Sample Exam Questions for SSC English

Directions: In questions no. 1 to 3, out of the four alternatives, choose the one which best expresses the meaning of the given word.

1. TYRANNY (a) Misrule

(b) Power

(c) Madness (d) Cruelty

2. WRATH (a) Jealousy (b) Hatred

(c) Anger

(d) Violence

3. PROLIFIC (a) Impatient

(b) Competent

(c) Fertile

(d) Predominant

Directions: In questions no. 4 to 6, choose the word opposite in meaning to the given word.

4. CULPABLE (a) Unscrupulous (b) Innocent

(c) Irresponsible

(d) Careless

5. VITAL (a) Peripheral (b) Dead

(c) Unimportant

(d) Outer

6. ADMONISH (a) Flatter

(b) Approve (c) Commend (d) Tolerate

Directions: In questions no. 7 to 16, sentences are given with blanks to be filled with an appropriate word(s). Four alternatives are suggested for each question. Choose the correct alternative out of the four.

7. My friend has a strange habit of turning ………. at odd hours. (a) Down (b) Out (c) Over (d) Up 8. Hardly had he arrived …………. It started raining. (a) When (b) Before (c) After (d) Then 9. There being no evidence against him, he was acquitted ………..the charge. (a) Of (b) From (c) Off (d) With 10. By this time next year Rajesh will ……. his university degree in marketing management. (a) Have took (b) Have taken (c) Has taken (d) Had taken 11. Baggage can be covered …… loss or accident during travel. (a) Along (b) With (c) Against (d) For 12. The high court ………… the death sentence of the prisoner. (a) Set about (b) Set aside (c) Set down (d) Set upon

13. He is being considered ………….. senior managerial position. (a) For (b) Towards (c) Of (d) To 14. The sun …………… at six this morning. (a) Arose (b) Aroused (c) Rose

(d) Raised

15. …………. you do not work you cannot succeed. (a) Till (b) Until (c) If (d) Unless 16. I congratulate you …….. your success. (a) In (b) At (c) On (d) For Directions: In questions no. 17 to 26, some parts of the sentences have errors and some are correct. Find out which part of a sentence has an error. If a sentence is free from error, mark ―No error‖ as your answer.

17. He charged me (a)/one hundred rupees for five dozens (b)/oranges of average quality (c). No error (d).

18. Raju and his friend (a)/were going to see a picture (b)/ when they met his common friend (c). No error (d) 19. Only forty percent (a)/ of the eligible voters (b)/ is going to the polls (c). No error (d) 20. My father is (a)/ in bad mood (b)/ today (c). No error (d) 21. The mechanic has been repairing (a)/ the horn of the car (b)/ since two hours (c). No error (d) 22. If you will promise not to get angry (a)/ I shall tell you the truth (b)/ about last week's events (c).

No error (d) 23. Now-a-days many a student (a)/ is frustrated (b)/ because of unemployment problem (c). No error (d) 24. Who have you invited (a)/ for the lecture on (b)/ astrophysics this evening? (c) No error (d) 25. He is (a)/ a right man (b)/ for the job (c). No error (d) 26. Kavita is a beautiful girl (a)/ who has been blessed with (b)/ childish grace (c). No error (d) Directions: In questions no. 27 to 32, there are four different words out of which one is correctly spelt. Find the correctly spelt word.

27. (a) Horticulture

(b) Harticulture

(c) Horticultre

(d) Hearticulture

28. (a) Hygienicaly

(b) Hygienically

(c) Hygeinically

(d) Hyginically

29. (a) Inauguraion

(b) Inoguration

(c) Inaguration

(d) Inauguration

30. (a) Joundice

(b) Jondice

(c) Jaundice

(d) Jaundise

31. (a) Lieutenant

(b) Leutenant

(c) Leutenent

(d) Liutenant

32. (a) Grammar

(b) Grammer

(c) Grammarr

(d) Grammerr

Directions: In questions no. 33 to 37, you have a passage with 5 questions. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.

Max Weber laid the foundation for my belief that decent and hardworking people with high aspirations make great nations, no matter what the odds are. This was the first piece of the development puzzle for me. Mahatma Gandhi opened my eyes to the importance of good leadership in raising the aspirations of people, making them accept sacrifices to achieve a grand vision, and most importantly, in converting that vision into reality. He unleashed the most powerful instrument for gaining trust – leadership by example. He ate, dressed, travelled and lived like the poor. Walking the talk was extremely important to the Mahatma who understood the pulse of our people like no other Indian leader. The biggest lesson for me from Gandhi‘s book and life is the importance of leading by example. I realized fairly early that this was the second piece of the development puzzle.

Frantz Fanon‘s book on the colonizer mindset of elites in a post-colonial society opened my eyes to the role of the bureaucracy and the elite in decelerating the progress of the poor and the disenfranchised. The colonial mindset of the ‗dark elite in white masks‘ in a post-colonial society – the mindset that the ruled and the rulers have different sets of rights and responsibilities with a huge asymmetry in favour of the rulers — was indeed the third piece of the development puzzle. I see this attitude of the Indian elite every day in how they send their children to English medium schools while forcing the children of the poor into vernacular schools, extol the virtues of poverty while living in luxury, and glorify the rural life while they sit comfortably in cities.

