20 Most Repeated CSS Grammar Rules
The grammar traps that recur most often in the CSS English Sentence Correction paper — each rule paired with a wrong and correct example, so you learn to spot the mistake, not just memorise the rule.
Showing 20 of 20 rules
The verb must agree with the true subject of the sentence, not with a noun sitting between the subject and the verb.
The list of reforms proposed by the committee remain incomplete.
The list of reforms proposed by the committee remains incomplete.
The subject is 'list' (singular), not 'reforms' -- the phrase 'of reforms proposed by the committee' only describes which list. Ignore words that sit between the subject and the verb when checking agreement.
When the subject is followed by 'along with', 'as well as', 'together with', or 'in addition to', the verb still agrees with the first subject alone -- these connectors don't make the subject plural.
The Chief Secretary, along with his senior officers, were present at the briefing.
The Chief Secretary, along with his senior officers, was present at the briefing.
'Along with his senior officers' is a parenthetical phrase, not a second subject joined by 'and'. The verb still agrees with 'the Chief Secretary' alone.
'Each', 'either', 'neither', and 'none of' normally take a singular verb, even when followed by a plural-looking phrase.
Neither of the two candidates were willing to withdraw.
Neither of the two candidates was willing to withdraw.
'Neither' is grammatically singular no matter how many items follow it in the 'of' phrase -- the verb agrees with 'neither', not with 'candidates'.
When reporting what someone said in the past, the tense of the reported clause usually shifts one step back (present tense becomes past, or past becomes past perfect).
The Minister said that the project is completed on schedule.
The Minister said that the project had been completed on schedule.
'Said' is in the past tense, so the reported action must shift back too -- it can't stay in the simple present once it's inside a past-tense reporting clause.
In a first conditional sentence, use the simple present tense in the 'if' clause and 'will + base verb' in the main clause -- never 'will' in both halves.
If the Assembly will pass the bill, it will become law next week.
If the Assembly passes the bill, it will become law next week.
The 'if' clause states the condition and stays in the present tense; only the result clause takes 'will'.
For a present hypothetical or clearly untrue situation, use 'were' -- not 'was' -- after 'if' or 'as if', regardless of the subject.
If the exam was easier, more candidates would qualify.
If the exam were easier, more candidates would qualify.
Since the exam isn't actually easier, this is a hypothetical -- the subjunctive 'were' is required, even with a singular subject like 'the exam'.
Verbs such as 'avoid', 'enjoy', 'consider', 'suggest', and 'finish' must be followed by a gerund (the -ing form), not a 'to' infinitive.
The board decided to avoid to delay the announcement.
The board decided to avoid delaying the announcement.
'Avoid' always takes a gerund object ('avoid delaying'), never a 'to' infinitive -- this has to be memorised verb by verb.
Many adjectives and verbs pair with one specific, fixed preposition in standard usage -- 'married to', 'injurious to', 'capable of', 'deprived of' -- and swapping the preposition is treated as an error.
Smoking in public places is injurious for health.
Smoking in public places is injurious to health.
'Injurious' always takes 'to', not 'for' -- these fixed preposition pairings are learned individually, not derived from logic.
Verbs like 'avail' require a reflexive pronoun in formal usage, since they aren't used with a plain direct object the way 'use' is.
Candidates should avail this opportunity to prepare thoroughly.
Candidates should avail themselves of this opportunity to prepare thoroughly.
The correct pattern is 'avail oneself of something' -- 'avail' cannot directly take 'this opportunity' as its object.
Correlative pairs -- 'not only...but also', 'either...or', 'neither...nor', 'both...and' -- must be followed by the same grammatical form on each side.
The report was not only comprehensive but also it was well-argued.
The report was not only comprehensive but also well-argued.
Since 'not only' is followed by an adjective ('comprehensive'), 'but also' must be followed by an adjective too ('well-argued'), not a full clause.
When comparing a quality of one noun to the same quality of another, use 'that of' or 'those of' rather than comparing across mismatched categories directly.
Pakistan's literacy rate is lower than India.
Pakistan's literacy rate is lower than that of India.
The sentence is comparing a rate to a rate, not a country to a rate -- 'that of India' stands in for 'the literacy rate of India'.
'Unless' already means 'if not', so adding a second negative word ('not', 'no') in the same clause creates an unintended double negative.
The scheme will not succeed unless it doesn't get provincial support.
The scheme will not succeed unless it gets provincial support.
'Unless it doesn't get support' literally means 'if it does get support' -- the opposite of what the sentence is trying to say.
'Imply' means to suggest something indirectly, done by the speaker or writer; 'infer' means to draw a conclusion from evidence, done by the listener or reader. They are not interchangeable.
From the Minister's silence, journalists implied that the policy had failed.
From the Minister's silence, journalists inferred that the policy had failed.
The journalists are drawing a conclusion from the silence -- that's inferring. The Minister, by staying silent, would be the one implying something.
'Who' is used as the subject of a verb; 'whom' is used as the object of a verb or preposition.
The officer who the committee selected was later transferred.
The officer whom the committee selected was later transferred.
The officer is the object of 'selected' -- the committee selected him -- so the object form 'whom' is correct, not the subject form 'who'.
In standard formal usage, candidates 'sit for' an examination -- not 'take' or 'give' one. 'Give an exam' in particular describes what an examiner does, not a candidate.
Over two hundred thousand candidates gave the CSS exam this year.
Over two hundred thousand candidates sat for the CSS exam this year.
This phrasing is common in everyday South Asian English but is treated as an error in CSS's formal register -- the expected idiom is 'sit for an exam'.
Use plain 'whether' for a simple yes/no question or choice; add 'or not' only when the intended meaning is 'regardless of the outcome'.
The panel will proceed with the interview whether the candidate is ready.
The panel will proceed with the interview whether the candidate is ready or not.
The intended meaning here is 'irrespective of readiness', which requires 'or not' -- a plain 'whether' alone reads as an incomplete yes/no question.
In a compound subject or object, each pronoun must take the same case it would take alone -- test it by mentally removing the other name.
The Secretary invited Aslam and I to the meeting.
The Secretary invited Aslam and me to the meeting.
Removing 'Aslam and' leaves 'invited me', not 'invited I' -- so the object form 'me' is correct, even though 'I' feels more formal.
Inside a noun clause -- after words like 'ask', 'wonder', 'know', or a question word such as 'what', 'how', or 'why' -- use normal statement word order, not question word order.
The interviewer asked what was the candidate's opinion on judicial reform.
The interviewer asked what the candidate's opinion on judicial reform was.
Once 'what' introduces a noun clause rather than a direct question, the subject comes before the verb, exactly as it would in a plain statement.
'Too + adjective + to + verb' already means 'so [adjective] that it isn't possible to [verb]' -- it should not also be paired with 'that' and a negative verb.
The syllabus is too extensive that a candidate cannot cover it in one attempt.
The syllabus is too extensive for a candidate to cover in one attempt.
'Too...that' is a mismatched construction; 'too...to' (or 'too...for someone to') already carries the negative meaning, so 'that...cannot' is redundant and wrong.
An introductory phrase must logically describe the subject that immediately follows it in the main clause -- otherwise the modifier is left 'dangling', attached to the wrong noun.
Having studied the past papers thoroughly, the exam pattern became clear to her.
Having studied the past papers thoroughly, she found the exam pattern clear.
It was 'she' who studied the papers, not 'the exam pattern' -- the noun right after the comma must be the one actually doing the action in the introductory phrase.
Now check your own writing for these
These are exactly the kind of slips the essay checker catches — write a précis or essay and get it graded like a real CSS examiner.