Common Sentence Structure Errors in WAEC and UTME Exams
As you prepare for the WAEC English Language or UTME (JAMB English) exams, one skill that will give you an edge is your ability to write clear and correct sentences. Many students lose valuable marks simply because of sentence structure errors; errors that could be avoided with just a little more attention and practice.
This post will help you understand the most common sentence errors that appear in WAEC and NECO, show you why these mistakes matter, and guide you through practical corrections and examples.
Why Sentence Structure?
Both WAEC and NECO exams how well you can use English to express your thoughts clearly and accurately. In these exams, your sentences must follow grammatical rules, make logical sense, and be easy for the examiner to follow. Examiners are instructed to deduct marks when a sentence is ungrammatical, confusing, or awkward. This is true in essay and letter writing, and it’s equally important in the Lexis and Structure and Comprehension sections.
Top 10 Sentence Structure Errors in WAEC and NECO
One major problem students face is run-on sentences. This happens when two complete sentences are joined without proper punctuation or linking words. For example, the sentence “She went to school she forgot her bag” lacks the necessary pause. A correct version would be “She went to school, but she forgot her bag,” or “She went to school; she forgot her bag.”
Another common error is the sentence fragment, which is a group of words that looks like a sentence but doesn’t express a full idea. An example is “Because I was tired.” This is incomplete. A better sentence would be, “I went to bed early because I was tired.”
Students also often make subject-verb agreement errors, also known as concord errors. A sentence like “The list of items are on the table” is wrong because “list” is singular. The correct sentence is “The list of items is on the table.”
Another subtle error comes from misplaced modifiers. When descriptive phrases are not placed close to the words they describe, the meaning can become confusing. For instance, the sentence “She almost drove her children to school every day” mistakenly suggests that she didn’t actually drive them. A clearer sentence would be “She drove her children to school almost every day.”
Sometimes, sentences just sound awkward because of unnatural or clumsy construction. Instead of writing “It was the dog that barked loudly that woke me up,” a smoother version would be “The loud barking of the dog woke me up.”
Wordiness is another issue. Long phrases that add little meaning make writing less effective. For example, saying “In spite of the fact that he was late, he still went to the meeting” can be shortened to “Although he was late, he still went to the meeting.”
A related issue is faulty parallel structure, which occurs when parts of a sentence are not written in the same grammatical form. In the sentence “She likes cooking, to dance, and singing,” the structure is uneven. A parallel version would be “She likes cooking, dancing, and singing.”
Pronoun reference errors can also cause confusion. A sentence like “When Janet met Susan, she was angry” doesn’t make it clear who was angry. Rewriting it as “Janet was angry when she met Susan” solves this problem.
Comma splices are another common problem. This happens when two complete thoughts are wrongly joined by just a comma. A sentence like “I was tired, I went to bed early” should either include a conjunction as in “I was tired, so I went to bed early” or use a semicolon as in “I was tired; I went to bed early.”
Finally, students often struggle with the faulty use of conjunctions. For example, saying “He studied hard but he passed the exam” is incorrect because “but” is used to show contrast, yet the sentence shows a result. The correct version would be “He studied hard, and he passed the exam.” On the other hand, if the result was unexpected, “but” would work: “He studied hard but failed the exam.”
Quick Exam Tips for Avoiding Sentence Errors
To avoid these sentence errors during your exams, try reading your sentences aloud. This often helps you catch awkward or unclear phrases. Also, pay close attention to subject-verb agreement, especially when the subject is long or interrupted by extra information.
When in doubt, break longer sentences into shorter ones to improve clarity. Make it a habit to revise your sentences to remove repeated or unnecessary words. Finally, always use punctuation correctly so that your sentences are well-structured and easy to follow.
Practice Questions
Here are some sentences with errors. Can you identify and correct the sentence errors?
- She likes reading she enjoys writing too.
- Because the weather was bad.
- The team of players are very strong.
- He neither likes singing or dancing.
- He went to market, he bought some fruits.
Try rewriting each sentence to make it clear, correct, and well-structured. You can share your answers in the comments section!
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