Error analysis (d) – corrections
1 Totland Bay offers delightful sea views, with Holwell Bay only an easy walk and other attraction’s not far away.
The mistake is in the punctuation. The apostrophe does not make sense – just the plural is needed here attractions. An apostrophe+s can only mean is or has.
Totland Bay offers delightful sea views, with Holwell Bay only an easy walk and other attractions not far away.
2 A cross section of staff have complained to management about the change in their working conditions.
Are the staff angry? Or is it not that a representative sample (a cross-section) of the staff have complained about these changes?
A cross-section of staff have complained to management about the change in their working conditions.
3 An open evening welcoming anyone interested in learning Italian will be held at Brentford Library during their ‘Adult Learner’s Week’.
The single individual denoted by the apostrophe suggests the session is only focused on one person – not many, as is obviously the idea.
An open evening welcoming anyone interested in learning Italian will be held at Brentford Library during their ‘Adult Learners’ Week’.
4 Try our new seafood paella, with fish, muscles and prawns!
Mussels, surely?
5 Eleanor walked on her head, spinning.
The comma needs to be placed after the ‘on’, so that it is clear she is worried or confused about events to the point that her head is spinning – or in a spin. The example suggests she is walking upside-down on her head, and spinning – quite a challenge! If your head is in a spin you are thinking very hard, or perhaps in a state of confusion.
Eleanor walked on, her head spinning.
6 Don’t eat, drink or exercise.
It is not clear what this advice is. Does this mean you are being advised not to eat, or drink, or exercise? Or does it mean you must not eat, but you can drink or exercise?
To be clear, it needs to read:
Don’t eat. Drink or exercise.
7 "Just a minute – Grandad’s saying good-bye to George and I."
I is the subject pronoun – and here we need the object pronoun ‘me‘.
8 We are a firm whose commitment to good customer service is our principal concern.
We are a firm whose commitment to good customer service is our principle (i.e. main / top / overriding) concern.
Principle – general truth or standard; principal – head of a college or school
9 Remember to pack a bucket and spade or a pair of binoculars for your holiday on the beautiful Norfolk coast with it’s lovely beaches and birdlife.
It’s means it is or it has (It’s a dream come true = It is a dream come true. It’s got a boat included in the hire price! = It has got a boat included in the hire price!). All other uses of its have no apostrophe!
Remember to pack a bucket and spade or a pair of binoculars for your holiday on the beautiful Norfolk coast with its lovely beaches and birdlife.
10 The ladies of the church have cast off clothing of every kind and they may be seen in the church basement on Friday.
A punctuation error. The loss of the hyphen in cast-off (= discarded, unwanted, second-hand) means the cast off turns into a verb, meaning they have thrown off their clothing. This means that these naked ladies may be seen, rather than the second-hand clothing they have been collecting for other people to be able to use! Clothing is singular.
The ladies of the church have cast–off clothing of every kind and it may be seen in the church basement on Friday.