English Comprehension PYQs

The correct answer is Option 4.

 

Key Points

• Passive voice structure: The object of the active voice sentence becomes the subject of the passive voice sentence.
• In the active voice, the sentence is: "Mr. Prakash writes short stories."
• To convert to passive voice: Place the object "short stories" at the beginning.
• Change the active verb form "writes" to "are written" (present simple passive).
• Add the preposition "by" followed by the original subject "Mr. Prakash."

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Correct Sentence: "Short stories are written by Mr. Prakash."

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "Short stories were written by Mr. Prakash." – Incorrect tense (past simple passive).
• Option 2: "Short stories are being written by Mr. Prakash." – Incorrect tense (present continuous passive).
• Option 3: "Short stories have been written by Mr. Prakash." – Incorrect tense (present perfect passive).

The correct answer is 'As soon as'.

 

Key Points

• The phrase "As soon as" is used to show that something happens immediately after another event.
• The sentence describes an action that occurs right after the teacher enters the classroom, so "As soon as" is appropriate.
• Options 1, 3, and 4 are grammatically incorrect in this context.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 2.

 

Complete Sentence: "As soon as the teacher entered the classroom, all the students stood up to greet him."

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "Whereas" is incorrect because it is used to contrast two different situations and does not fit the context.
• Option 3: "Rather" is incorrect because it is used to indicate preference or contrast, which is not suitable here.
• Option 4: "Yet" is incorrect because it is used to indicate something that has not happened up until now, which does not fit the context.

The correct answer is Option 2.

 

Key Points

• Passive voice structure: The object of the active voice sentence becomes the subject of the passive voice sentence.
• In the active voice, the sentence is: "Why did your manager refuse to give you the pay raise?"
• To convert to passive voice: Place the object "the pay raise" at the beginning.
• Change the active verb form "did refuse" to "was refused" (past simple passive).
• Add the preposition "by" followed by the original subject "your manager."
• Ensure the question format remains correct for clarity.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 2.

 

Correct Sentence: "Why was the pay raise refused to be given to you by your manager?"

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "Why has the pay raise been refused to be given to you by your manager?" – Incorrect tense (present perfect passive).
• Option 3: "Why had your manager refused to give you the pay raise?" – This is the active voice version of the sentence.
• Option 4: "Why have you been refused the pay raise by your manager?" – Incorrect tense (present perfect passive).

The correct answer is Option 4.

 

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: The principal said that he would hold a meeting the next day.
• Key Conversions:
• "that he would hold a meeting" becomes "I will hold a meeting"
• Pronoun "he" is changed to "I" to match direct speech.
• Verb "would" is changed to "will" to match the future tense in direct speech.
• "the next day" becomes "tomorrow"
• Time expression "the next day" is converted to "tomorrow" for direct speech.
• Reporting verb:
• Indirect: "said that"
• Converted to: "said", maintaining the reporting structure.
• Punctuation and Format:
• Direct speech is enclosed in quotation marks.
• Starts with a capital letter "I" and ends with a period ".".
• Reporting clause follows the quoted speech, starting with a lowercase letter after the comma.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Correct Sentence: "“I will hold a meeting tomorrow,” said the principal."

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "Tomorrow, I will hold a meeting," says the principal.
• Uses present tense "says" instead of past tense "said".
• Option 2: "A meeting will be held by me," said the principal.
• Changes the active voice to passive voice, which is not a direct speech conversion.
• Option 3: "I will be holding a meeting tomorrow," the principal said.
• Uses continuous future tense "will be holding" instead of simple future tense "will hold".

The correct answer is Option (3) i.e. DBAC

Key Points

• The sentence begins with the subject "I always eat peas with honey," which is correctly indicated by part (D).
• Following the subject, "I've done so all my life" (DB) continues the logical sequence, making it clear what the writer has always done.
• The next part, "But it keeps them on the knife," starts the explanation about the reason, indicated by (A).
• Ending with "They do taste kind of funny" (C) completes the sentence by stating the effect of the action.

Therefore, the correct answer is DBAC.

