ENR07 — Choosing the Correct Sentence

📚 Chapter ENR07 · NDA English Level NDA Level

📌 What This Chapter Covers: “Choosing the Correct Sentence” appeared with 2–5 questions in NDA 1/2025 and NDA 1/2026. You are given four sentences; only ONE is grammatically correct. This format tests your ability to spot integrated errors — SVA, tense, articles, prepositions, modifier placement, and parallelism — all at once. It is the most comprehensive grammar question type in NDA English.

PART A — WHAT TO SCAN IN EACH SENTENCE

1. The 6-Error Checklist — Apply to Every Sentence

Errors 1–3: Structure

1. Subject-Verb Agreement: Find the true subject; ignore intervening phrases. “Along with / as well as / together with” = singular verb. “A number of” = plural. “The number of” = singular.
2. Tense Consistency: Is there a time signal (yesterday, since, just)? Does the sequence of tenses follow the main verb?
3. Article Errors: Is “a” used before a vowel sound? Is “the” used for superlatives, rivers, ranges? Any missing or extra article?

Errors 4–6: Usage

4. Preposition Errors: Superior/inferior/senior = “to” not “than.” Die “of” illness. “Along with” keeps the main subject singular.
5. Modifier Placement: The modifier must be immediately next to the word it modifies. “Only,” “even,” “almost” placement changes meaning.
6. Parallelism: Items in a list must be in the same grammatical form (all nouns, all gerunds, all infinitives, etc.).

2. Modifier Placement — A Key NDA Error Type

Rule: A modifier must be placed as close as possible to the word it modifies. A misplaced modifier changes or confuses the meaning. A dangling modifier has no clear word to modify at all.

✓ Correctly Placed

Only the captain signed the order. (no one else signed)
The captain only signed the order. (signed, did nothing else to it)
The captain signed only the order. (signed this one thing)
Walking along the road, he saw an aircraft. (he was walking)

✗ Misplaced / Dangling

~~Walking along the road, an aircraft was seen.~~ (aircraft can’t walk → dangling)
~~He almost drove his car for 4 hours.~~ → He drove his car for almost 4 hours.
~~She served refreshments to the soldiers on a tray.~~ (soldiers on a tray?)
~~Running down the stairs, the phone fell.~~ (phone can’t run → dangling)

3. Parallelism — Match the Form

Rule: When listing two or more items with “and / or / but / both…and / not only…but also,” all items must be in the same grammatical form.

✓ Parallel Structure

She likes running, swimming, and cycling. (all gerunds)
He wanted to train hard, eat well, and sleep early. (all infinitives without “to”)
The mission was long, difficult, and dangerous. (all adjectives)
Not only brave but also intelligent. (adj + adj)

✗ Faulty Parallelism

~~She likes running, to swim, and cycling.~~
~~He wanted to train hard, eating well, sleep early.~~
~~The officer is efficient, dedicated, and works hard.~~ → efficient, dedicated, and hardworking.
~~Not only brave but also with intelligence.~~

NDA PYQChoosing the Correct Sentence — NDA 1/2025 & 1/2026 Pattern

Q1. Which sentence is grammatically correct? (NDA 1 2025)

(a) The team, along with their coach, were celebrated.
(b) Each of the soldiers are expected to report by 0600 hrs.
(c) The number of applications has increased this year.
(d) A number of recruits was selected for advanced training.

Answer: (c)
(a) “Along with their coach” = parenthetical; subject = “The team” (singular) → “was” needed. (b) “Each of” = singular → “is” expected. (c) “The number of” = singular → “has” ✓ correct. (d) “A number of” = plural → “were” needed.

Q2. Which sentence is grammatically correct? (NDA 2 2025)

(a) Running down the hill, the camp came into view.
(b) Running down the hill, he saw the camp in the distance.
(c) He seen the camp while running down the hill.
(d) The camp was ran down to by him.

Answer: (b)
(a) Dangling modifier: “the camp” cannot run → wrong. (b) “He” is the one running → modifier correctly placed ✓. (c) “He seen” → should be “He saw” (wrong past tense form). (d) Unnatural/incorrect passive construction.

Q3. Select the sentence with correct parallelism: (NDA 1 2026)

(a) The recruit was strong, committed, and showed discipline.
(b) The recruit was strong, committed, and disciplined.
(c) The recruit was strong, to be committed, and disciplined.
(d) The recruit has strong, committed, and disciplined.

Answer: (b)
(b) Three parallel adjectives: strong / committed / disciplined ✓. (a) Breaks parallelism: strong (adj), committed (adj), showed discipline (verb phrase). (c) Mixes adjective and infinitive. (d) “has strong” = grammatically incorrect.

Q4. Choose the correct sentence: (NDA 1 2025)

(a) She is more senior than me in service.
(b) She is more senior to me in service.
(c) She is senior than me in service.
(d) She is senior to me in service.

Answer: (d)
“Senior” is a Latin comparative — it already contains the idea of comparison. Never add “more” (“more senior” = double comparative) and always use “to” (not “than”). “She is senior to me” is the only correct form. Same rule for: inferior, superior, junior, prior.

Q5. Which sentence is correct? (NDA 2 2025)

(a) He enjoys to run, cycling, and to swim.
(b) He enjoys running, to cycle, and swimming.
(c) He enjoys running, cycling, and swimming.
(d) He enjoys run, cycle, and swim.

Answer: (c)
“Enjoy” is always followed by gerunds (-ing forms). All three items in the list must be in the same form. (c) running / cycling / swimming = all gerunds ✓. All other options mix forms (infinitives + gerunds) or use base form after “enjoy.”

🔥 TRICKYNDA Elimination Strategy for “4 Sentences” Questions

🤯 How do you eliminate three wrong options quickly in the NDA exam?

Step 1 — SVA check (fastest filter): Find the subject. If it’s “along with / a number of / each of,” immediately check all four options for SVA errors. Eliminate 1–2 options fast.

Step 2 — Modifier check: If a sentence starts with a participle (“Running,” “Having completed”), check that the subject of the main clause is also the one performing that action. If it’s a thing or wrong person → eliminate immediately.

Step 3 — Parallelism scan: If you see a list of 3 items with “and,” quickly scan if all are in the same form. Mix of gerund + infinitive + base = wrong.

Step 4 — Preposition/Comparative: “Superior than / senior than” = always wrong. “Die from illness” = wrong. Eliminate on sight.

You rarely need to read all four sentences word for word. Apply filters in this order and you can eliminate 3 options in under 30 seconds.

⚡ Quick Reference — ENR07

SVA Elimination Rules

“Along with” = singular verb
“A number of” = plural
“The number of” = singular
“Each of / Neither of” = singular

Modifier Rules

Dangling = no logical subject for the modifier
Misplaced = modifier far from word it modifies
Participle clause subject = main clause subject
“Only / even / almost” placement changes meaning

Parallelism Rules

List with “and” = all same grammatical form
“Enjoy / avoid / mind” = all gerunds in list
“Want / decide / plan” = all infinitives
Not only adj but also adj (match forms)

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