Online Quiz
Link to this page from your website / blog (HTML code)
Directions (Q 1–10): Read the passage When Cities Flood and answer the questions.
Every monsoon, newspapers carry pictures of city streets turned into rivers. The usual explanation is that the rain was unusually heavy, and sometimes it was. But cities also flood after rain that the countryside around them absorbs without trouble. The difference lies less in the sky than on the ground. Each year the damage is counted in flooded homes, lost working days and spoilt goods.
In a natural landscape, a large share of rainwater soaks into the soil. Ponds, lakes, marshes and the low-lying land along streams hold the rest and release it slowly. A city replaces much of this soft surface with roofs, roads and paved yards that let almost no water through. The rain that once sank into the earth now runs off at once, and it runs off fast. Drains designed for a smaller town receive more water than they were built to carry, and they overflow.
The loss of wetlands makes matters worse. Many cities grew around chains of lakes and tanks that were connected by channels, so that the overflow of one fed the next. Over the decades, some of these water bodies were filled in for housing, markets and roads, and the channels between them were blocked or built over. The water, however, still follows the slope of the land. When heavy rain falls, it moves towards the places where the lakes used to be – which are now neighbourhoods.
Engineers once answered flooding mainly with bigger drains and higher walls. These remain necessary, but they have limits: a drain only moves water from one place to another, and in a flat city there may be nowhere for it to go. A newer approach, sometimes described as making a city behave like a sponge, tries to hold rain where it falls. Permeable paving lets water through; parks and playgrounds are designed to flood safely for a few hours; rooftop and household tanks store rain for later use; and the remaining lakes are cleaned, connected and protected from encroachment.
The idea is not new. Many older towns in dry regions built stepwells, tanks and channels to catch the monsoon rain and store it for the months without rain. What is new is the attempt to apply the same thinking across a modern city, where every roof, road and open plot can become part of the system.
This approach has advantages beyond flood control. Water that soaks into the ground recharges the wells and borewells on which many households depend in the dry months. Restored lakes cool the surrounding area, support birds and fish, and give residents open spaces. The same rain that causes damage when it is hurried away becomes a resource when it is allowed to stay.
None of this can be achieved by engineers alone. Plans for drainage must be linked with plans for land use, so that the low areas a city needs for storing water are not sold for building. Building rules can require new buildings to store or absorb a share of the rain that falls on them, and the city can lead by example in its own schools, offices and parks. Residents also have a part to play: a household that keeps its drain clear of plastic or builds a small recharge pit contributes in a small but real way. Flooding is often treated as a natural disaster; in a city, it is just as much a result of decisions – and different decisions can reduce it.
Correct Answer: D [Urban flooding is caused largely by how cities use land, and holding rain where it falls can reduce it.]
Explanation:
Proof: “The difference lies less in the sky than on the ground.”.
According to the passage, why does rain run off quickly in a city?
Correct Answer: C [Roofs, roads and paved yards let almost no water through.]
Explanation:
Proof: “roofs, roads and paved yards that let almost no water through”.
What can be inferred from the statement that rain moves ‘towards the places where the lakes used to be – which are now neighbourhoods’?
Correct Answer: A [Some neighbourhoods stand on low land that naturally collects water, so they flood.]
Explanation:
Proof: “still follows the slope of the land” … “which are now neighbourhoods”.
What limitation of drains does the passage point out?
Correct Answer: E [A drain only moves water elsewhere, and a flat city may have nowhere to send it.]
Explanation:
Proof: “a drain only moves water from one place to another, and in a flat city there may be nowhere for it to go”.
Which of the following is NOT part of the ‘sponge’ approach described in the passage?
Correct Answer: B [building higher walls along every road]
Explanation:
Proof: “Permeable paving lets water through”.
According to the passage, water that soaks into the ground:
Correct Answer: B [recharges the wells and borewells that households use in the dry months]
Explanation:
Proof: “recharges the wells and borewells on which many households depend in the dry months”.
The tone of the passage is best described as:
Correct Answer: C [analytical and constructive]
Explanation:
Proof: “different decisions can reduce it”.
The word encroachment, as used in the passage, means:
Correct Answer: E [gradual illegal occupation of land]
Explanation:
Proof: “protected from encroachment”.
Which word is most nearly OPPOSITE in meaning to permeable?