 

Additional Information

• Option 1 (ABDC): This option starts with "They do taste kind of funny But it keeps them on the knife," which makes the sentence incorrect as the explanation starts too early, missing contextual flow.
• Option 2 (BACD): This option starts with "I've done so all my life They do taste kind of funny," which makes the sentence incorrect as it does not start with the subject.
• Option 4 (CBAD): This option starts with "But it keeps them on the knife I've done so all my life," which creates a fragmented and confusing sentence structure.

The correct answer is Option 2.

 

Key Points

• The error in the sentence is the omission of the article "the" before "worse."
• In comparative sentences, when using "the more" or "the less," the corresponding part should include "the" as well.
• The correct phrase should be "the worse," ensuring grammatical correctness.
• Thus, the error is located in part B of the sentence.

Therefore, the correct answer is B.

 

Correct Sentence: "The more it rains, the worse the roads become."

The correct answer is: Option 3 i.e. to read between the lines.

Key Points

• "To read between the lines" means to understand the hidden meaning or subtext of something. (छिपे हुए या अप्रकटित अर्थ को समझना)
• Example: You need to read between the lines to understand what the author is truly saying.

Therefore, the correct answer is: to read between the lines.

Additional Information

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

• To cast pearls before swine (मूर्खों के सामने मूल्यवान वस्तु प्रस्तुत करना): Offering valuable things to those who can't appreciate them.
• Example: Sharing profound wisdom with uninterested students is like casting pearls before swine.
• To not judge a book by its cover (केवल बाहरी रूप देखकर किसी का मूल्यांकन न करना): Avoid judging based on appearances.
• Example: That old house looks shabby, but don't judge a book by its cover; inside it's beautiful.
• To be under somebody’s thumb (किसी के नियंत्रण या प्रभाव में होना): Being dominated or controlled by someone.
• Example: John is under his wife’s thumb and rarely makes decisions on his own.

The correct answer is Option 1.

 

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: It is used to report what someone said without using their exact words.
• Key Conversions:
• In indirect speech, the past simple tense "lost" changes to past perfect "had lost."
• The pronoun "I" is changed to "she" to match the subject "Gita."
• The possessive "my" changes to "her" to reflect Gita’s ownership of the umbrella.
• Correct Indirect Speech: "Gita said that she had lost her umbrella."

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 1.

 

Additional Information

• Option 2: "Gita said that I lost my umbrella."
• Incorrect because "I" should change to "she" (referring to Gita).
• Option 3: "Gita told me that he lost her umbrella."
• Incorrect because "he" is wrongly used instead of "she" for Gita.
• Option 4: "Gita expressed that she has lost her umbrella."
• Incorrect because "has lost" should be in past perfect "had lost."

The correct answer is: Option 4.

Key Points

• The idiom "armed to the teeth" means to be fully equipped or prepared for a difficult situation. (पूरी तरह से सुसज्जित या तैयार होना)
• Example: The security team was armed to the teeth to handle any threat during the event.
• "Well-equipped or prepared" refers to having all the necessary tools, resources, or information to handle a task or situation effectively. (अच्छी तरह से सुसज्जित या तैयार)
• Example: The students were well-equipped for their exams with all the required study materials and notes.
• Hence, we can infer that the idiom 'armed to the teeth' means 'well-equipped or prepared'.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Option 4.

Additional Information

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

• Separated from the worthless (अमूल्य से अलग): To distinguish or segregate valuable things from those that are worthless.
• Example: The expert was able to separate the valuable artifacts from the worthless imitations.
• Active without any goals (कोई लक्ष्य न होने पर सक्रिय): Engaging in activities without any specific purpose or objectives.
• Example: He was active without any goals, participating in various clubs but never committing to any.
• Working in a great hurry (बहुत जल्दी में काम करना): Performing tasks quickly, often with a sense of urgency and sometimes carelessly.
• Example: She was working in a great hurry to meet the project deadline.

The correct answer is Option 3.

 

Key Points

• The main issue in the sentence is the use of the correct pronoun "their" instead of "there".
• "Their" is a possessive pronoun, which correctly refers to ownership or association.
• Additionally, "are" correctly matches with the plural noun "reasons".
• Thus, the correct phrase should be "What are their reasons for refusing the offer?"

