Content updated on 25 April 2026
A passage is placed before you. Every line contains one grammatical error. Your task: spot each error and supply the correct word. This is the editing exercise — a direct, high‑stakes test of your grammar, spelling, and precision. In this lesson for Class 8, 9, and 10 students, you will learn the exact format required in board exams, the most common types of errors you will encounter, and a systematic method to tackle any editing passage with calm accuracy. With five fully solved passages and five challenging practice passages, you will train your eye to catch mistakes in tenses, articles, prepositions, subject‑verb agreement, conjunctions, and word forms. By the end, you’ll be able to approach editing exercises not with anxiety, but with the quiet confidence of a proofreader.
✅ Recommended for: Class 8–10 (Error Detection & Exam Precision) | CBSE & UP Board
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1. What is an Editing Exercise?
An editing exercise is a short passage — typically 8 to 12 lines — where each line contains exactly one grammatical error. The error may be a wrong word, a missing word, or an extra word. In the CBSE board exam, you are required to write the incorrect word and the correct word in a table format. This tests your ability to identify mistakes in context — a skill that goes far beyond memorising rules. To succeed, you must read each line carefully, understand what the sentence is trying to say, and apply your knowledge of tenses, articles, prepositions, subject‑verb agreement, conjunctions, and word order.
2. Exam Format – How to Write Your Answers
In your answer sheet, you must draw a table with two columns: “Incorrect” and “Correct”. Write the error on the left and the correction on the right. Do not rewrite the entire sentence. For example:
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| go | went |
| a | an |
| in | on |
Always number the lines as given in the question paper. If there is no error in a line, do not write anything for that line — editing exercises are designed so that every line usually has one error.
3. Most Common Errors Found in Editing Passages
- Tense errors: Using the wrong tense for the time context. Look for time markers like yesterday, every day, since, already.
- Subject‑Verb Agreement: Singular subject with plural verb, or vice versa. Watch out for phrases like “the list of items” or “each of the boys”.
- Articles: Missing “a/an/the” or using the wrong one. Remember, “an” before vowel sounds, “the” for specific things.
- Prepositions: Errors like “married with”, “good in”, “arrived to”.
- Word form errors: Using an adjective where an adverb is needed (“He runs quick” → “quickly”), or mixing noun/verb forms.
- Conjunctions: Using “and” where “but” is needed, or incorrect correlative pairs (e.g., “not only… and” instead of “not only… but also”).
4. Solved Examples (5 Passages with Error Tables)
(a) Last Sunday, I go to the market with my father.
(b) We buy some vegetables and fruits.
(c) The shopkeeper was a old man who smiled at everyone.
(d) He give us an extra apple for free.
(e) I thank him and we return home happily.
Show Solution
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| go | went |
| buy | bought |
| a | an |
| give | gave |
| return | returned |
(a) The teacher was angry on the students.
(b) Each of the boys were given a prize.
(c) I prefer tea than coffee.
(d) The train arrived on the station late.
(e) He is married with my cousin.
Show Solution
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| on | with |
| were | was |
| than | to |
| on | at |
| with | to |
(a) She sang beautiful at the concert.
(b) The weather was so hot that we couldn't went out.
(c) He is not only intelligent and hardworking.
(d) The children was playing in the park.
(e) I have visited the museum yesterday.
Show Solution
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| beautiful | beautifully |
| went | go |
| and | but also |
| was | were |
| have visited | visited |
(a) Sun rises in the east.
(b) She is an European citizen.
(c) He every day goes for a walk.
(d) I have a important work to do.
(e) There is many reasons to be happy.
Show Solution
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| Sun | The Sun |
| an | a |
| every day goes | goes every day |
| a | an |
| is | are |
(a) Yesterday, the students of Class VIII goes for a picnic.
(b) They took many food with them.
(c) The bus leave the school at 8 AM sharp.
(d) Everyone were excited about the trip.
(e) The weather was perfect and the children enjoys themselves a lot.
Show Solution
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| goes | went |
| many | much |
| leave | left |
| were | was |
| enjoys | enjoyed |
5. Practice Passages (5 Passages for You to Edit)
(a) The Earth revolve around the Sun.
(b) She don't like to eat vegetables.
(c) The news are very disturbing today.
(d) I am going to the bed now.
(e) He is the tallest of the two.
Show Answers
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| revolve | revolves |
| don't | doesn't |
| are | is |
| the bed | bed |
| tallest | taller |
(b) I told that my name is Rohan.
(c) She said that she is happy to meet me.
(d) I have been waiting here since two hours.
(e) He is junior than me in school.
Show Answers
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| is | was |
| told | said |
| is | was |
| since | for |
| than | to |
(b) The dog wagged it's tail happily.
(c) I look forward to meet you soon.
(d) He is the person who I admire the most.
(e) She came late because of she missed the bus.
Show Answers
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| boy | boys |
| it's | its |
| meet | meeting |
| who | whom |
| because of | because |
(b) The sceneries in Kashmir are beautiful.
(c) I prefer reading books than watching TV.
(d) She sang very sweet at the function.
(e) This is the best of the two options.
Show Answers
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| is | are |
| sceneries | scenery |
| than | to |
| sweet | sweetly |
| best | better |
(b) I have been living here from ten years.
(c) The police has caught the thief.
(d) She speaks English very good.
(e) Despite of the rain, the match continued.
Show Answers
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| too | so |
| from | for |
| has | have |
| good | well |
| Despite of | Despite |
Why Editing Skills Make You a More Confident Writer
Editing is the bridge between knowing grammar rules and applying them under exam pressure. When you practise editing regularly, you start to notice patterns — the same kinds of errors repeat, and you learn to anticipate them. Before an exam, spend fifteen minutes editing a sample passage. Train your eye to pause at every verb and check its tense and agreement, at every noun and check its article, and at every preposition and ask if it’s the right one. Over time, this habit transforms you from a writer who hopes the sentence is correct into one who knows it is.
- Sentence Improvement & Rewriting — Next level after editing.
- Omission of Words & Gap Filling — Another key error correction skill.
- Hindi Grammar Hub — เคธंเคชाเคฆเคจ เค เคญ्เคฏाเคธ เคเคฐ เคต्เคฏाเคเคฐเคฃ।
- Worksheets Master Hub — Every practice sheet you need.
๐ Editing Exercises Worksheet – Class 8, 9 & 10
This worksheet contains ten editing passages with errors in tenses, articles, prepositions, subject‑verb agreement, and word forms. Answer in the standard two‑column format. Includes 50 questions.
Editing Exercises Worksheet »Answer key included • Aligned with CBSE & UP Board curriculum