Correct Answer: A [impervious]
Explanation:
Proof: “Permeable paving lets water through”.
Which of the following is/are true according to the passage?
I. Some lakes in cities were filled in for housing, markets and roads.
II. Restored lakes can cool the area around them.
III. Plans for drainage should be kept separate from plans for land use.
Correct Answer: C [Only I and II]
Explanation:
Proof: “some of these water bodies were filled in for housing, markets and roads” … “Restored lakes cool the surrounding area”.
Directions (Q 11–16): In the passage below, each blank is numbered. Choose the word that best fits each blank.
When offices closed during the pandemic, many employers feared that work done from home would (11) ________. In many cases it did not: freed from long commutes, employees often worked (12) ________ hours than before.
Yet the experience also revealed what offices had quietly provided all along – the chance conversations, the quick question to a colleague and the (13) ________ learning that happens when a newcomer watches others at work. Young employees, in particular, found it harder to learn without such (14) ________. Most organisations have therefore settled on a (15) ____ model, combining days at home for focused work with days in the office for (16) ________.
Correct Answer: D [suffer]
Explanation:
“suffer” – would + base verb; suffer = become worse.
Blank (12)
Correct Answer: D [longer]
Explanation:
“longer” – a comparative adverb/adjective before ‘hours’ – longer hours.
Blank (13)
Correct Answer: E [informal]
Explanation:
“informal” – chance conversations are informal (unplanned) learning.
Blank (14)
Correct Answer: B [exposure]
Explanation:
“exposure” – a noun meaning ‘contact, experience’ after ‘such’.
Blank (15)
Correct Answer: A [hybrid]
Explanation:
“hybrid” – an adjective meaning ‘mixed’ before ‘model’.
Blank (16)
Correct Answer: C [collaboration]
Explanation:
“collaboration” – office days are for working together – collaboration.
Directions (Q 17–22): Find the part of the sentence that has an error. If there is no error, choose ‘No error’.
Correct Answer: C [(C)]
Explanation:
Part (C): were → was. Rule: every one (of) takes a singular verb (SV4).
He denied (A) / to have taken (B) / the money from (C) / the cash drawer. (D)
Correct Answer: B [(B)]
Explanation:
Part (B): to have taken → having taken.
Until the auditor (A) / does not approve (B) / the accounts, (C) / no payment will be made. (D)
Correct Answer: B [(B)]
Explanation:
Part (B): does not approve → approves.
The jewellery (A) / she bought (B) / were very (C) / expensive. (D)
Correct Answer: C [(C)]
Explanation:
Part (C): were → was. Rule: ‘jewellery’ is uncountable and takes a singular verb.
The new manager (A) / is more efficient (B) / than any other officer (C) / in the branch. (D)
Correct Answer: E [No error]
Explanation:
No error. comparative + than any other + singular noun – correct.
Ten kilometres (A) / are a long distance (B) / to walk (C) / in this heat. (D)
Correct Answer: B [(B)]
Explanation:
Part (B): are → is. Rule: a distance seen as one amount takes a singular verb (SV9).
Directions (Q 23–26): Choose the pair of words that best fills the two blanks.
Correct Answer: B [evasive, suspicious]
Explanation:
so … that: a reply that avoided the question (evasive) made them more doubtful (suspicious); ‘grew’ + adjective, not an adverb.
The company's ________ growth this year has ________ fears of a slowdown.
Correct Answer: E [robust, allayed]
Explanation:
strong (robust) growth calms (allays) fears of a slowdown; the others contradict or are wrong words.
The committee ________ the proposal for want of ________ details.
Correct Answer: A [rejected, adequate]
Explanation:
for want of (= lacking) enough details → rejected; an adjective before ‘details’ → adequate.
The scheme's ________ depends on the active ________ of local communities.
Correct Answer: D [success, participation]
Explanation:
a noun after ‘The scheme's’ → success; ‘active participation of communities’ (taking part) – participant is a person, partition a division.
Directions (Q 27–31): The first sentence of a paragraph is fixed. Rearrange the other five sentences (A)–(E) and answer the questions.
(First sentence – fixed) Many online stores now advertise ‘no-cost EMI’ on phones and appliances.
(A) Before choosing such an offer, therefore, a buyer should compare the total amount paid with the price paid in cash.
(B) Some sellers also add a processing fee, which is charged at the start.
