In the following sentence, identify the part that contains a grammatical error: "I called at his house yesterday and have given him money."

Introduction / Context:
This error spotting question tests your understanding of tense usage with clear past time markers. The sentence "I called at his house yesterday and have given him money" improperly combines simple past with present perfect in a single sequence of past actions indicated by the word "yesterday". In standard English, when the time of the action is specified with a past adverb like "yesterday", the simple past tense is preferred for all the actions linked to that time.

Given Data / Assumptions:
• Full sentence: "I called at his house yesterday and have given him money." • Part A: "I called". • Part B: "at his house yesterday". • Part C: "and have given him money". • The time marker "yesterday" clearly places both actions in the past.

Concept / Approach:
Present perfect tense is usually used for actions that have relevance to the present moment, often without a specific past time expression like yesterday, last week, or in 2010. When a specific past time is mentioned, we normally use the simple past tense instead. In this sentence, "called" correctly uses simple past, but "have given" incorrectly uses present perfect for an action that also happened yesterday. The correct form should therefore be "gave him money".

Step-by-Step Solution:
1. Identify the time reference "yesterday" in part B. 2. Recognise that "yesterday" refers to a specific day in the past. 3. Recall that specific past times require simple past, not present perfect. 4. Notice that "I called" in part A already correctly follows this rule. 5. Examine part C, "and have given him money", and see that it uses present perfect. 6. Conclude that part C should read "and gave him money" to match the time reference and the tense of the first clause.

Verification / Alternative check:
Try rewriting the sentence in natural, correct English: "I called at his house yesterday and gave him money." This revised version uses simple past for both actions and sounds fluent. If you try to keep the original form "have given", the sentence feels inconsistent because present perfect normally avoids specific past dates or times. This comparison confirms that the grammatical error is the mismatch in tense in part C.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Part A, "I called", correctly uses simple past to describe an action that happened yesterday. Part B, "at his house yesterday", is also grammatical because it simply adds detail about place and time. Part D, "No error", is incorrect because there is a clear tense problem in the third part. Therefore the only faulty segment is part C, where "have given" should be replaced by "gave".

Common Pitfalls:
Some learners become overconfident with present perfect and try to use it frequently, even when a specific past time is mentioned. Others may focus only on the first half of the sentence and overlook the second verb. A good habit is to check every main verb in a sentence that contains time markers to ensure that all of them match the required tense. In exam conditions, underlining words like yesterday, last year, and in 2010 can remind you to look for simple past rather than present perfect.

Final Answer:
The error lies in part C, "and have given him money", which should be "and gave him money".