Search Previous Year Questions

The correct answer is SQRP

Key Points

• To solve sentence rearrangement questions, we must first identify the Subject of the sentence. Here, the subject is already provided as The national scholarship scheme.
• The next logical step is to find the Verb that describes the action or purpose of the subject. Part S begins with aims to bridge, which acts as the primary verb phrase for the subject.
• The phrase aims to bridge educational disparities among ends with the preposition among, which requires a plural noun or a collective group. Part Q, socio-economically disadvantaged groups, perfectly fulfills this requirement.
• After identifying the group, we need to understand how the scheme helps them. Part R, by funding tuition and study materials, provides the method or means of support.
• Finally, part P, for students in rural and tribal regions, specifies the exact demographic within those groups who will receive the funding.
• The complete logical sequence is: The national scholarship scheme (S) aims to bridge educational disparities among (Q) socio-economically disadvantaged groups (R) by funding tuition and study materials (P) for students in rural and tribal regions.
• Other options like PSQR or RSQP are incorrect because they place prepositional phrases or methods before the main verb, leading to a grammatically incomplete or nonsensical structure.

Additional Information

• The term Socio-Economically Disadvantaged Groups (SEDGs) is a key focus area in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which aims to ensure that no child is deprived of education due to their background.
• Scholarship schemes like the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship (NMMS) and the Pre-Matric Scholarship are specifically designed to reduce dropout rates in rural and tribal regions.
• Effective sentence construction usually follows the Subject + Verb + Object (SVO) pattern, often followed by Adverbial phrases of manner (how) and place/target (where/for whom).

The correct answer is Option 4.

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: Adit explained that he hadn't had the time to prepare his speech the day before.
• Key Conversions:
• "he hadn't had" becomes "I didn't have"
• The Past Perfect tense ("hadn't had") in indirect speech typically reverts to the Simple Past tense ("didn't have") in direct speech when referring to a specific time in the past.
• The pronoun "he" changes to "I" to reflect the first-person perspective of the speaker (Adit).
• "his speech" becomes "my speech"
• The possessive pronoun "his" changes to "my" to match the change in the subject pronoun.
• "the day before" becomes "yesterday"
• In direct speech, specific time expressions like "yesterday" are used, which shift to "the day before" or "the previous day" in indirect speech.
• Reporting verb:
• "explained" is a reporting verb that can be represented by "said" in direct speech format.
• Punctuation and Format:
• The direct speech is enclosed in double quotation marks.
• A comma separates the reporting verb "said" from the quoted speech.
• The quoted sentence begins with a capital letter.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

Correct Sentence: Adit said, "I didn't have the time to prepare my speech yesterday."

Additional Information

• Option 1: "Adit said, 'I didn't have the time to prepare my speech the day before.'"
• Incorrect because "the day before" is the indirect speech form of "yesterday."
• Option 2: "Adit said, 'I hadn't had the time to prepare my speech yesterday.'"
• Incorrect because the Past Perfect is usually the result of backshifting from the Simple Past; using it in direct speech with "yesterday" is grammatically less appropriate here.
• Option 3: "Adit said, 'I haven't had the time to prepare my speech the day before.'"
• Incorrect because it mixes the Present Perfect tense with "the day before," which is grammatically inconsistent for direct speech.

The correct answer is The school refused admission to Sheetal.

Key Points

• The given sentence is in the Passive Voice and follows the Simple Past Tense structure (was/were + V3).
• To convert a sentence from Passive Voice to Active Voice in the Simple Past Tense, the object of the passive sentence (the school) becomes the Subject of the active sentence.
• The auxiliary verb was is removed, and the past participle refused remains in its V2 (Simple Past) form, which is also refused.
• The original subject (Admission) becomes the Direct Object of the active verb.
• Option 1 is incorrect because it is still in the Passive Voice, merely rearranging the indirect object.
• Option 3 is incorrect because it changes the tense to Future Tense (will be).
• Option 4 is incorrect because it changes the tense to Present Perfect Continuous (has been refusing).
• Therefore, the sentence 'The school refused admission to Sheetal' correctly follows the Active Voice structure: Subject + V2 + Object.