33. The main purpose of the author in the above passage is to (a) discuss the different writers he has read (b) argue why India should not be considered a developed country (c) delineate the lessons he has learnt for the development of a nation (d) prioritise goals for only economic development of India 34. The first piece of the development puzzle, according to the author, is (a) creating a team of industrious people for a national cause (b) the importance of decent, inspired and industrious people for a nation‘s development (c) imbuing the citizens of the country with decency and aspirations (d) the need for making people understand the importance of leading an idealistic and simple life 35. Mahatma Gandhi proved that only leadership by example can (a) mobilise the people of a country against colonial rule (b) fully and properly understand the pulse of the people of a country (c) gain the trust of the people so that they are willing to make sacrifices for a larger cause (d) inspire people to eat, dress, travel and live like the poor

36. The expression ‗walking the talk‘ means (a) addressing public gatherings in an election campaign (b) talking to the common people by mingling with them (c) being diplomatic in one‘s behaviour and words (d) practising what one preaches 37. Extolling ‗the virtues of poverty while living in luxury‘ is an instance of (a) the hypocrisy of the people of our country (b) practising what you preach (c) the ideal of a good government (d) the need to make people adopt a simple life Directions: In questions no. 38 to 42, out of the four alternatives choose the one which can be substituted for the given words / sentence.

38. One who compiles a dictionary (a) Lexicographer (b) Calligrapher (c) Editor (d) Compiler 39. Government subject to a religious authority (a) Plutocracy (b) Theocracy (c) Hexarchy (d) Emissary 40. One who uses somebody else‘s ideas or writings as if they were his own (a) Editor (b) Copywriter (c) Proof reader (d) Plagiarist 41. Government by a small group of people (a) Clique (b) Oligarchy (c) Oligopoly (d) Monarchy 42. A song of praise (a) Eulogy (b) Hymn (c) Pun (d) None of these Directions: In questions no. 43 to 47, a part of the sentence is underlined. Below are given alternatives to the underlined part at (a), (b) and (c) which may improve the sentence. Choose the correct alternative. In case no improvement is needed your answer is (d).

43. The increasing sale of luxuries is an index of the country‘s prosperity. (a) appendix (b) pointer (c) mark (d) No improvement 44. Tell your leader that I grant him the permission of stay in my kingdom. (a) with staying (b) to stay (c) for stay (d) No improvement 45. If I was you I would not sign the document. (a) If I have been you (b) If I were you (c) If I have been you (d) No improvement

46. I prefer to ride than to walk. (a) ride to walk (b) riding than walking (c) riding to walking (d) No improvement 47. They were astonished through his failure in the examination. (a) from (b) at (c) with (d) No improvement Directions: In questions no. 48 to 50, four alternatives are given for the underlined idiom/phrase.

Choose the alternative which best expresses the meaning of the given idiom/phrase.

48. Unless you grease his palms he will not do your work. (a) talk to him (b) flatter him (c) beat him (d) bribe him 49. His arguments cut no ice with me. (a) had no influence on me (b) did not hurt me (c) did not benefit me (d) did not make me proud 50. The carrot and stick policy pays dividends in every organisation. (a) fair and foul (b) continuous vigilance (c) democratic (d) reward and punishment Answers & Explanations 1. d. Cruelty 2. c. Anger 3. c. Fertile 4. b. Innocent 5. c. Unimportant 6. c. Commend 7. d. Up 8. a. When. ―Hardly had….when‖ is used for saying that something had only just happened when something else happened.

9. a. Of 10. b. Have taken. The sentence should be written in the future perfect tense.

11. c. Against 12. b. Set aside. ―Set aside‖ means to officially state that a particular legal decision will no longer be followed.

13. a. For 14. c. Rose 15. c. If

16. c. On 17. b. ―Dozens‖ is incorrect. It must be replaced with ―dozen‖.

18. c. The sentence refers to Raju and his friend. Instead of ―his common friend‖, it must be ―their common friend‖ 19. c. Instead of ―is going to the polls‖, it must be ―are going to the polls‖.

20. b. ―In bad mood‖ is an incorrect expression. Article ―a‖ must be placed before bad mood. It must read ―in a bad mood‖.

21. c. ―Since two hours‖, must be replaced with ―for two hours‖.

22. a. ―If you will promise not to get angry‖ must be replaced with ―If you promise not to get angry‖.

The conditional clause must be in the present tense, not the future tense.

23. d. No error 24. a. ―Who‖ must be replaced with ―whom‖.

25. b. ―A right man‖ is an incorrect expression. It must be replaced with ―the right man‖.

26.c. ―Childish grace‖ should be replaced with ―child-like grace‖. ―Childish‖ has a negative connotation; it means silly and immature.

27. a. Horticulture 28. b. Hygienically 29. d. Inauguration 30. c. Jaundice 31. a. Lieutenant 32. a. Grammar 33. c. The writer‘s motive of writing this passage is to outline the lessons for the development of a nation. He has discussed the three pieces of the development puzzle, which are nothing but three lessons.

34. b. The answer has been drawn from the lines ―Max Weber laid the foundation for my belief that decent and hardworking people with high aspirations make great nations, no matter what the odds are. This was the first piece of the development puzzle for me‖.

35. c. The answer has been drawn from the lines ―Mahatma Gandhi opened my eyes to the importance of good leadership in raising the aspirations of people, making them accept sacrifices to achieve a grand vision, and most importantly, in converting that vision into reality. He unleashed the most powerful instrument for gaining trust – leadership by example.‖ 36. d. Practising what one preaches.

37. a. The hypocrisy of the people of our country. It is an example of the double standards of the Indian elite.

38. a. Lexicographer 39. b. Theocracy 40. d. Plagiarist 41. b. Oligarchy 42. a. Eulogy 43. d. No improvement 44. b. To stay 45. b. If I were you 46. d. The infinitive form (to ride) must be compared with (to walk).

47. b. At 48. d. Bribe him 49. a. Had no influence on me 50. d. Reward and punishment