Question : Who among the following is the author of the book "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft"?
Option 1: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Option 2: Ernest Hemingway
Option 3: Stephen King
Option 4: Clive Staples Lewis
Correct Answer: Stephen King
Solution : The correct answer is Stephen King.
American novelist Stephen King's memoir, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, details his experiences as a writer and offers guidance to budding authors. In 1997, Stephen King started writing "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft". There are five sections in "On Writing", each with a distinct purpose. It talks about the things that happened in King's life—like his early writing experiences—that helped him grow as a writer.
Question : Select the most appropriate option that expresses the given sentence in active voice.
The letter was written by the author and mailed to the publisher.
Option 1: The letter was written and mailed to the publisher by the author.
Option 2: The author wrote the letter and mailed it to the publisher.
Option 3: The publisher received the letter written by the author.
Option 4: The letter was being written by the author and mailed to the publisher.
Correct Answer: The author wrote the letter and mailed it to the publisher.
Solution : The correct choice is the second option.
Active voice is a sentence construction where the subject performs the action stated by the verb. In an active voice sentence, the subject is the doer of the action.
The structure of an active voice sentence in the simple past tense typically follows this pattern: "Subject + past form of the verb + object."
Therefore, the correct active voice sentence is: "The author wrote the letter and mailed it to the publisher."
Question : Comprehension:
Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow.
My grandmother, like everybody’s grandmother, was an old woman. She had been old and wrinkled for the twenty years that I had known her. People said that she once had been young and pretty and had even had a husband, but that was hard to believe. My grandfather’s portrait hung above the mantelpiece in the drawing room. He wore a big turban and loose-fitting clothes. His long, white beard covered the best part of his chest and he looked at least a hundred years old. He did not look the sort of person who would have a wife or children. He looked as if he could only have lots and lots of grandchildren. As my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost revolting. She often told us of the games she used to play as a child. That seemed quite absurd and undignified on her part, and we treated it like the fables of the prophets she used to tell us.
Question:
Select the most appropriate inference drawn from the passage.
Option 1: The author looked upon his grandmother as an old woman like every grandmother.
Option 2: People said that the grandmother was pretty.
Option 3: Grandmother had a husband.
Option 4: Grandmother loved to talk of her childhood.
Correct Answer: The author looked upon his grandmother as an old woman like every grandmother.
Solution : The first option is the correct choice.
The author perceives his grandmother as an old woman, in line with the common notion of grandmothers being elderly. Despite claims of her youth, the author finds it challenging to believe, given her long-standing old age of twenty years.
The passage reflects a shared understanding of grandmothers being seen as aged individuals.
Therefore, the correct answer is: "The author looked upon his grandmother as an old woman like every grandmother."
Question : Given below is a short passage followed by some items based on the passage. First, read the passage and answer the items based on it. You are required to select your answers based on the contents of the passage and the opinion of the author only.
More than eight months after the national lockdown was announced in late March, urban India is learning to live with the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, indicating a positive outlook for the future, many survey respondents in a recent survey say they plan to return to pre-lockdown levels of shopping, personal grooming, going to cinemas and socializing as pandemic fears continue to recede.
The survey findings highlight that the suppression of consumer demand because of fears of job losses and salary cuts could be coming to an end. Increasingly, urban Indians are showing increased confidence about the future of the economy. This could be an indicator of the possible 'pent-up demand' that several economists have been talking about - a demand that could be unleashed once a vaccine is developed and distributed, or when there are signs of the pandemic's spread reducing to negligible levels or vanishing totally.
Around 65 per cent of respondents said they had settled into new routines, or that they saw signs of the situation improving, or they had come to terms with the pandemic and were moving on with their lives. And since the survey was conducted before the news of the successful trials of the Pfizer vaccine for the coronavirus was announced, it is likely that the consumers are now even more positive in their outlook about the future.
Question:
What predications are made by the economist reagrding the consumer demand?
Option 1: People are settled in their routines
Option 2: There will be further suppression in demand
Option 3: Suppression of demand will be coming to an end
Option 4: People still fear of the loss of jobs and salary cuts
Correct Answer: Suppression of demand will be coming to an end
Solution : The correct response is 3.
Suppression of demand will be coming to an end
Explanation:
Examine the following statement:
The survey findings highlight that the suppression of consumer demand because of fears of job losses and salary cuts could be coming to an end. Increasingly, urban Indians are showing increased confidence about the future of the economy.
From the above lines it can be predicted that the suppresion of demand will be coming to an end in the future. So the correct option is 3
Question : Directions: Words given on the left side of (::) are related to each other by some Logic/Rule/Relation. Select the missing word/word pair on the right side of (::) from the given alternatives based on the same Logic/Rule/Relation.
Axe : Woodcutter :: ?
Option 1: Author : Pen
Option 2: Surgeon : Scalpel
Option 3: Spade : Labourer
Option 4: Doctor : Stethoscope
Correct Answer: Spade : Labourer
Solution : Given:
Axe : woodcutter (Woodcutter uses the axe to cut the trees.)
Let's check the options –
First option: Author : Pen; Pen is used by the Writer, not the Author.