Additional Information

• In Active Voice, the Subject is the doer of the action, whereas in Passive Voice, the Subject is the receiver of the action.
• The general rule for Simple Past conversion is: Active (Subject + V2 + Object) becomes Passive (Object + was/were + V3 + by + Subject).
• When a sentence has two objects (a Direct Object like 'admission' and an Indirect Object like 'Sheetal'), either can become the subject in the passive voice, but the active form remains the same.
• Common V2 and V3 forms for the verb 'refuse' are: Refuse (V1), Refused (V2), and Refused (V3).

The correct answer is Option 2.

Key Points

• The error lies in the use of the comparative degree "faster" when comparing more than two entities.
• In English grammar, the superlative degree (e.g., fastest) is used when comparing three or more people or things.
• The comparative degree (e.g., faster) is strictly used when comparing only two people or things.
• Since the sentence mentions "three runners," the word "faster" must be replaced with "fastest."

Therefore, the correct answer is faster.

Correct Sentence: "Of the three runners, he was the fastest."

Additional Information

• Runners: This is the correct plural form of the noun used after the number "three."
• Three: This is the correct numeral used to define the size of the group.
• Was: This is the correct singular verb form agreeing with the singular subject "he."
• If the sentence were "Of the two runners, he was the faster," it would be grammatically correct.

Question 1: Choose the correct one-word substitution for the following description - A communicable disease that can spread rapidly from person to person through direct contact

The correct answer is Option (4) i.e. Contagious.

Key Points

• The description "A communicable disease that can spread rapidly from person to person through direct contact" refers to an illness that is easily transmitted by physical touch or close proximity. (एक संक्रामक रोग जो सीधे संपर्क के माध्यम से एक व्यक्ति से दूसरे व्यक्ति में तेजी से फैल सकता है)
• Example: The school took immediate action to stop the spread of the communicable disease among students.
• "Contagious" means a disease spread from one person or organism to another by direct or indirect contact. (छूत की बीमारी/संक्रामक)
• Example: The doctor warned that the virus is highly contagious and advised the patient to stay in isolation.
• Therefore, the correct answer is- Contagious.

Additional Information

Here are the other options explained along with their Hindi meanings and example sentences:

• Eczema (खाज/एक्जिमा): A medical condition in which patches of skin become rough and inflamed with blisters that cause itching and bleeding.
• Example: She has been suffering from eczema since childhood and has to use special lotions.
• Infectious (संक्रामक): Likely to be transmitted to people, organisms, etc., through the environment, such as air or water.
• Example: Many infectious diseases can be prevented through timely vaccination.
• Fatal (घातक/प्राणघातक): Something that causes death.
• Example: The pilot suffered fatal injuries when the plane crashed.

Question: Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word. RECREANT Options: (1) Deceiver (2) Pacifist (3) Coward (4) Traitor Correct Answer: Coward

The correct answer is: Option (3) i.e. Coward.

Key Points

• The word "recreant" means crying for mercy; cowardly or unfaithful to a duty or allegiance. (कायर/डरपोक)
• Example: The recreant knight fled the battlefield as soon as the enemy charged.
• "Coward" refers to a person who lacks the courage to do or endure dangerous or unpleasant things. (डरपोक)
• Example: He was called a coward for not standing up for his friends when they were in trouble.
• Hence, we can infer that the synonym of 'recreant' is 'coward'.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Coward.

Additional Information

Here are the other options explained along with their Hindi meanings and example sentences:

• Deceiver (धोखेबाज़): A person who causes someone to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage.
• Example: The smooth-talking salesman turned out to be a clever deceiver.
• Pacifist (शांतिवादी): A person who believes that war and violence are unjustifiable.
• Example: As a lifelong pacifist, she spent her years protesting against military expansion.
• Traitor (गद्दार): A person who betrays a friend, country, principle, etc.
• Example: He was branded a traitor for leaking classified documents to the enemy.

The correct answer is Option 2.

Key Points

• The error in the sentence lies in the use of a double comparative: "more better."
• In English grammar, "better" is already the comparative form of the adjective "good."
• Adding "more" before a comparative adjective that is already in its comparative form (like better, faster, or stronger) is redundant and grammatically incorrect.
• To correct the sentence, the word "more" must be removed.

Therefore, the correct answer is more.

Correct Sentence: "This book is better than that one."

Additional Information

• Better: This is the correct comparative form used to compare two items.
• Book: This is the subject of the sentence and is used correctly as a singular noun.
• One: This is a pronoun used to replace the noun "book" to avoid repetition, which is grammatically sound.
• Comparative Rules: We use "more" for adjectives with two or more syllables (e.g., more expensive), but we add "-er" to one-syllable adjectives. We never use both "more" and "-er" together.

