Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: A comparative adjective (bigger, better, more) is followed by than, not from.

1. a bigger circulation than any other newspaper.
2. any other is correctly used because the paper is compared with others of its own class.
3. So the error is in from any other newspaper.

Yaad rakhein: Comparative + than (exceptions: superior/inferior/senior/junior + to).

Answer: (A) from any other newspaper

Concept: We work in a building or organisation such as a factory, office or bank; on is used for surfaces or for projects (work on a project).

1. works on a factory → works in a factory.
2. His family lives (singular collective noun) is correct.
3. in Mumbai and but he works are correct.

Yaad rakhein: work in a factory/office; work on a project/problem.

Answer: (D) on a factory

Concept: A preposition (instead of, without, before, after) is followed by a noun or gerund (V-ing), not the base verb.

1. Instead of attend → Instead of attending the class.
2. he went to watch is correct (purpose infinitive).
3. So the error is in attend the class.

Yaad rakhein: Preposition + V-ing: instead of going, without asking, before leaving.

Answer: (B) attend the class

Concept: A story opens with the setting (place), then the event, then the characters and finally the problem.

1. D sets the scene: a city called Alba in Italy – the opener.
2. C: the King of Alba died leaving two sons.
3. A: Their names – their = the two sons (C→A); B: people could not decide who should be King.

Yaad rakhein: Their names (A) needs ‘two sons’ (C) just before it.

Answer: (A) DCAB

Concept: The young man’s story runs in time order: taken away → years with the circus → adoption → education → inheritance.

1. A: he told them his story; B: the circus people had taken him away – the beginning.
2. D: for three years he travelled with them (circus people); C: Then one day a rich lady adopted him.
3. E: he was sent to school and college; F: the old lady left all her money to him.

Yaad rakhein: Then one day (C) breaks the routine described in D, so D→C.

Answer: (D) ABDCEF

Concept: In a wh-question, keep the question word first; do we have to + V1 becomes do + object + have to be + V3 in the passive.

1. Object the house chores (plural) → subject: Why do the house chores have to be done.
2. by us replaces we; the tense (simple present) stays the same.
3. (A) is not a question; (B) is present continuous; (D) uses future will.

Yaad rakhein: Question stays a question; have to + V1 → have to be + V3.

Answer: (C) Why do the house chores have to be done by us during this lockdown period?

Concept: Yet and still both mean ‘nevertheless’; using them together is redundant (superfluous).

1. Correct: … on the ventilator, yet made him comfortable (or but still made).
2. did not put … on the ventilator and him comfortable are correct.
3. So the error lies in yet still made.

Yaad rakhein: Avoid double words of the same meaning: yet still, return back, repeat again.

Answer: (D) yet still made

Concept: Provided (that) means ‘on the condition that / only if’ and introduces a condition.

1. Acceptance depends on fulfilling the conditions → provided.
2. so that shows purpose; although shows contrast; even if means the condition does not matter – all change the sense.
3. Hence (A).

Yaad rakhein: provided / providing / as long as = only if.

Answer: (A) provided

Concept: Follow the cause-and-effect chain of the escape story: clue → search → questioning → reply.

1. A: the soldier notices a prisoner emptying earth from his boots – the clue and the opener.
2. C: the prison was searched and a tunnel found.
3. D: the Governor questioned all prisoners about the tunnel; B: They all denied – they = the prisoners.

Yaad rakhein: They all denied (B) is a reply, so it comes right after the questioning (D).

Answer: (B) ACDB

Concept: A wh-question becomes asked + wh-word + subject + verb; your → his, is → was.

1. said to → asked; How is your search → how his search … was.
2. Statement order: subject (his search for a new house) before verb (was coming).
3. (B), (C), (D) keep question order; (B) and (C) also keep your/is.

Yaad rakhein: In indirect questions the verb goes after the subject.

Answer: (A) Frank asked Albert how his search for a new house was coming along.

Concept: A passive question with a modal-like verb 'have to be + V3' becomes active as 'do/does + subject + have to + V1 + object'. The tense (simple present) must stay the same.

1. Passive: Why does homework have to be done daily? – present tense, obligation (have to).
2. The doer is not given, so we use a general subject 'we'.
3. Active: Why do we have to do homework daily?
4. (A) and (C) change the tense; (D) changes 'have to' into 'should', which changes the meaning.

Trick: Keep the helping verb family the same: 'does…have to be done' → 'do…have to do'.

Answer: (B) Why do we have to do homework daily?

Concept: Indirect → direct: reverse the changes – 'informed' → 'said to', 'would' → 'will', 'that day' → 'today'; put the words in inverted commas.

