CDS English · Spotting Errors
Word choice and word form
Errors where the grammar looks fine but one word is wrong: a look-alike (besides for beside), a near-synonym with the wrong sense (pleasant for pleasing), or the right word in the wrong form (lowed for low).
Why this matters
Word-choice errors appear in CDS spotting-errors items from 2017 to 2025, and the 2025 (I) paper had several. They are the hardest errors to see, because every part of the sentence is grammatical. You find them only by reading for meaning and asking whether each word says exactly what the sentence needs.
Concept 1 of 3: Look-alike and sound-alike words
English has many pairs of words that look or sound almost the same but mean different things: beside and besides, through and thorough, differ and defer. Every one of them is a real word, so a spell-checker would pass the sentence. Only the meaning shows the error.
Definition
How to handle them:
- A homophone sounds like another word (were / where, stokes / strokes). A look-alike is spelt almost the same (abatement / abetment, iniquitous / inequitable).
- For each content word, ask: does this word mean exactly what the sentence is about? A college next to a lake is beside it; 'besides' means 'in addition to'.
- If the meaning is wrong, think of the near-twin. The intended word is nearly always one or two letters away.
- Learn the verb families that look alike: lie (rest) – lay – lain; lay (put down) – laid – laid; lie (say something false) – lied – lied.
| Word in the paper | Right word | Meaning of each | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| is besides the lake | beside | beside = next to; besides = in addition to | 2017 (II)Q |
| working hardly | hard | hard = with effort; hardly = almost not | 2017 (I) |
| laid in the shade | lay | lay = past of lie (rest); laid = past of lay (put) | 2017 (I)Q |
| hardly won liberty | hard-won | hard-won = gained with great effort; hardly = scarcely | 2019 (I)Q |
| scrolling thorough | through | through = from one end to the other; thorough = complete, careful | 2020 (I)Q |
| a case were | where | where = in which place or case; were = past of 'are' | 2020 (I)Q |
| LIC was found | founded | found, founded, founded = establish; found = past of find | 2022 (I)Q |
| defers from | differs | differ from = be unlike; defer = put off, or give way | 2023 (I)Q |
| Trucked neatly under the clothes | Tucked | tuck = push into a snug place; truck = carry by lorry | 2023 (II)Q |
| abatement to the crime | abetment | abetment = helping someone commit a crime; abatement = reduction | 2025 (I)Q |
| the imperial stokes he played | strokes | stroke = a shot in cricket; stoke = feed a fire | 2025 (I)Q |
| distribution was iniquitous | inequitable | inequitable = unfair, unequal; iniquitous = wicked | 2025 (I)Q |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (II) 2017 — English · Q90Easy
Example 1 · Spotting Errors · Word Choice and Word Form
Directions: find error in part a, b or c; else no error
My college is besides the lake.
Every look-alike is a real word
'Stokes', 'were', 'found' and 'thorough' are all correct spellings of real words, so the sentence looks clean. Read each content word for meaning, not for spelling.
Hard and hardly mean opposite things
'She works hard' means with great effort. 'She hardly works' means she almost does not work. 'Hardly' is not the adverb of 'hard'; 'hard' is its own adverb.
Lie, lay and lied
To rest: lie – lay – lain ('He lay under a tree'). To put something down: lay – laid – laid ('She laid the book down'). To tell a falsehood: lie – lied – lied. A person who rested 'laid' under a tree is wrong.
Found and founded
'Found' is also a verb meaning 'establish': found – founded – founded. An institution 'was founded in 1956'. 'Was found' means somebody discovered it.
Concept 2 of 3: Right idea, wrong word
Here the word is close to the right meaning but not exact. Results can be pleasing, but not pleasant. A man who started a company is its founding director, not its foundational one. Each word has its own connotation: the feeling and the kind of situation it belongs to.
Definition
How to check:
- Say in your own words what the sentence wants to say.
- Take the doubtful word and give its exact meaning. If the two do not match, the word is wrong, even if it is close.
- Watch for words that share a root but not a use: form (shape) and formation (the process of forming); founding (who started it) and foundational (forming a base).
- Watch for fixed partners: you defeat a purpose, you explore opportunities, you let someone do something.
| Word in the paper | Right word | Why | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| test results were pleasant | pleasing | pleasant = enjoyable (a pleasant day); pleasing = satisfying (pleasing results) | 2018 (I)Q |
| will not leave you give blood | let | let + base verb = allow; leave = go away from | 2018 (I) |
| the form of the Great Lakes was slow | formation | formation = the process; form = the shape | 2018 (I)Q |
| the foundational director | founding | founding = who helped start it; foundational = forming a base | 2019 (I)Q |
| Anywhere in the world | Everywhere | everywhere = in every place (a general truth); anywhere = in any one place | 2019 (I) |
| expunging revenue opportunities | exploring | explore = look into; expunge = erase | 2023 (II)Q |
| an uninterested participant | a disinterested | disinterested = neutral, with nothing to gain; uninterested = not interested | 2024 (II) |
| defied the purpose | defeated | defeat the purpose = work against it; defy = openly refuse to obey | 2025 (I)Q |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2019 · CDS (I) 2019 — English · Q87Moderate
Example 2 · Spotting Errors · Word Choice and Word Form
Directions: find error in underlined part or No error
The man is the foundational director of this company.
Disinterested does not mean bored
Disinterested = neutral, with nothing to gain (a disinterested judge). Uninterested = not interested, bored. Someone who claims to be neutral in a deal claims to be disinterested.