Second option: Surgeon : Scalpel; The Surgeon uses a scalpel but the words are written in reverse order.
Third option: Spade : Labourer; Spade is used by labourers for digging.
Fourth option: Doctor : Stethoscope; A stethoscope is used by a Doctor but the words are written in reverse order.
So, only the third option follows the pattern as followed by the given pair. Hence, the third option is correct.
Question : Comprehension:
Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.
If you pay close attention to soap advertisements, you may hear of its pH value being claimed perfect for human skin. But is there really such a thing? Let's start at the beginning. pH (potential Hydrogen) is defined as the concentration of hydrogen ions in a solution. pH value ranges between 0 and 14.7 is the neutral point, 0 being the most acidic and 14 being the most alkaline. More importantly, your skin isn't exactly pH 5.5; it falls in a range between 4.0 and 7.0, depending on diverse factors like the body part, age, genetics, ethnicity, and environment conditions.
So, are products formulated at pH 5.5 perfect for skin? The short answer: not really! First, parameters like texture and other ingredients indicate a cleanser's quality, much better than pH alone. Second, though the skin pH rises slightly immediately after cleaning even with plain water, it reverts to its mild acidic pH in an hour. Healthy skin quickly rebalances the 'acid mantle' - a protective layer over the skin - and is unaffected in the long term by the cleanser's pH. Skin modulates pH, making skin products function optimally. So, why market pH 5.5 products as "perfect"? Well, for certain skin types (e.g., oily skin) and certain skin conditions (like acne), an increase in pH can aggravate these skin situations. This might lead to an interpretation that a skin care product needs to be at a 5.5 pH for optimum cleansing. Hence, skincare experts have expressed reservations about pH being the sole criterion of product safety and 'acid mantle' preservation when factors including plain water may contribute to the same. Thus, an ideal product is almost impossible to define. So, look well beyond pH alone.
Question:
"Is there really such a thing?" By "such a thing" the author is referring to:
Option 1: the perfect soap for all skin types
Option 2: the perfect pH value for human skin
Option 3: soap advertisements
Option 4: close attention paid to advertisements
Correct Answer: the perfect pH value for human skin
Solution : The correct choice is the second option.
The author questions the claim often made in soap advertisements about a product having an ideal pH value for human skin, suggesting scepticism about whether a single pH level can be universally perfect for everyone's skin.
Therefore, by "such a thing," the author is referring to the perfect pH value for human skin.
Question : Who among the following was the author of 'Indica', an account of India under the reign of the Maurya dynasty?
Option 1: Strabo
Option 2: Pliny
Option 3: Diodorus Siculus
Option 4: Megasthenes
Correct Answer: Megasthenes
Solution : The correct option is Megasthenes.
The author of Indica, an account of India under the reign of the Maurya dynasty, was Megasthenes. The original text of 'Indica' has been lost, but fragments of it survive in the works of later Greek and Latin authors. These fragments have been used by scholars to reconstruct a partial picture of Megasthenes' account of India.
Question : Who was the author of Tarikh-i-Mubarak Shahi which is a Persian language chronicle of the Delhi Sultanate?
Option 1: Jawahar-fi-Jawahir
Option 2: Khazain-ul-Futuh
Option 3: Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi
Option 4: Yahya bin Ahmad Sirhindi
Correct Answer: Yahya bin Ahmad Sirhindi
Solution : The correct option is Yahya bin Ahmad Sirhindi
The author of the "Tarikh-i-Mubarak Shahi" was Yahya bin Ahmad bin Husain, commonly known as Yahya Sirhindi. This Persian-language chronicle provides historical accounts of the Delhi Sultanate, particularly during the reign of Sultan Mubarak Shah.
Question : Select the option that can be used as a one-word substitute for the given group of words.
A letter, poem etc. whose author is unknown.
Option 1: Autonomous
Option 2: Anomalous
Option 3: Anonymous
Option 4: Autocrat
Correct Answer: Anonymous
Solution : The third option is correct.
Explanation: The word anonymous is an adjective that describes something for which the author's identity is not known or disclosed. In this context, it is used to refer to a letter, poem, etc., where the author remains unidentified.
Therefore, the correct one-word substitute is anonymous.
The meanings of the other options are as follows:
- Autonomous: This term refers to something that is self-governing or independent.
- Anomalous: This word means deviating from what is standard or expected.
- Autocrat: This term refers to a ruler with unlimited power.
Question : Select the option that expresses the given sentence in active voice.
Was the book written by an unknown author?
Option 1: Did the book write an unknown author?
Option 2: Was the book not written by an unknown author?
Option 3: Was the unknown author reading the book?
Option 4: Did an unknown author write the book?
Correct Answer: Did an unknown author write the book?
Solution : The correct choice is the fourth option.
Active voice emphasises the doer of the action, while passive voice emphasises the receiver. To convert passive voice to active, we make the subject perform the action and rephrase the verb.
The structure of the active sentence in the case of the simple past interrogative sentence is: "Auxiliary verb + singular subject + base form of the verb + object?"
Therefore, the sentence in active voice is: "Did an unknown author write the book?"