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 3.

 

Correct Sentence: "What are their reasons for refusing the offer?"

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "is there reasons" – This is incorrect because "is" does not agree with the plural noun "reasons".
• Option 2: "is their reasons" – This is incorrect because "is" does not agree with the plural noun "reasons".
• Option 4: "are there reason" – This is incorrect because "reason" should be in the plural form "reasons".

The correct answer is Option 1.

 

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: The child tells his mother that he is going to play with his friends.
• Key Conversions:
• "I am going to play with my friends" becomes "he is going to play with his friends"
• Pronoun "I" is changed to "he" to match the indirect speech.
• Verb "am" is changed to "is" to match the third person singular pronoun.
• Possessive pronoun "my" is changed to "his" to match the third person singular pronoun.
• Punctuation and Format:
• Indirect speech does not require quotation marks.
• The reporting verb "tells" is in the present tense as it matches the original sentence's context.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 1.

 

Correct Sentence: "The child tells his mother that he is going to play with his friends."

 

Additional Information

• Option 2: "The child asked his mother that he is going to play with his friends."
• Incorrect reporting verb: "asked" should be "tells".
• Option 3: "The child told his mother that I am going to play with my friends."
• Incorrect pronouns: "I" and "my" should be "he" and "his" respectively.
• Option 4: "The child said to his mother that he was going to play with his friends."
• Incorrect tense: "was" should be "is".

The correct answer is Option 4.

 

Key Points

• The primary issue in the sentence is the omission of the article "a" before the term "25-year-old man."
• Singular countable nouns typically require an article ("a" or "an").
• The correct phrase should be "for a 25-year-old man," ensuring grammatical correctness and clarity.
• Thus, the error is located in Option 4 of the sentence.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Correct Sentence: "Since 1988, the people of Rajasthan have been searching for a 25-year-old man."

The correct answer is 'What is the name of the next station?'.

 

Key Points

• The sentence should use the definite article "the" before "next station" to specify the particular station being referred to.
• The interrogative pronoun "What" is correctly placed at the beginning of the sentence to ask for specific information.
• Option 4 is grammatically correct, whereas Options 1, 2, and 3 are incorrect due to the improper use of articles or structure.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Complete Sentence: "What is the name of the next station?"

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "What is the name of a next station?" is incorrect because "a" should be "the" when referring to a specific station.
• Option 2: "What is a name of a next station?" is incorrect due to the improper use of the article "a" and the redundancy of two indefinite articles.
• Option 3: "What is a name of the next station?" is incorrect because "a name" should be "the name" to specify the particular name being asked for.

The correct answer is Option 4.

 

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: The reporter reported that the US President was arriving to India that week.
• Key Conversions:
• "The US President is arriving" becomes "the US President was arriving"
• Present continuous tense "is arriving" is converted to past continuous tense "was arriving" in indirect speech.
• "this week" becomes "that week"
• Time indicator "this" is changed to "that" to match the indirect speech.
• Reporting verb:
• Direct: "reported"
• Remains unchanged in the indirect sentence.
• Punctuation and Format:
• Indirect speech does not require quotation marks.
• Time indicators are adjusted to match the indirect speech context.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Correct Sentence: "The reporter reported that the US President was arriving to India that week."

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: "The reporter reported that the US President was arriving to India this week."
• Incorrect time indicator "this week" instead of "that week".
• Option 2: "The reporter reports that the US President is arriving to India that week."
• Incorrect reporting verb tense "reports" instead of "reported".
• Option 3: "The reporter reported that the US President is arriving to India next week."
• Incorrect time indicator "next week" instead of "that week".

The correct answer is Option 1.

 

Key Points

• The primary issue in the sentence is the incorrect preposition "of" used in the phrase "of the newspaper headlines."
• The correct preposition to use here is "at".
• The correct phrase should be "at the newspaper headlines," ensuring grammatical correctness and clarity.
• Thus, the error is located in part 1 of the sentence.

Therefore, the correct answer is 1.

 

Correct Sentence: "I looked at the newspaper headlines but I didn’t read carefully."

The correct answer is: Option 2 i.e. subservient.