1. Reporting verb: informed me → said to me.
2. 'would be' was the backshifted form of 'will be'.
3. 'that day' in indirect speech comes from 'today' in direct speech.
4. So: Veena said to me, “There will be an online art class for the children at 4 o’clock today.” (B) and (D) keep 'that day'; (A) uses 'was'.

Trick: In direct speech the time words are 'near' words: that day → today, then → now, the previous day → yesterday.

Answer: (C) Veena said to me, “There will be an online art class … at 4 o’clock today.”

Concept: Indirect question → direct question: 'asked' → 'said to', past perfect 'had lost' → present perfect 'have lost', 'he' → 'you', 'the previous day' → 'yesterday', and use question order with a question mark.

1. where he had lost → “Where have you lost …?”
2. the pen I had brought for him → the pen I brought for you.
3. the previous day → yesterday.
4. (A) has wrong tense and 'him'; (B) keeps indirect word order; (C) keeps 'the previous day'.

Trick: Check three things in direct speech: pronoun (you), tense (one step forward), time word (yesterday).

Answer: (D) I said to him, “Where have you lost the pen I brought for you yesterday?”

Concept: The children receive the action (others encourage them), so the passive 'are encouraged' is needed, followed by 'to + V1' (to examine).

1. 'are encouraging' is active – it would mean the children encourage someone; wrong sense.
2. Passive: are encouraged + infinitive to examine.
3. 'to have examining' (A) is ungrammatical; 'to have examined' adds an unnecessary perfect sense.
4. Correct: The children here are encouraged to examine all the aspects …

Trick: encourage someone to do → passive: someone is encouraged to do.

Answer: (D) are encouraged to examine

Concept: Start with the sentence that sets the scene, then follow the logical and pronoun links.

1. D introduces the setting: We lived on the edge of the marshes, near the sea.
2. B continues with what could be seen from there – ships anchored … from the shore.
3. C explains These ships – they were prison ships (pronoun link B → C).
4. A begins the story with 'But on the day when my story begins …' – a turn from background to action, so it comes last.

Trick: 'These were prison ships' must come right after the sentence that mentions 'ships' – only B does that.

Answer: (B) DBCA

Concept: Past perfect active 'had + V3' becomes passive 'had been + V3' with the object as the new subject and 'by + agent'.

1. Object the train tickets becomes the subject.
2. had already bought → had already been bought.
3. Add by his father.
4. (B) has no 'been'/'by'; (C) changes to simple past; (D) changes tense and drops 'by'.

Trick: Past perfect: had + V3 → had been + V3.

Answer: (A) The train tickets had already been bought by his father.

Concept: Find the sentence that introduces the noun (lava); the others use 'It' and describe its movement in time order.

1. B introduces 'a stream of lava' from the crater – the opening sentence.
2. A: It burst from the inside … and tumbled over the edge – first movement.
3. D: Then it rolled down the side of the volcano – 'Then' shows the next step.
4. C: It travelled slowly across the valley – the final stage at the bottom.

Trick: Sentences starting with 'It' cannot open a paragraph; follow the path of the lava: crater → edge → slope → valley.

Answer: (B) BADC

Concept: The science of plants (their structure, classification, genetics) is called botany.

1. Botany – scientific study of plants.
2. Geology – study of the earth, rocks and minerals.
3. Zoology – study of animals; Biology – study of all living things (too broad).

Yaad rakhein: Bot-any → 'plants'; Zoo-logy → 'animals'; Geo-logy → 'earth'.

Answer: (B) botany

Concept: Passive 'had been + V3' (past perfect) becomes active 'had + V3'; the agent after 'by' becomes the subject.

1. Agent the authorities becomes the subject.
2. had been issued → had issued; 'already' stays before the main verb.
3. Active: The authorities had already issued a statement to the press on the lockdown.
4. (B) is present perfect, (D) present continuous, (C) makes 'statement' the doer – all wrong.

Trick: had been + V3 ↔ had + V3 – the tense word 'had' never disappears.

Answer: (A) The authorities had already issued a statement to the press on the lockdown.

Concept: 'Unless' already means 'if … not', so it must not be followed by another negative (doesn't / not).

1. Unless she doesn't study = a double negative → wrong.
2. Unless she studies French carefully, she cannot get the highest marks = If she does not study, she cannot top.
3. 'If she studies … she cannot get' (C) reverses the meaning; (B) still has 'not'.

Trick: Unless = if not → never write 'unless … not'.

Answer: (D) Unless she studies