A Triumph of Surgery — Grammar Exercises
Two grammar exercises based on real NCERT sentences from this chapter. Practise the editing and gap-filling formats tested in CBSE Section B.
Exercise 1Editing / Error Correction
The sentence below has one grammatical error. Find the incorrect word and write the correction.
Show Answer & Explanation
'Had' is the auxiliary verb for past perfect. It must be followed by the past participle (V3), not the simple past (V2). 'Became' is the simple past of 'become'. The past participle of 'become' is 'become' (it is the same: become → became → become). So: 'had become', not 'had became'. This is a classic CBSE trap.
Exercise 2Gap Filling
Choose the option that best fills the blank in the sentence below.
Show Answer & Explanation
James Herriot deliberately gave Tricki 'no food for two days' — this was the cure. Tricki had been overfed, so complete fasting was the treatment. 'Less', 'little', and 'some' all suggest reduced but not zero food. The NCERT text is specific: Herriot withheld all food entirely for the first two days to let Tricki recover.
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