SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 19 September 2025, Shift 1 · English Comprehension · Question 12 of 100

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 11 September 2026.

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Find the part of the sentence that contains an error: So intense was the resistance (1)/ that the proposal not only failed (2)/ but also faced with widespread criticism (3)/ across institutional stakeholders. (4)

(a)(1)
(b)(2)
(c)(3)
(d)(4)

Answer

Why

Correct — C. The trigger is faced with in part (3).

Here faced is a finite verb, parallel to failed, with the proposal as its subject. So it must be active, faced widespread criticism, or passive, was faced with widespread criticism.

Part (3) has the passive's with but not its was. Drop with, but also faced widespread criticism, and it matches not only failed: two active past verbs → option (c).

Why the others are wrong

(a)
(1) — So intense was the resistance is correct inversion. When so + adjective opens a sentence, the verb comes before the subject, and the that-clause follows in part (2).
(b)
(2) — not only stands inside the clause, right before failed, so no inversion is needed. It pairs with but also before faced, and the opening that completes so intense ... that.
(d)
(4) — across institutional stakeholders says how far the criticism spread. It is a sound prepositional phrase; the fault lies just before it, in faced with.

Concept

As a finite verb, face has two patterns. Active: face + object, as in the plan faced a problem. Passive: be faced with + noun, as in the plan was faced with a problem.

In part (3), faced is finite, sharing the subject the proposal, so it needs one of the two. Faced with, lacking was, is neither.

Not only ... but also is a correlative pair: each half should stand before the same kind of word. Here both stand before a past verb, failed and faced.

The sentence could also be mended by adding was: but was also faced with widespread criticism. Either repair shows the same thing: part (3) as printed is neither the active nor the passive pattern.

Faced with without was is sound as a participle: Faced with criticism, the board withdrew the plan. There faced is not a finite verb. In this sentence it is, so it needs was.

Key facts

Active face takes a direct object: They faced criticism.
Be faced with is the passive pattern: They were faced with criticism.
After a fronted so + adjective, the verb comes before the subject: So intense was the resistance that the proposal failed.
Not only brings inversion when it opens a clause (Not only does the report fail), but not when it stands before the verb inside the clause.

Study next

Inversion after a fronted so, such, never, hardly or not onlyPassive phrases that take with, such as be faced with and be confronted withPlacing not only and but also before matching words

Common traps

Passing over faced with because be faced with is familiar, without noticing that be is missing
Marking part (1) because So intense was the resistance looks unusual, when the inversion is required

The not only ... but also frame also appears in a spot-the-error item at 15 Sep 2025, 12:30, English Q.12, where the error is agreement in part (4), not the pair.

Its placement is tested at 24 Sep 2024, 12:30, English Q.16: I had helped her not only by giving hints but also with providing her links.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: Error spotting — all 86 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.