Key Points

• The word "intransigent" means refusing to change one's views or to agree about something. (अडिग)
• Example: The intransigent leader refused to compromise on any of the party's policies.
• "Subservient" refers to being prepared to obey others unquestioningly; submissive. (अधीन)
• Example: The subservient employee followed every order without question.
• Hence, we can infer that the opposite of 'intransigent' is 'subservient'.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Option 2 i.e. subservient.

Additional Information

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

• Pertinacious (हठी): Holding firmly to an opinion or a course of action.
• Example: Her pertinacious attitude helped her achieve her goals despite many obstacles.
• Obstinate (हठी): Stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or chosen course of action.
• Example: The obstinate child refused to eat his vegetables.
• Tenacious (दृढ़): Tending to keep a firm hold of something; clinging or adhering closely.
• Example: Her tenacious grip on the rope saved her from falling.

The correct answer is Option 4.

 

Key Points

• Indirect Speech: Ritu said that she was eating apples.
• Key Conversions:
• Present continuous "am eating" becomes past continuous "was eating"
• Verb "am eating" is changed to "was eating" to match the past continuous tense in indirect speech.
• Pronoun "I" is changed to "she"
• Pronoun "I" is converted to "she" to match the third-person perspective in indirect speech.
• Punctuation and Format:
• No quotation marks are used in indirect speech.
• The reporting clause "Ritu said that" precedes the statement.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 4.

 

Correct Sentence: Ritu said that she was eating apples.

 

Additional Information

• Option 1: Ritu said that she had been eating apples.
• Incorrect tense: "had been eating" changes the meaning to past perfect continuous.
• Option 2: Ritu told that she was eating apples.
• Incorrect reporting verb: "told" should be followed by an object, e.g., "told me".
• Option 3: Ritu said that she has been eating apples.
• Incorrect tense: "has been eating" suggests present perfect continuous, which is incorrect in this context.

The correct answer is 'to cut back on'.

 

Key Points

• The phrase "to cut back on" means to reduce the amount of something, which is the intended meaning in the given sentence.
• Options 2, 3, and 4 are incorrect because they do not fit the context of reducing the intake of junk foods.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option 1.

 

Complete Sentence: "Doctor wants Tony to cut back on junk foods."

 

Additional Information

• Option 2: "to cut back over" is incorrect because "cut back over" is not a standard phrase in English.
• Option 3: "to cut back out" is incorrect because "cut back out" is not a standard phrase in English.
• Option 4: "to cut back off" is incorrect because "cut back off" is not a standard phrase in English.

The correct answer is: Option 1 i.e. To waste one’s energy on a lost cause.

Key Points

• The idiom "To flog a dead horse" means:
• To waste one's energy on a lost cause. (एक खोए हुए कारण पर अपनी ऊर्जा बर्बाद करना)
• Example: Trying to change his mind about the project is like flogging a dead horse; he's already made up his decision.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Option 1 i.e. To waste one’s energy on a lost cause.

Additional Information

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

• To remain valid (वैध बने रहना):
• Example: The contract will remain valid for the next five years.
• To escape from the situation (स्थिति से बचना):
• Example: He tried to escape from the situation by making an excuse.
• To achieve something easily (आसानी से कुछ हासिल करना):
• Example: With his experience, he can achieve the task easily.

The correct answer is: Option 3 i.e. hasten.

Key Points

• The word "linger" means to stay in a place longer than necessary because of a reluctance to leave. (देर करना)
• Example: Don't linger at the park, we need to get home soon.
• "Hasten" means to be quick to do something or to move or act swiftly. (जल्दी करना)
• Example: Please hasten your steps; we are running late.
• Hence, we can infer that the opposite of 'linger' is 'hasten'.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Option 3 i.e. hasten.

Additional Information

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

• Trifle (तुच्छ): Something of little value or importance.
• Example: He spent his time on trifles instead of focusing on his work.
• Idle (बेकार): Avoiding work; lazy or not active.
• Example: The machine sat idle for months before being repaired.
• Delay (विलंब): The act of postponing or slowing down.
• Example: The flight was delayed due to bad weather.