SSC CPO Paper I 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 PYQs

Concept: Spurious means false, fake or not what it claims to be. An antonym must mean real or authentic.

1. ‘They drank some spurious drink’ = a fake/adulterated drink, which is why they fainted.
2. Genuine = real, authentic – exact opposite.
3. Artificial is close to spurious (a synonym-type word); curious (eager to know) and nefarious (wicked) are unrelated.

Trick: Spurious = fake ↔ genuine = real. Think ‘spurious liquor’ (नकली शराब).

Answer: (D) genuine

Concept: A ‘-mania’ word names an abnormal, uncontrollable urge. The urge to steal (without need) is kleptomania (Greek kleptein = to steal).

1. Pyromania – compulsion to set things on fire.
2. Dipsomania – uncontrollable craving for alcohol.
3. Megalomania – obsession with power/one’s own greatness.
4. Only Kleptomania = morbid compulsion to steal.

Trick: Klepto = steal (kleptomaniac = one who steals compulsively); pyro = fire; dipso = drink; megalo = great.

Answer: (B) Kleptomania

Concept: (Straight) from the horse’s mouth means getting information directly from the person who knows it first-hand.

1. The underlined part ‘heard the facts directly from him’ = first-hand information from the person involved.
2. Speak of the devil – said when the person being discussed appears.
3. Get something out of your system – get rid of a strong feeling/urge.
4. Pour one’s heart out – share deep feelings, not ‘facts directly’.

Trick: Horse’s mouth = original source. ‘I heard it straight from the horse’s mouth’ = from the person himself.

Answer: (D) Straight from horse’s mouth

Concept: Numismatics is the study or collection of coins, currency and medals (Latin nummus = coin).

1. Philately – collection and study of postage stamps.
2. Antiquary – a person who studies or collects antiques.
3. Apothecary – a person who prepares and sells medicines (old word for pharmacist).
4. So ‘study of coins’ = Numismatics.

Yaad rakhein: Numismatics – ‘N’ for ‘Notes/coiNs’; Philately – ‘P’ for ‘Postage stamps’.

Answer: (C) Numismatics

Concept: Quite (adverb) means ‘fairly/completely’; quiet (adjective) means ‘silent’. After the linking verb be we need an adjective of state – quiet.

1. Meaning required: the students should remain silent in the exam → ‘be quiet’.
2. ‘be quite’ is a spelling-confusion error, so substitution is needed.
3. ‘have quiet’ is unidiomatic; ‘been quiet’ cannot follow ‘to’ (to + base form needed).

Trick: quiet = silent (ends in -et like ‘secret’); quite = very/fairly (ends in -te).

Answer: (B) be quiet

Concept: Insipid means lacking flavour, tasteless; figuratively, dull or uninteresting.

1. The customers refused to pay because the platter was tasteless → ‘lacking taste’.
2. ‘full of flavours’ and ‘full of spices’ are the opposite of insipid.
3. ‘filled with dirt’ means dirty, not tasteless.

Trick: Insipid = in (not) + sapid (tasty) → not tasty.

Answer: (D) lacking taste

Concept: Raise a hue and cry means to make a loud public protest or outcry against something.

1. Doctors are loudly opposing the RTH (Right to Health) bill → they are protesting.
2. ‘Enquire’ = ask; ‘Postpone’ = delay; ‘Abandon’ = give up – none shows loud opposition.

Trick: Hue and cry = shouting/outcry → strong protest.

Answer: (B) Protest

Concept: Part and parcel (of something) means an essential, inseparable part of it.

1. Technology has become an essential element of modern life → ‘an integral part’.
2. ‘an obstacle’, ‘a myth’ and ‘a useless part’ all contradict the positive, essential sense of the idiom.

Trick: Part and parcel = can’t be separated → integral (अभिन्न).

Answer: (D) an integral part

Concept: Major (adjective) means important, large or serious in size/extent.

1. Considerable = large in size, amount or importance – closest in meaning.
2. Diligent = hard-working; Shallow = not deep/superficial (closer to an antonym); Creviced = having cracks.

Trick: Major ≈ considerable/significant; minor ≈ negligible.

