Question

Which of the following sentences is grammatically incorrect?

• A. Bats are able to fly in the dark.
• B. Bats can fly in the dark.
• C. Bats have the ability to fly in the dark.
• D. Bats cannot fly in the dark if it rains.
• E. Bats have the ability of flying in the dark, if it does not rain.

Hint:

The correct idiomatic expression is "ability to + verb" (e.g., "ability to swim"), not "ability of + verb-ing."
Always check fixed expressions when identifying grammar errors.

Answer 1

Answer: (E)

Step 1: Analyze option (A): "Bats are able to fly in the dark." — Correct, as "are able to" is a proper construction.
Step 2: Analyze option (B): "Bats can fly in the dark." — Correct, using modal verb "can" appropriately.
Step 3: Analyze option (C): "Bats have the ability to fly in the dark." — Correct, "ability to + verb" is the standard grammatical usage.
Step 4: Analyze option (D): "Bats cannot fly in the dark if it rains." — Grammatically correct, conditional usage is proper.
Step 5: Analyze option (E): "Bats have the ability of flying in the dark, if it does not rain." — Incorrect, because the correct form is "ability to fly" not "ability of flying." The phrase "ability of + verb-ing" is ungrammatical in standard English.
Step 6: Hence, option (E) is the grammatically incorrect sentence.