Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: 1
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This problem checks familiarity with idiomatic expressions in English, especially the fixed phrase slow to anger. Idioms often follow patterns that cannot be changed freely without sounding unnatural. The sentence describes the ideal temperament of a judge, and the candidate must identify which part does not follow idiomatic usage even though the basic grammar may look acceptable at first glance.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
The main concept is idiomatic preposition choice. In English, there is a standard expression slow to anger, which means that a person does not become angry easily or quickly. The preposition in is not usually used in this idiom. Although phrases like slow in responding are fine, slow in anger is not a natural collocation. Therefore, part (1) is the segment with the error: the preposition in should be replaced with to, giving slow to anger.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Read the entire sentence and understand that it describes the qualities of a judge, which are slow anger and quick forgiveness.Step 2: Focus on part (1): A judge must be slow in anger and. The structure be slow in anger is unusual in standard English.Step 3: Recall the common idiomatic phrase slow to anger, which is widely used in literature and everyday language.Step 4: Check part (2): quick to forgive; otherwise he may. This part uses quick to forgive, which is correct and fits the parallel idea of slow to anger and quick to forgive.Step 5: Check part (3): risk abusing his powers. This is a correct and natural phrase that describes a potential misuse of authority.Step 6: Based on this analysis, decide that the only unnatural phrase is in part (1), where the preposition should be changed to to.
Verification / Alternative check:
To confirm, rewrite the sentence using the idiomatic form: A judge must be slow to anger and quick to forgive; otherwise he may risk abusing his powers. This revised version reads smoothly and follows natural collocations in English. Neither of the other segments requires any change. This demonstrates that the problem lies only in the preposition used with slow in part (1).
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option 2: Part (2) uses quick to forgive, which is idiomatic and grammatically correct.Option 3: Part (3) uses the phrase risk abusing his powers correctly. It expresses the danger that the judge might misuse his authority.Option 4: Because part (1) does contain an error, the sentence cannot be classified as completely correct, so No Error is not the right choice.
Common Pitfalls:
Learners sometimes view idiomatic choices as minor stylistic preferences and may ignore them when searching for errors. However, competitive exams frequently treat incorrect preposition choice in fixed expressions as a valid grammar error. Another pitfall is concentrating on more complex parts of the sentence, such as risk abusing his powers, and overlooking shorter phrases like slow in anger. Training yourself to notice standard collocations, especially with adjectives like slow and quick, will improve performance on such questions.
Final Answer:
The incorrect idiomatic expression appears in the first part, so the correct option is 1.
Discussion & Comments