takes the subjunctive "were" with every subject, in formal and examination English: "as if I were", "as if he were".
- This sentence: he is not the King, so "as if he is the King" should be "as if he were the King".
Example: She behaves as if she were the owner of the house.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: He talks like a King — Incorrect. It changes the meaning ("a King" instead of "the King") and does not correct the error in the "as if" clause.
Option 3: A King talks like him — Incorrect. It reverses the comparison: the King is now compared to him.
Option 4: He is talking in a Kingly way — Incorrect. It rewrites the sentence and changes the tense to the present continuous instead of correcting the error.