Identify the part of the sentence that contains an error in "The temple is within a hundred yards from my house."

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This error spotting question examines your understanding of prepositions used with expressions of distance. The sentence reads: "The temple is within a hundred yards from my house." You must identify which underlined part of the sentence is incorrect. Although the sentence may sound almost natural, a small preposition error makes it grammatically wrong in standard English.


Given Data / Assumptions:
The sentence is divided as:

  • (A) The temple is
  • (B) within a hundred yards
  • (C) from my house
  • (D) No error
We must determine which part has the incorrect or unnecessary word.


Concept / Approach:
Two structures are relevant here:

  • "within a hundred yards of my house"
  • "a hundred yards from my house"
When we use "within", the correct preposition to link to the reference point is "of", not "from". So "within a hundred yards of my house" is standard English. Using "within" and "from" together creates redundancy and incorrect prepositional pairing.


Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Read the whole sentence and identify the core meaning: it indicates that the temple is located close to the house, specifically within a distance of one hundred yards. Step 2: Observe phrase (B): "within a hundred yards" – this is correct as a measure of maximum distance. Step 3: Check phrase (C): "from my house". Combined with "within a hundred yards", we would normally say "within a hundred yards of my house". The preposition "from" is wrong in this structure. Step 4: Parts (A) and (B) are fine, so the error must be in part (C).


Verification / Alternative check:
Compare the two correct alternatives:

  • "The temple is a hundred yards from my house." (simple distance statement)
  • "The temple is within a hundred yards of my house." (states a maximum distance)
The test sentence tries to mix them and ends up with "within a hundred yards from my house", which no longer follows standard grammar. Replacing "from" with "of" fixes the sentence fully.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:

  • (A) The temple is: This is a correct subject verb start and contains no error.
  • (B) within a hundred yards: Correct phrase indicating maximum distance.
  • (D) No error: Cannot be chosen because we have clearly identified an incorrect preposition in part (C).


Common Pitfalls:
A frequent mistake is to overlook small preposition errors in otherwise smooth sentences. Candidates sometimes think "from" is acceptable because "from my house" is common in other contexts. Remember that prepositions are highly sensitive to the words immediately before them; "within" almost always takes "of" when followed by a distance + reference point. Training yourself to notice such standard combinations will significantly improve your accuracy in error spotting questions.


Final Answer:
The error is in part C; the sentence should read "The temple is within a hundred yards of my house."

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