English Questions

Read the following passage carefully and choose the most appropriate answer to the question out of the four alternatives.

In short, to write a good letter you must approach the job in the lightest and most casual way. You must be personal, not abstract. You must not say, 'This is too small a thing to put down'. You must say, 'This is just the sort of small thing we talk about at home. If I tell them this they will see me, as it were they'll hear my voice, they'll know what I'm talking about'. That is the purpose of a letter. Carlyle had the trick to perfection. He is writing from Scotsbrig to his brother Alec in Canada and he begins talking about his mother. Good old Mother, he says, 'she is even now sitting at my back, trying at another table to write you a small word with her own hand; the first time she has tried such a thing for a year past. It is Saturday night, after dark; we are in the east room in a hard, dry evening with a bright fire to our two selves; Jenny and her Barns are 'scouring up things' in the other end of the house; and below stairs the winter operations of the farm go on, in a subdued tone; you can conceive the scene! How simple it is and yet how perfect. Can not you see Alec reading it in his far-off home and his eyes moistening at the picture of his old mother sitting and writing her last message to him on earth?

Subdued tone means _______.

In the following question, out of the four alternatives, select the alternative which will improve the bracketed part of the sentence. In case no improvement is needed, select "no improvement".

Thus we (going) back to what might be termed as old values.

In the following question, some part of the sentence may have errors. Find out which part of the sentence has an error and select the appropriate option. If a sentence is free from error, select ‘No Error’.

Our school’s faculty and administration should not (1)/ sacrifice high standards and regulations in order (2)/ to make students temporarily happy. (3)/ No error (4)

The question below consists of a set of labelled sentences. These sentences, when properly sequenced form a coherent paragraph. Select the most logical order of sentences from among the options.

P: People celebrate it as a two-day festival; first day as Holika Dahan and second day as colourful Holi.
Q: Holi is a religious Hindu festival celebrated with lots of preparations in the month of Phalgun.
R: At Holika Dahan, they burn a heap of sticks, straws and cow-dung cakes lying in the mid of streets in the late evening or night.
S: And, next day in the morning, they celebrate a colorful Holi by playing colours with friends, family members and neighbours.

The question below consists of a set of labelled sentences. These sentences, when properly sequenced form a coherent paragraph. Select the most logical order of sentences from among the options.

P: When you read a book you are focusing your attention on the conceptual ideas in the book.
Q: Self awareness is developed through practices in focusing your attention on the details of your personality and behavior which isn’t learned from reading a book.
R: You can develop an intellectual understanding of the ideas of self awareness from a book, but this is not the same.
S: With your attention in a book you are practicing not paying attention to your own behavior, emotions and personality.

In the following question, a sentence has been given in Direct/Indirect speech. Out of the four alternatives suggested, select the one which best expresses the same sentence in Indirect/Direct speech.

The teacher said to the students, "Work hard now if you wish to have a better future."

In the following question, a sentence has been given in Direct/Indirect speech. Out of the four alternatives suggested, select the one which best
expresses the same sentence in Indirect/Direct speech.
Vaibhav said to me, "Has your father returned from work?"

In the following question, the sentence given with blank to be filled in with an appropriate word. Select the correct alternative out of the four and indicate it by selecting the appropriate option.

Egoism is ______ or negative pride-the mentality of showing and acting superior to others.