The sentence is divided into four segments: (A), (B), (C), and (D). Identify…
2025
The sentence is divided into four segments: (A), (B), (C), and (D). Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error. If the sentence is both grammatically and contextually correct, select “No error” as the correct answer.
The orchestra have (A)/ started rehearsing (B)/ for the upcoming international music festival (C)/ scheduled in Vienna next month. (D)
- A.
A
- B.
B
- C.
C
- D.
D
- E.
No error
Attempted by 5 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
A collective noun (orchestra, team, committee, jury, family) names a group as one whole. When the group is treated as a single unit acting together, it takes a SINGULAR verb; a plural verb is used only when the members are clearly acting as separate individuals. Subject and verb must agree in number.
Application
Work through the sentence segment by segment:
Subject = "The orchestra" — a collective noun. Here the whole group does one thing together (begins rehearsing for one festival), so it is a single unit and needs a singular verb: "has started", not "have started". The wording "The orchestra have started" therefore breaks subject-verb agreement.
"started rehearsing" — correct: "rehearsing" is a gerund correctly following "started".
"for the upcoming international music festival" — correct: a well-formed prepositional phrase.
"scheduled in Vienna next month" — correct: a past-participle phrase modifying "festival".
The corrected sentence: "The orchestra has started rehearsing for the upcoming international music festival scheduled in Vienna next month."
Cross-check
Replace "The orchestra" with the singular pronoun "It": "It has started" reads correctly, while "It have started" does not — confirming the singular verb is required. Because exactly one segment carries an error, "No error" cannot apply.