Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: ‘Resolute’ means firm, determined and unwavering.

1. The opposite of being firm is being uncertain or hesitant.
2. ‘Wavering’ = unable to decide, shaky in purpose – the antonym.
3. ‘Steadfast’ is a synonym; ‘Serious’ and ‘Brave’ are close in sense, not opposite.

Yaad rakhein: Resolute = resolve (firm decision); antonym = wavering/irresolute.

Answer: (B) Wavering

Concept: Names of countries that contain words like Kingdom, States, Republic take the definite article ‘the’.

1. ‘United’ begins with the consonant sound /juː/, so ‘an’ can never be used before it.
2. Besides, a specific country name like ‘United Kingdom’ takes ‘the’.
3. Correct: Roger went to the United Kingdom with his wife to celebrate Christmas.

Yaad rakhein: the UK, the USA, the Netherlands – ‘the’ with Kingdom/States/Republic.

Answer: (B) to an United Kingdom

Concept: Check each underlined word against its standard spelling.

1. ‘everyone’, ‘dressed’, ‘wedding’ are spelt correctly.
2. ‘occaseon’ is wrong; the correct spelling is ‘occasion’ (o-c-c-a-s-i-o-n).
3. Double ‘c’, single ‘s’, and the ending ‘-sion’.

Yaad rakhein: occasion: two c’s, one s, ‘-ion’.

Answer: (B) occaseon

Concept: ‘Coerce’ means to persuade or force someone to do something by using force or threats.

1. The definition – restrain or compel by force – matches ‘coerce’.
2. ‘Convoy’ = group of vehicles travelling together; ‘Consensus’ = general agreement; ‘Casualty’ = person killed/injured.
3. So the one-word substitute is ‘Coerce’ (noun: coercion).

Yaad rakhein: Coerce = compel by force (coercion = force).

Answer: (C) Coerce

Concept: A singular subject takes a singular verb; a general truth is in the simple present tense.

1. Subject ‘Health insurance’ is singular (uncountable), so ‘are’ is wrong.
2. The sentence states a present general fact (‘today’, ‘anyone can face’), so simple present ‘is’.
3. ‘was’ is past, ‘will be’ is future, ‘has been’ does not fit ‘today … can face’.

Yaad rakhein: Uncountable noun subject → is/was/has; ‘today’ → present.

Answer: (D) is important

Concept: ‘Spill the beans’ means to reveal secret information, often by mistake.

1. ‘Spill’ = let something fall out; the ‘beans’ are the hidden secret.
2. So the idiom means disclosing a secret.
3. ‘To ruin someone’s plan’ may be a result, but it is not the meaning; others are unrelated.

Yaad rakhein: Spill the beans = let the cat out of the bag.

Answer: (B) To reveal secret information

Concept: Keep subject-verb agreement and the intended meaning while choosing the better word.

1. Subject ‘People’ is plural, so the verb must be ‘say’, not ‘says’ – options with ‘says’ are out.
2. ‘should say fanciful things’ changes the meaning (adds advice and ‘fanciful’).
3. ‘say diverse things at different times’ keeps the meaning with a more precise word – ‘diverse’ (varied).

Yaad rakhein: People (plural) → say; check agreement first, then meaning.

Answer: (D) say diverse things at different times

Concept: ‘Together’ means with each other, in one place or group.

1. The opposite is being separated from each other.
2. ‘Apart’ = separated by distance or time – the antonym.
3. ‘United’ is a synonym; ‘Freight’ (goods) and ‘Engulf’ (swallow up) are unrelated.

Yaad rakhein: Together ↔ Apart.

Answer: (A) Apart

Concept: ‘Magnificent’ means extremely grand, splendid and impressive.

1. The opposite of grand/showy is simple and ordinary in size or display.
2. ‘Modest’ = plain, not large or grand – the antonym.
3. ‘Impressive’ is a synonym; ‘Peaceful’ and ‘Quiet’ are unrelated to grandeur.

Yaad rakhein: Magnificent palace ↔ modest house.

Answer: (D) Modest

Concept: ‘A piece of cake’ means something very easy to do.

1. The speaker has all the needed skills, so cracking an interview will be easy.
2. ‘a piece of cake for me’ fits this meaning.
3. ‘a hard nut to crack’ = difficult (opposite); ‘a storm in a teacup’ = fuss over nothing; ‘a chip on my shoulder’ = grudge.