(C) In practice, the interest is often still there, hidden in a discount that the buyer gives up.
(D) Only if the two are the same is the EMI truly free of cost.
(E) The phrase suggests that the buyer pays nothing extra for spreading the payment over several months.
Correct Answer: E [(E)]
Explanation:
(E). Sequence ECBAD. ‘The phrase’ explains the advertisement; ‘In practice’ reveals the hidden interest; ‘also’ adds the fee; ‘therefore’ advises comparing; ‘the two’ closes.
(No-cost EMI) After rearrangement, what is the THIRD sentence (the fixed sentence counts as the first)?
Correct Answer: C [(C)]
Explanation:
(C). Sequence ECBAD. ‘The phrase’ explains the advertisement; ‘In practice’ reveals the hidden interest; ‘also’ adds the fee; ‘therefore’ advises comparing; ‘the two’ closes.
(No-cost EMI) Which one is the FIFTH sentence once the sentences are rearranged (the fixed sentence counts as the first)?
Correct Answer: A [(A)]
Explanation:
(A). Sequence ECBAD. ‘The phrase’ explains the advertisement; ‘In practice’ reveals the hidden interest; ‘also’ adds the fee; ‘therefore’ advises comparing; ‘the two’ closes.
(No-cost EMI) Which sentence closes the paragraph as the SIXTH (last) one (the fixed sentence counts as the first)?
Correct Answer: D [(D)]
Explanation:
(D). Sequence ECBAD. ‘The phrase’ explains the advertisement; ‘In practice’ reveals the hidden interest; ‘also’ adds the fee; ‘therefore’ advises comparing; ‘the two’ closes.
(No-cost EMI) Which is the correct sequence of the sentences?
Correct Answer: C [ECBAD]
Explanation:
ECBAD. ‘The phrase’ explains the advertisement; ‘In practice’ reveals the hidden interest; ‘also’ adds the fee; ‘therefore’ advises comparing; ‘the two’ closes.
Directions (Q 32–36): Answer as directed.
Column I: (A) Had the farmers been warned of the storm in time, (B) The officer who checked the loan file (C) As soon as the power returned,
Column II: (D) they would have harvested the crop earlier. (E) found two signatures missing. (F) the ATM started working again.
Correct Answer: B [A–D, B–E, C–F]
Explanation:
(A) ‘Had … been warned’ (unreal past) needs ‘would have + V3’ → D.
Join a part from Column I with a part from Column II to make correct sentences.
Column I: (A) So poor was the network on Friday (B) Despite the long queue at the counter, (C) The cashier, together with two clerks,
Column II: (D) that many online payments failed. (E) was praised for the clean audit. (F) the staff stayed calm and polite.
Correct Answer: C [A–D, B–F, C–E]
Explanation:
(A) ‘So poor was … that’ → D.
Which two bold words should be swapped to make the sentence meaningful and correct? If none, choose ‘No swap required’.
The rain (A) was cancelled because of the heavy match (B), and the crowd (C) went home disappointed (D).
Correct Answer: D [A–B]
Explanation:
Swap A–B: “The match was cancelled because of the heavy rain, and the crowd went home disappointed.”
Choose the meaning of the idiom to turn a blind eye.
Correct Answer: E [to deliberately ignore something]
Explanation:
to turn a blind eye = to pretend not to notice; the literal options are traps.
Which bold word is misspelt?
Such errors (A) are rare (B), but they must be reported (C) on each occurence (D).
Correct Answer: D [(D)]
Explanation:
Correct spelling: “occurrence”; the other bold words are spelt correctly.
Directions (Q 37–38): Choose the phrase that should replace the part in bold. If no change is needed, choose ‘No improvement required’.
Correct Answer: C [returned]
Explanation:
‘last week’ (definite past) needs the simple past (TR2).
The officer asked me whether I had completed the form.
Correct Answer: E [No improvement required]
Explanation:
reported question: asked + object + whether + statement order (NA5) – already correct.
Directions (Q 39–40): Answer as directed.
Correct Answer: D [Having checked the documents, she approved the loan.]
Explanation:
Having + V3, + the same subject who did it (she); ‘the loan was approved’ leaves the participle dangling.
Choose the connector that best fills the blank: “The scheme was well designed. ____, it failed because few people knew about it.”
