The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.
He cheated in the [A] / examination, making his [B] / already-falling academic [C] / credentials worst. [D]
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The correct answer is option 3 i.e. D.
Error Concept: Incorrect usage of adjective form in context.
What is wrong: The word 'worst' is incorrectly used. “Worst” is the superlative form of “bad” and is used when comparing more than two things, which is not the case here.
Grammar Concept: When showing that something is becoming more bad than before (comparative), the correct word should be 'worse', not 'worst'.
Correction: Replace 'worst' with 'worse'.
Corrected phrase: credentials worse
Final sentence: He cheated in the examination, making his already-falling academic credentials worse.
Hence, the chosen option is correct.