Yaad rakhein: Piece of cake = cakewalk = very easy.

Answer: (D) a piece of cake for me

Concept: ‘Sitting on the fence’ means not taking a side; remaining undecided.

1. The man has not decided whether to move to another city.
2. ‘Sitting on the fence’ = being undecided between two choices.
3. ‘Bouncing off the walls’ = very excited; ‘Running out of steam’ = losing energy; ‘Counting down the days’ = eagerly waiting.

Yaad rakhein: On the fence = between two sides = undecided.

Answer: (C) Sitting on the fence

Concept: A noun mentioned for the second time (already known to the listener) takes ‘the’, not ‘a’.

1. The first sentence introduces ‘a dog and a cow’.
2. In the next sentence the same dog is referred to, so it must be ‘The dog is black’.
3. The later part correctly uses ‘the cow’, confirming the pattern.

Yaad rakhein: First mention → a/an; second mention → the.

Answer: (A) A dog is black

Concept: ‘Essential’ means absolutely necessary or extremely important.

1. Improved rail transport is absolutely necessary for business.
2. ‘Crucial’ = of great importance, decisive – the synonym.
3. ‘Recommended’ is weaker (only advised); ‘Trivial’ is the opposite; ‘Technical’ is unrelated.

Yaad rakhein: Essential ≈ crucial ≈ vital ≈ indispensable.

Answer: (C) Crucial

Concept: ‘Desolate’ means bleak and empty, or (of a person) very sad, lonely and miserable.

1. A desolate place or mood is gloomy and cheerless.
2. ‘Depressive’ = causing or feeling gloom – the closest synonym.
3. ‘Fortunate’ and ‘Hopeful’ are nearly opposite; ‘Sturdy’ (strong) is unrelated.

Yaad rakhein: Desolate = de + sol (alone) → lonely, gloomy.

Answer: (C) Depressive

Concept: ‘Communication’ is the act of exchanging information, ideas or messages.

1. The definition is exactly ‘exchange of information’.
2. ‘Collaboration’ = working together; ‘Touch’ and ‘Hold’ are physical actions.
3. So the answer is ‘Communication’.

Yaad rakhein: Communicate = share/exchange information.

Answer: (B) Communication

Concept: Find the misspelt word in the sentence and choose its correct form.

1. The sentence has ‘abnoxious’, which is wrong; the correct word is ‘obnoxious’ (= very unpleasant).
2. The words ‘impatient’, ‘services’, ‘essentially’ are spelt correctly in the sentence.
3. Options ‘impatint’, ‘servises’, ‘essentialy’ are themselves wrong spellings.

Yaad rakhein: obnoxious starts with ‘ob-’ (like objection, obstacle).

Answer: (A) obnoxious

Concept: ‘Adhere to’ (a rule/code) means to follow or obey it faithfully.

1. The opposite is to openly disobey a rule.
2. ‘Flout’ = to openly disregard a rule or law – the antonym.
3. ‘observe’, ‘comply’ are synonyms; ‘cling’ is the literal sense of adhere (stick).

Yaad rakhein: adhere/observe/comply ↔ flout/violate.

Answer: (C) flout

Concept: ‘Penchant’ means a strong liking or fondness for something.

1. She has a strong liking for art and craft.
2. The opposite of strong liking is strong dislike – ‘hatred’.
3. ‘anxiety’ and ‘fear’ are different emotions; ‘joy’ is not the opposite of liking.

Yaad rakhein: Penchant = fondness ↔ hatred/aversion.

Answer: (B) hatred

Concept: ‘To put a brave face on’ (something) means to appear cheerful and confident in a difficult situation.

1. The leader stayed positive despite tough competition and limited resources.
2. This is exactly ‘to put a brave face on’ the situation.
3. The other options are not standard idioms with this meaning.

Yaad rakhein: Brave face = hide worry, look positive.

Answer: (D) to put a brave face on

Concept: ‘Superb’ means excellent, of the highest quality.

1. The opposite is low or poor in quality.
2. ‘Inferior’ = lower in quality – the antonym.
3. ‘Splendid’ is a synonym; ‘Infallible’ (never wrong) and ‘Incorrigible’ (cannot be reformed) are unrelated.

Yaad rakhein: Superb/superior ↔ inferior.

Answer: (C) Inferior