Answer: (C) Considerable

Concept: Abstract qualities used in a general sense take no article. Here ‘courteous’ is an adjective directly after the gerund being.

1. ‘Being courteous costs you nothing’ – the blank lies between the adjective and the verb costs.
2. No noun follows the blank, so ‘a/an/the’ has nothing to modify.
3. Hence no article is required.

Trick: An article needs a noun after it; no noun → no article.

Answer: (A) No article required

Concept: Hear someone out means to listen to someone until they have finished speaking, without interrupting.

1. Example: ‘Please hear me out before you decide.’
2. ‘Hear from far away’ takes the words literally; ‘Dismiss someone’ and ‘Keep someone out’ are opposite in spirit.

Trick: Hear OUT = hear till the end (out = completely).

Answer: (A) Let someone complete what they are saying

Concept: Ethical means morally right, following principles of right conduct.

1. Immoral = not following accepted moral standards – direct opposite.
2. Discord = disagreement; Joyous = happy; Mourning = grief – unrelated to morality.

Trick: Ethical = moral ↔ unethical = immoral.

Answer: (D) Immoral

Concept: Vagrancy is the state of wandering from place to place without a home or regular work. The closest given word is vagabond, which describes such wandering (as a noun, a homeless wanderer; as an adjective, wandering).

1. Vagrancy and vagabond share the Latin root vagari = to wander.
2. Vagueness = lack of clarity – only looks similar.
3. Exploration = purposeful travel to discover; Fragrance = pleasant smell.

Trick: Vag- = wander: vagrant, vagrancy, vagabond.

Answer: (C) Vagabond

Concept: Build castles in the air means to make plans or day-dream about things that are unlikely ever to happen.

1. Example: ‘Instead of working, he keeps building castles in the air.’
2. ‘useless efforts’ and ‘talking pointlessly’ miss the idea of daydreaming; ‘a palatial house’ is the literal meaning.

Trick: Castles in the air = हवाई किले = imaginary plans.

Answer: (C) To make imaginary schemes

Concept: Bite your tongue means to stop yourself from saying something you would like to say, usually to avoid offence.

1. Example: ‘I wanted to argue, but I bit my tongue.’
2. It is not scolding (opposite), nor drinking or exploring.

Trick: Biting the tongue physically stops speech → hold back words.

Answer: (C) To avoid saying something

Concept: Present perfect tense = has/have + past participle (V3).

1. ‘has dedicate’ uses the base form after ‘has’ – wrong.
2. Correct: ‘Lily has dedicated her life towards becoming a doctor.’
3. ‘had dedicate’ and ‘is dedicate’ also lack the participle form.

Trick: has/have/had are always followed by V3 (dedicated), never V1.

Answer: (D) has dedicated

Concept: Diabolical means devilish, extremely wicked or cruel.

1. Malicious = intending harm, spiteful – closest meaning.
2. Sycophant = a flatterer (noun); Celestial = heavenly (nearly opposite); Sophisticated = refined/complex.

Trick: Diabolical ← diabolos (devil) → devilish → malicious.

Answer: (A) Malicious

Concept: Correct spelling: exaggerate – with a double ‘g’.

1. Legitimate, Propagate and Promulgate are spelt correctly.
2. ‘Exagerate’ has a single g, so it is incorrect.

Trick: eXAGGerate – exaggeration makes things bigger, so the ‘g’ is doubled.

Answer: (B) Exagerate

Concept: Absolve means to declare someone free from blame, guilt or a charge.

1. In the sentence the court freed the defendant of all charges.
2. Accuse = to charge someone with an offence, i.e. to put blame on him – the opposite of freeing him from blame.
3. Attacked and criticised do not concern legal charges; condemned means sentenced/declared guilty after trial, the result of a charge rather than the act of charging.

Trick: Absolve = free from charges ↔ accuse = bring charges.

Answer: (A) accused

Concept: Check the key words: despite and situation.

1. (B) ‘dispete’ and (D) ‘dispite’ misspell despite.
2. (C) ‘despete’ and ‘sitution’ are both wrong.
3. Only (A) has every word spelt correctly.

Trick: de-SPITE (like ‘spite’) and situ-A-tion.

Answer: (A) The country’s GDP bloomed despite the ongoing war situation.