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If you are preparing for competitive exams of Banking, SSC, etc. like (IBPS Clerk, IBPS PO, SBI Clerk, SBI PO, SSC CGL, SSC CHSL, RRB NTPC, RBI, LIC AAO, etc.) you will encounter English Language and Comprehension sections. One of the most important aspects of the English section, in any exam, is to learn to Spot Errors and Correct Sentences. These Error Spotting and Sentence Correction Grammar Capsules are aimed at helping you learn a little bit of Grammar every day. Let us start with Error Spotting Capsule 3 which deals with the concept of “Such as”. You can even download Error Spotting Capsule 3as PDF.

Such as

Ram: I want to go to places like Izmir and Istanbul.

Sam: I want to go to places such as Delhi and Agra.

What is the difference between these two statements?

Ram wants to visit places like Izmir and Istanbul; this does not necessarily mean he wants to go to these places. He wants to visit places which are similar to Izmir and Istanbul.

Sam wants to visit places such as Delhi and Agra; he wants to go to these places and also other places similar to them.

 

Rules for “Such as”

  • Such as means ‘including’.
  • Use of comma (,): If the meaning of the sentence is conveyed even without ‘such as …’ phrase, then we need to insert a comma before ‘such as’. If the sentence is incomplete by deleting the ‘such as….’ phrase, then we don’t add the comma before it.
    E.g. Dubai is famous for its tall buildings, such as the Burj Khalifa.
    Dubai is famous for its tall buildings, such as the Burj Khalifa.
    E.g. Buildings such as the Burj Khalifa are called skyscrapers.
    Buildings such as the Burj Khalifa are called skyscrapers.
  • Do not use a colon (:): ‘Such as’ is used to introduce examples. A colon can also be used for the same purpose. Thus, “such as:” sounds like “for example for example”.
  • Use of and/or: ‘Such as’ is not always followed by ‘and’.
    E.g. I am advised to have daily a vitamin C-rich fruit, such as an orange or a papaya.
    Here, the speaker is advised to eat daily, a vitamin C-rich fruit. And it could be an orange or it could be a papaya or it could be a kiwifruit or…
    E.g. There are billions of stars in this universe, such as the sun.
    There is no rule that more than one example must be listed while using ‘such as’.
  • Do not use ‘such as’ to compare:
    E.g. She wore a hat such as the ones worn in the Victorian era.
    She wore a hat including the one worn in the Victorian era! So, how many hats were she wearing at that time? And clearly the hat must not have been one from the Victorian era, rather one that just looked like it.

 

Spot the error in the following sentences

  1. I enjoy playing musical instruments like the piano and the violin.
  2. Countries, such as India are democratic.
  3. Foods such as burgers or pizzas are unhealthy.

Here are the answers!!!

Explanation 1: I enjoy playing musical instruments, like such as the piano and the violin. 
Piano and violin are not similar musical instruments. Clearly, then he must be referring not to a class of instruments but rather the list of instruments. Hence, they must be introduced using ‘such as’. Don’t forget the comma!!

Explanation 2: Countries such as India are democratic. Adding a comma before such as is incorrect as the phrase ‘such as India’ adds to the meaning of the statement. The corrected sentence would then be:
Countries such as India are democratic.

Explanation 3: Foods such as burgers or and pizzas are unhealthy.
The statement means all kinds of junk foods are unhealthy. ‘Or’ gives a choice: either burgers or pizzas are unhealthy. Thus, ‘or’ must be replaced with ‘and’. Note that if we omitted “such as burgers and pizzas” from the statement, then it would be saying that “All foods are unhealthy”. This is incorrect and thus we can say that “such as burgers and pizzas” are integral to the sentence. So we don’t need to add a comma.

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