SSC CGL English – Speed Rounds – Speed Round 1 · Tier I Sprint
SSC CGL English – Speed Rounds – Speed Round 1 · Tier I Sprint – 25 questions, subject: English Language & Comprehension. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.
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TACITURN
Correct Answer: A [reserved]
Explanation:
taciturn = reserved; talkative is the opposite.
FRIVOLOUS
Correct Answer: C [trivial]
Explanation:
frivolous = trivial; serious is the opposite.
RELUCTANT
Correct Answer: D [willing]
Explanation:
reluctant means hesitant; its opposite is willing.
ARTIFICIAL
Correct Answer: B [natural]
Explanation:
artificial means fake; its opposite is natural.
Correct Answer: B [parliament]
Explanation:
parliament – the 'i' after 'parl' is written but not pronounced.
The fees were high, but Sunil decided to bite the bullet and pay for the course.
Correct Answer: A [to face a difficult or unpleasant situation bravely]
Explanation:
'bite the bullet' = to face a difficult or unpleasant situation bravely.
A person who walks in his or her sleep
Correct Answer: C [somnambulist]
Explanation:
somnambulist (Latin somnus = sleep, ambulare = walk); an insomniac cannot sleep.
The price of these shoes / are higher / than / I expected.
Correct Answer: B [are higher]
Explanation:
The subject is 'The price' (singular); 'of these shoes' is a middle phrase.
She has been working / in this office / since five years / and loves her job.
Correct Answer: C [since five years]
Explanation:
A period of time takes 'for'; 'since' needs a starting point.
P. has decided to plant
Q. the field near the river
R. The farmer who owns
S. mangoes this year.
Correct Answer: D [RQPS]
Explanation:
Subject (R) + its object (Q) + verb (P) + object of plant (S).
If the bus will be late, we will take a taxi.
Correct Answer: C [is]
Explanation:
First conditional: present tense in the if-clause, not 'will'.
The committee discussed about the new rules for an hour.
Correct Answer: A [discussed]
Explanation:
'Discuss' takes a direct object; no preposition.
The doctor advised him ______ smoking.
Correct Answer: D [to give up]
Explanation:
advise + object + to + verb: advised him to give up.
The gardener is watering the plants.
Correct Answer: A [The plants are being watered by the gardener.]
Explanation:
Present continuous (is watering) → are being + past participle; the tense stays the same.
He said to her, "Why are you crying?"
Correct Answer: B [He asked her why she was crying.]
Explanation:
Question → asked; no inversion and no 'that' in the reported question; are crying → was crying; you → she.
Read the passage and choose the most appropriate option for each numbered blank (questions 16–20).
Long before the sun (1) ______, the market near the bus stand is already busy. Farmers arrive with baskets of vegetables (2) ______ their heads, and the first customers are usually the owners of small hotels. Prices are lowest early in the morning, (3) ______ the sellers want to finish quickly and go back to their fields.
By eight o'clock the crowd has grown so large that it is difficult to walk (4) ______ the narrow lanes. By noon, however, the market is almost (5) ______, and only a few sellers remain.
Correct Answer: C [rises]
Explanation:
Singular subject 'the sun' + present habit → rises.
Cloze – prepositionCloze 1 – blank (2): choose the most appropriate option.
Correct Answer: D [on]
Explanation:
Baskets are carried on the head.
Cloze – connectorCloze 1 – blank (3): choose the most appropriate option.
Correct Answer: C [because]
Explanation:
The sellers' wish to finish quickly is the reason prices are low → because.
Cloze – prepositionCloze 1 – blank (4): choose the most appropriate option.
Correct Answer: A [through]
Explanation:
Movement inside narrow lanes → through.
Cloze – vocabularyCloze 1 – blank (5): choose the most appropriate option.
Correct Answer: B [empty]
Explanation:
'however' and 'only a few sellers remain' show contrast with the morning crowd → empty.
Read the passage and answer questions 21–25.
Meera had always been afraid of water. As a child she had watched her cousin slip into a village pond, and although he was pulled out within seconds, the fear stayed with her. For thirty years she avoided rivers, beaches and even the shallow end of the hotel pool on family holidays.
When her daughter joined a swimming class, Meera sat on the bench outside and watched. After a month the coach, a quiet woman named Farida, sat down beside her. 'You watch every stroke,' she said. 'Why not learn them?' Meera laughed and said she was too old. Farida only pointed at the slow lane, where a man with grey hair was moving steadily from one end to the other.
The first week was hard. Meera held the edge of the pool so tightly that her fingers hurt. Farida did not hurry her. She taught her to breathe out under water, to float on her back and to trust the water to hold her up. By the end of the third month Meera could swim a full length without stopping. Her daughter clapped louder than anyone else.
Correct Answer: C [As a child she had seen her cousin slip into a pond.]
Explanation:
Evidence: 'she had watched her cousin slip into a village pond … the fear stayed with her'.
RC – detailPassage 1: How did Farida encourage Meera to learn?
Correct Answer: A [She pointed to an older man swimming in the slow lane.]
Explanation:
Evidence: 'Farida only pointed at the slow lane, where a man with grey hair was moving steadily'.
RC – NOT mentionedPassage 1: Which of the following did Farida NOT teach Meera, according to the passage?
Correct Answer: D [to dive from the edge of the pool]
Explanation:
The passage lists breathing out, floating and trusting the water; diving is not mentioned.
RC – vocabularyPassage 1: The word 'steadily', as used in the passage, means:
Correct Answer: B [at an even, regular pace]
Explanation:
steadily = in a regular, even way; the grey-haired man swam without stopping or rushing.
RC – titlePassage 1: Which is the most suitable title for the passage?