Question: What does the idiom "to keep the wolf away from the door" mean?

The correct answer is: Option (4) i.e. To avoid financial hardship.

Key Points

• The idiom "to keep the wolf away from the door" means to have enough money to be able to buy food and other necessary things; to avoid poverty or starvation. (भुखमरी या गरीबी से बचना)
• Example: With the rising cost of living, many families are struggling just to keep the wolf away from the door.
• "To avoid financial hardship" refers to the act of preventing a situation where one lacks the money to live comfortably or meet basic needs. (वित्तीय कठिनाई से बचना)
• Example: By saving a portion of her salary every month, she managed to avoid financial hardship during the recession.
• Therefore, the correct answer is- To avoid financial hardship.

Additional Information

Here are the other options explained along with their Hindi meanings and example sentences:

• To protect oneself from enemies (दुश्मनों से खुद को बचाना): To take measures to ensure safety from those who wish to cause harm.
• Example: The king built a massive fortress to protect himself and his people from enemies.
• To escape from a dangerous situation (खतरनाक स्थिति से बचना): To get away from a circumstance that is likely to cause harm or injury.
• Example: The hikers had to move quickly to escape from a dangerous situation when the storm began.
• To stay away from risky opportunities (जोखिम भरे अवसरों से दूर रहना): To avoid chances or prospects that involve a high possibility of loss or failure.
• Example: He is a cautious person who prefers to stay away from risky opportunities in the stock market.

The correct answer is Cross-lab efforts are believed to have been being coordinated by the chief scientist since the early stages of the project.

Key Points

• The original sentence uses a Perfect Continuous Infinitive structure: to have been coordinating. This indicates an ongoing action that occurred over a period in the past.
• To transform the Perfect Continuous Infinitive into the Passive Voice, the formula is: to have been + being + past participle (V3). Therefore, to have been coordinating must become to have been being coordinated.
• The Object of the active phrase, cross-lab efforts, becomes the Subject of the passive sentence. Since cross-lab efforts is plural, the reporting verb is believed changes to are believed to maintain Subject-Verb Agreement.
• Option 3 is the only choice that correctly maintains the Perfect Continuous aspect while applying the passive transformation.
• Option 4 is incorrect because to have been coordinated is the passive form of the Perfect Infinitive (to have coordinated), which loses the continuous nature of the original sentence.
• Option 1 incorrectly changes the tense to Present Continuous (are being coordinated), and Option 2 uses an ungrammatical word order (to being have coordinated).

Additional Information

• The Passive Voice is used to emphasize the action or the recipient of the action rather than the performer (the agent).
• Reporting Verbs such as believe, claim, consider, estimate, and report are frequently used in passive structures to convey information from an unspecified source or a general consensus.
• Although the Perfect Continuous Passive (e.g., have been being coordinated) is grammatically valid, it is relatively rare in everyday speech because the accumulation of auxiliary verbs can make the sentence sound complex. However, in formal grammar exams, it is the precise equivalent of the active perfect continuous.
• When converting to passive, the preposition 'by' is used to introduce the agent (The chief scientist) who performed the action.

The correct answer is Option (4) i.e. 3-2-1-4

Key Points

• The paragraph begins with sentence 3, which introduces the subject "Ludwig van Beethoven" and establishes his identity as a German composer.
• Sentence 2 logically follows as it provides a significant biographical detail (his hearing loss) and his achievement despite that challenge.
• Sentence 1 then builds on his compositions by providing specific, iconic examples of his work, such as the "Ninth Symphony" and "Moonlight Sonata."
• Finally, sentence 4 concludes the paragraph by discussing his broad, lasting influence on future generations of musicians.

Therefore, the correct sequence is 3-2-1-4.

Additional Information

• Option 1 (4-2-1-3): This sequence starts with his influence before the subject has even been introduced, making it logically disjointed.
• Option 2 (1-4-3-2): This starts with specific works and influence before introducing who the composer is, which lacks proper introductory flow.
• Option 3 (2-3-1-4): This option uses the pronoun "he" in the first sentence before the noun "Ludwig van Beethoven" is introduced in the second sentence, which is grammatically poor for a paragraph opening.