Difficulty: Medium
Correct Answer: Part D: No error
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
Error spotting questions train you to see whether a sentence is grammatically and logically sound. In this item, you must examine each marked part of the sentence and decide if any part contains an error in tense, word choice, or structure. The sentence is: Although I have never seen the girl before, I recognized her at once from her photograph. Many learners feel unsure about whether the combination of have never seen and recognized is correct, so this question helps clarify that point.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
The sentence describes a situation where the speaker has no prior personal meeting with the girl but is still able to recognize her immediately by looking at her photograph. The present perfect form have never seen is correctly used to express a life experience up to this moment, and recognized in simple past is used for the specific action that happened at once when the speaker saw the photograph. The prepositional phrase from her photograph is also standard. The conjunction although correctly introduces the contrast between never having seen her before and still being able to recognize her. Therefore, the sentence is grammatically and logically sound, and the correct response is that there is no error.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Check Part A: Although I have never seen the girl before,. Present perfect have never seen correctly describes an experience that has not happened at any time up to now, and the clause is well formed.
Step 2: Check Part B: I recognized her at once. Simple past recognized is correct for a specific event in the past, and at once is an appropriate adverbial phrase.
Step 3: Check Part C: from her photograph. The preposition from properly indicates the source of recognition, and the noun phrase her photograph is correctly formed.
Step 4: Confirm that the contrast introduced by although is logically maintained: despite never having seen her in person, recognition is immediate when seeing her photograph.
Step 5: Conclude that all parts are correct and choose Part D: No error.
Verification / Alternative check:
Some students suspect that have never seen should be replaced with had never seen or that recognized should be recognise in British spelling. However, the combination of present perfect and simple past is acceptable when contrasting a general life experience with a specific past action. For example: I have never visited London, but I recognized Big Ben from photographs is completely correct. Similarly, although I have never met him, I recognized his voice on the phone is also correct. The pattern in this question matches these examples, so no change is necessary. Spelling recognised versus recognized is a matter of British or American spelling, not a grammatical error, and exam sentences usually accept either as correct.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Part A: Although I have never seen the girl before,: This part is correct; present perfect has never seen is appropriate with before to talk about prior personal experience.
Part B: I recognized her at once: This part is correct; simple past is used for a completed action at a definite time in the past, and at once correctly modifies recognized.
Part C: from her photograph.: This part is also correct; from her photograph states the basis or source of recognition clearly and idiomatically.
Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is to think that mixing have never seen and recognized is wrong because one clause uses present perfect and the other uses simple past. In reality, English frequently mixes tenses when describing a life experience plus a specific event. Another pitfall is overcorrecting a sentence that is already correct, simply because it appears in an error spotting section. To avoid such traps, always analyse the logic and the standard usage rather than assuming that every sentence must contain a mistake.
Final Answer:
There is No error in any part of the sentence, so the correct choice is Part D.
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