The wrong word can be perfectly grammatical
'The university is expunging revenue opportunities' has a correct subject, verb and object. It is wrong only because it makes no sense. If every grammar check passes, read the sentence once more for meaning before choosing No error.
A shape is not a process
A process can be slow; a shape cannot. When a sentence talks about how something happened over time, it needs the process noun: formation, construction, development.
Concept 3 of 3: Wrong word form: what part of speech the slot needs
Sometimes the word is right but its form is wrong: a verb where a noun should be, an -ed where none belongs, a plural of a word that has no plural. Every slot in a sentence needs one part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, adverb). The words around the slot tell you which one.
Definition
Read the neighbours of the slot:
- After very / extremely / too and a linking verb (is, was, seems): an adjective. 'The fee is too high.'
- After an adjective, or after a preposition: a noun. 'attractive returns', 'people in need'.
- After a modal (can, could, will, must, should, may): the base verb. 'can succeed', never 'can succeeded'.
- In a list joined by 'and', every item has the same form: 'safety, liquidity and returns' (three nouns).
Two more checks:
- An uncountable noun has no plural: harmony, advice, information, furniture, equipment.
- A fixed phrase keeps its exact form: a great deal of, in need, at the instance of.
Worked example
Find the part with the error. (a) The new bridge (b) has made travel (c) more safety for villagers. (d) No error
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2020 · CDS (I) 2020 — English · Q20Moderate
Example 3 · Spotting Errors · Word Choice and Word Form
Directions: find the part with the error or No error
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, female literacy was extremely lowed in comparison to male literacy.
Not every -ed word is an adjective
Some adjectives end in -ed (tired, excited, crowded). Most do not: 'low', 'high', 'deep' and 'strong' never take -ed. If the -ed form would make a verb ('lowered'), check whether the sentence wants an action or a description.
Uncountable nouns have no plural
'Harmonies', 'advices', 'informations' and 'furnitures' are errors. Use the singular, with 'much', 'some' or 'a piece of' if you need to count.
A modal takes the base verb, always
After can, could, will, would, shall, should, may, might and must, the verb has no -s, no -ed and no -ing: 'can succeed', 'must go', 'should know'.
Fixed phrases keep their exact form
It is 'a great deal of', not 'a great dealing of'; 'people in need', not 'in needed'. Changing one letter of a fixed phrase is an error, even when the meaning still comes through.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (2)
Look-alike and sound-alike words12 rows
| Word in the paper | Right word | Meaning of each | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| is besides the lake | beside | beside = next to; besides = in addition to | 2017 (II)Q |
| working hardly | hard | hard = with effort; hardly = almost not | 2017 (I) |
| laid in the shade | lay | lay = past of lie (rest); laid = past of lay (put) | 2017 (I)Q |
| hardly won liberty | hard-won | hard-won = gained with great effort; hardly = scarcely | 2019 (I)Q |
| scrolling thorough | through | through = from one end to the other; thorough = complete, careful | 2020 (I)Q |
| a case were | where | where = in which place or case; were = past of 'are' | 2020 (I)Q |
| LIC was found | founded | found, founded, founded = establish; found = past of find | 2022 (I)Q |
| defers from | differs | differ from = be unlike; defer = put off, or give way | 2023 (I)Q |
| Trucked neatly under the clothes | Tucked | tuck = push into a snug place; truck = carry by lorry | 2023 (II)Q |
| abatement to the crime | abetment | abetment = helping someone commit a crime; abatement = reduction | 2025 (I)Q |
| the imperial stokes he played | strokes | stroke = a shot in cricket; stoke = feed a fire | 2025 (I)Q |
| distribution was iniquitous | inequitable | inequitable = unfair, unequal; iniquitous = wicked | 2025 (I)Q |
Right idea, wrong word8 rows
| Word in the paper | Right word | Why | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| test results were pleasant | pleasing | pleasant = enjoyable (a pleasant day); pleasing = satisfying (pleasing results) | 2018 (I)Q |
| will not leave you give blood | let | let + base verb = allow; leave = go away from | 2018 (I) |
| the form of the Great Lakes was slow | formation | formation = the process; form = the shape | 2018 (I)Q |
| the foundational director | founding | founding = who helped start it; foundational = forming a base | 2019 (I)Q |
| Anywhere in the world | Everywhere | everywhere = in every place (a general truth); anywhere = in any one place | 2019 (I) |
| expunging revenue opportunities | exploring | explore = look into; expunge = erase | 2023 (II)Q |
| an uninterested participant | a disinterested | disinterested = neutral, with nothing to gain; uninterested = not interested | 2024 (II) |
| defied the purpose | defeated | defeat the purpose = work against it; defy = openly refuse to obey | 2025 (I)Q |
Watch out for (11)
- Every look-alike is a real word→ Look-alike and sound-alike words
- Hard and hardly mean opposite things→ Look-alike and sound-alike words
- Lie, lay and lied→ Look-alike and sound-alike words
- Found and founded→ Look-alike and sound-alike words
- Disinterested does not mean bored→ Right idea, wrong word
- The wrong word can be perfectly grammatical→ Right idea, wrong word
- A shape is not a process→ Right idea, wrong word
- Not every -ed word is an adjective→ Wrong word form: what part of speech the slot needs
- Uncountable nouns have no plural→ Wrong word form: what part of speech the slot needs
- A modal takes the base verb, always→ Wrong word form: what part of speech the slot needs
- Fixed phrases keep their exact form→ Wrong word form: what part of speech the slot needs
Test yourself on Spotting Errors
25 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 25 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.