In this guide
Most CLAT English questions ask what a passage means, not whether a sentence is correct. So why spend time on grammar at all?
Two reasons. First, questions on usage still appear in some papers and many mocks: what a pronoun refers to, which form of a word fits, which sentence is correctly written. Second, and more important, grammar is how you untangle long sentences. Legal and argumentative passages are full of clauses stacked inside clauses. If you cannot find the subject and its verb, you cannot tell who did what, and the inference questions go wrong.
How grammar shows up
- Reference: "In the third sentence, 'it' refers to…"
- Word form or part of speech: "The word 'faster' in the passage is used as…"
- Usage: "Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct?"
- Hidden in comprehension: a question turns on who "they" are, or on which noun a phrase describes.
The last kind is the most common and the least noticed. Candidates think they misread the passage, when what they actually missed was a pronoun.
The rules that matter most
| Rule | Correct example | Common error |
|---|---|---|
| The verb agrees with the real subject, not a nearby noun | One of the witnesses was absent. | One of the witnesses were absent. |
| Phrases like "along with" and "as well as" do not make a subject plural | The judge, along with two clerks, is in court. | The judge, along with two clerks, are in court. |
| Each, every, either, neither (alone) take a singular verb | Each of the judges was present. | Each of the judges were present. |
| Neither…nor and either…or: the verb agrees with the nearer subject | Neither the petitioner nor the respondents were present. | Neither the petitioner nor the respondents was present. |
| "The number of" is singular; "a number of" is plural | The number of cases has risen. A number of cases are pending. | The number of cases have risen. |
| Collective nouns usually take a singular verb when the group acts as one | The committee has submitted its report. | The committee have submitted its report. |
| Keep tenses consistent unless the time changes | The court heard the case and delivered its verdict. | The court heard the case and delivers its verdict. |
| A pronoun must point clearly to one noun | The council told the contractors that the contractors would pay. | The council told the contractors that they would pay. |
| A modifier must sit next to what it describes | Walking into the court, the witness found the lights harsh. | Walking into the court, the lights seemed harsh. |
| Items in a list take the same form | to hear evidence, weigh it and deliver a ruling | to hear evidence, weighing it and to deliver a ruling |
| Fewer for things you count; less for amounts | fewer students, less time | less students |
| Who for subjects, whom for objects | The officer whom the court summoned did not appear. | The officer who the court summoned did not appear. |
The who and whom test
Turn the clause into a statement and replace the word with "they" or "them". "The court summoned them", so "whom the court summoned". Compare "The candidate who the panel said was best": "the panel said they were best", so "who" is right, even though "the panel said" sits in between.
Words that look alike
| Pair | Meaning |
|---|---|
| its / it's | belonging to it / it is |
| affect / effect | to influence (verb) / a result (noun) |
| principal / principle | chief; head of a school / a rule or belief |
| stationary / stationery | not moving / writing materials |
| complement / compliment | something that completes / praise |
| discreet / discrete | careful not to reveal / separate |
Worked example: grammar inside a passage
When the city widened its main road, traffic moved faster for about a year. Then it slowed again, as more people chose to drive. Planners call this "induced demand": extra capacity invites extra use. It is why many engineers now doubt that widening a road can, on its own, cure congestion.
Q1. In the second sentence, "it" refers to:
(a) the city
(b) traffic
(c) the main road
(d) the year
Answer: (b). Only traffic can "slow again" after having "moved faster".
- (a) The city did the widening; it did not speed up or slow down.
- (c) A road does not move. This is the most tempting wrong answer, because "the main road" is the nearest noun that sounds possible.
- (d) "A year" is a time span, not something that slows.
Q2. In the last sentence, "It" refers to:
(a) the city's decision
(b) the planners
(c) induced demand
(d) congestion
Answer: (c). The sentence explains why engineers doubt widening. The reason is the effect just named, induced demand.
- (a) The decision to widen is not the reason for the doubt; its result is.
- (b) "The planners" is plural, so it would need "they".
- (d) Congestion is what widening fails to cure, not the reason for doubting it.
Q3. In "traffic moved faster", the word "faster" is used as:
(a) an adjective
(b) a verb
(c) a noun
(d) an adverb
Answer: (d). It tells you how the traffic moved, so it modifies the verb "moved".
- (a) would be right in "a faster car", where it describes a noun.
- (b) and (c) do not fit: "moved" is the verb, and "faster" names no thing.
Reading long sentences
A sentence like this is typical of legal and policy passages:
The tribunal, having considered the objections raised by the residents who had been displaced by the project, held that the compensation offered was inadequate.
Strip it to the core: the tribunal held that the compensation was inadequate. Everything else is description. "Having considered the objections" tells you when; "who had been displaced" tells you which residents. Once you find the subject and main verb, questions about who decided what become simple.
Common mistakes
- Agreeing with the nearest noun. "The quality of the arguments were poor" is wrong; the subject is "quality".
- Assuming "they" means the last plural noun. Check the meaning, not the position.
- Picking the sentence that sounds formal. A long, heavy sentence is not more correct. Check agreement and structure.
- Ignoring the modifier. A phrase at the start of a sentence describes the noun right after the comma.
Practice set
P1. Choose the correct verb: "The committee, as well as its advisers, ___ expected to report next week." (a) are (b) were (c) is (d) have been
P2. Choose the correct verb: "A number of petitions ___ been filed." (a) has (b) have (c) is (d) was
P3. Which sentence is correct?
(a) Neither the judge nor the lawyers was aware of the change.
(b) Neither the judge nor the lawyers were aware of the change.
(c) Neither the judge or the lawyers were aware of the change.
(d) Neither the judge nor the lawyers is aware of the change.
P4. Which sentence is correct?
(a) Less students applied this year.
(b) Having finished the hearing, the courtroom was emptied.
(c) The policy aims to reduce costs, improve access and raise quality.
(d) The company changed it's policy.
P5. Choose the correct word: "The officer ___ the court summoned did not appear." (a) whom (b) who (c) whose (d) which
P6. Find the subject of the main verb: "The report on the safety of the old bridges, prepared by a panel of engineers, recommends closing two of them." (a) bridges (b) engineers (c) panel (d) report
Answers
- (c). "As well as its advisers" does not change the subject, "the committee", which is singular. (d) "have been" is plural as well.
- (b). "A number of" means "several" and takes a plural verb.
- (b). With neither…nor, the verb agrees with the nearer subject, "lawyers". (a) and (d) are singular. (c) pairs "neither" with "or".
- (c). Three verbs in the same form. (a) needs "fewer". (b) has a dangling modifier: the courtroom did not finish the hearing. (d) needs "its".
- (a). "The court summoned them", so the object form "whom".
- (d). "The report… recommends". The other nouns sit inside phrases that describe it.
What to do next
- Take one editorial a day this week and strip its three longest sentences to subject and main verb.
- Every time a passage uses "it", "they" or "this", check what it refers to before moving on.
- Pair this with vocabulary in context and how to read CLAT passages.
A note on dates and numbers. Exam patterns, vacancies and schedules change from year to year. Always confirm the current details in the latest notification on the Consortium of National Law Universities website .
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