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August 06, 2014

Brief Overview and Tips for Bank Exams : English Language Section

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The pattern of English Language section will be same for all IBPS and SBI Banking Exams like POs, Clerks, RRB Officers and Office Assistants. Only the difficulty level varies. POs will be of highest difficulty level followed by Clerks and RRB Officers (both have same difficulty level) and at last Office Assistants. As a number of aspirants have been asking us about the exam patter, here is a brief analysis of English Language section. Totally 40 marks are set for this section in any Bank Online Exam. The section include questions from spotting errors, sentence arrangement, fill up the blanks, substitutions, cloze test and reading comprehension. here is an overview and some important tips.

Spotting Errors

In this type of question, a sentence is divided into four parts. 1)  2)  3)  4). There may be an error in one of the four parts. If there is no error, we have to opt for 5) as our answer. In order to answer these questions correctly, sound knowledge of grammar is essential. A candidate is advised to pay attention to elements of grammar like subject-verb agreement, pronoun usage, adjective and adverb, double negative (incorrect), parallelism (similar elements in similar form), logical choice of verb tenses, prepositions, gerund, infinitive etc. Diction (Choice of words) and sentence construction are also the areas where attention is to be focused. Five questions will be given under spotting errors.


Example : Although he had been hired (1)/ by the magazine to write book reviews, (2)/ he knew scarcely nothing (3)/ about current fiction. (4)/ No error (5).

Explanation : The answer to the above example is (3). 'Scarcely nothing' is a double negative. The sentence must read 'Scarcely anything'.

Fill up the Blanks

In order to test a candidate's comprehension / understanding skills, 'Fill up the blanks' questions are given. It also gives an impression whether the candidate has memorized the meaning of the word or is able to use the word properly. In 'Fill up the blanks' questions, one or two words are omitted from the sentence. Below the sentence, options are given and the candidate should choose the word or a pair of words, when inserted into the blanks completes the sentence in such a way that it is clear, logical and literally and grammatically consistent. Five questions will be given under 'Fill up the blanks'.

Example :
As a child she had been ________ by her mother and this experience had left an ________ mark.
  1. abused, indelible
  2. scolded, perishable
  3. loved, erudite
  4. aborted, enthralled
  5. instigated, incited
Ans - 1 : abused, indelible

Substitutions

In this type of questions, each sentence has a bold lettered part. Five choices are given below each sentence. From among the choices, a candidate has to choose the correct choice that should be grammatically correct and express the meaning of the sentence clearly and exactly. If the underlined part does not have any error. 'No error' has to be opted for. You don't have to explain the error but only recognize it. First look for more common errors in bold lettered part. You may find errors in cases, subject-verb agreement, pronoun-antecedent, tense or form of a verb, adjective, adverb, comparison etc.

Example : The company had decided for normal its relation with its clientele.
  1. has decided to normal
  2. has decided to normalize
  3. have decided normalization
  4. has decided in normalizing
  5. no correction required
Answer 2 : correct
'Normal' is not the verb. 'Normalize' is the verb.

Sentence Arrangement

In this type of question, jumbled sentences are given. A candidate has to arrange them in a chronological order to make the paragraph meaningful. He / She is supposed to answer this question in the shortest possible time. Such questions are given to know a candidate's ability to analyze and evaluate the relationships among the component parts of a sentence or among sentences to synthesize them into a logical and harmonious order.

Ex : Rearrange the following sentences into logical and meaningful paragraph :
A) It was further revived by Boston Publishing firm, and from that time Mother Goose continued and grew in fame and interest till date.
B) The first collection of verses under her name was published in London in book form by John Newberry.
C) These were known long before they were designated as Mother Goose rhymes.
D) Some rhymes can be traced to popular ballads, folk songs and games, political satire, ancient proverbs, cries of street vendors, real or legendary events.
E) About twenty-five years later the book was reprinted in the United States in Worcester, Massachusetts.
F) In fact, until the eighteenth century Mother Goose did not have a name in print in English literature.
  1. Which among the following will be the last sentence after rearrangement ?
    1. A
    2. B
    3. C
    4. D
    5. E
  2. Which among the following will be the Fourth sentence after rearrangement ?
    1. F
    2. E
    3. D
    4. C
    5. B
  3. Which among the following will be the Fifth sentence after rearrangement ?
    1. F
    2. E
    3. D
    4. C
    5. B
  4. Which among the following will be the First sentence after rearrangement ?
    1. A
    2. B
    3. C
    4. D
    5. E
  5. Which among the following will be the Second sentence after rearrangement ?
    1. B
    2. C
    3. D
    4. E
Answer : D C F B E A
(Order of sentences after rearrangement)

Cloze Test

'Cloze Test' is a multiple fill in the blanks type question. A short passage with ten blanks are given. These blanks occur in quick succession. Hence, these are also referred as rapid fillers. A candidate has to fill in the blanks to form a coherent passage with the help of options given. For answering this, sound knowledge of words, grammar and construction are necessary.

Example :
Since 1879 there has been a        1       science of psychology, and one important part of it is directly     2        with the problem of understanding human personality. In fact the fundamental objective of the study of personality is to       3           significantly to our understanding of human beings from within the       4        of the science of psychology. Scientific psychology      5       to work with relatively simple and straight forward concepts that are open to      6         test and to use research methods that are as sound and      7        as possible. Most psychologists are      8       that these scientifically based concepts and methods will ultimately       9       to be of most value in         10          the complex nature of human behavior.
  1.  
    1. Appreciative
    2. Voluminous
    3. Possible
    4. Durable
    5. Recognizable

  2.  
    1. Measurable
    2. Concerned
    3. Accountable
    4. Responsible
    5. Submerged

  3.  
    1. Conjecture
    2. Correlate
    3. Configure
    4. Contribute
    5. Convert

  4.   
    1. Attributes 
    2. Association
    3. Framework
    4. Control
    5. Contribution

  5.  
    1. Prefers
    2. Adjusts
    3. Directs
    4. Encompasses
    5. Views

  6.  
    1. Profound
    2. Flexible
    3. Stable
    4. Empirical
    5. Large

  7.  
    1. Precise
    2. Evocative
    3. Elongated
    4. Regulatory
    5. Mandatory

  8.  
    1. Exhibited
    2. Convinced
    3. Attributed
    4. Corroborated 
    5. Professed

  9.  
    1. Extend
    2. Project
    3. Develop
    4. Making
    5. Prove

  10.  
    1. Celebrating
    2. Advocating
    3. Unraveling
    4. Ascribing
    5. Involving

Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension is given to know the depth of understanding and learning of a candidate. To 'Comprehend' means 'to understand'. In this question, a passage of different length is given with 10 questions below it with options. Some questions require deeper understanding of the passage and some are straight forward and based on facts. The questions pertain to the following main ideas.
  1. Questions based on specific information
  2. Tone of the passage
  3. Central idea of the passage
  4. Drawing conclusions
  5. Antonym and Synonym type questions
 Since time at the disposal of the candidate is very short and crucial, it is advisable to attempt the compression test at the end.

That's all for now friends. Keep visiting us for more tips and study materials. Happy Reading :)

Meanings for Difficult words 
  •  Fill in the Blanks Meanings
    • Abuse = use for wrong purpose
    • Indelible = unerasable
    • Perishable = that which can be spoiled / destructed
    • Erudite = a learned person
    • Adore = worship
    • Enthrall = attract 
    • Instigate = force, incite
  • 'Colze Test' Meanings 
    • Conjecture = guess
    • Correlate = complement, reciprocate
    • Configure = to arrange something esp. computer
    • Empirical = based on practical experience
    • Elongate = lengthen
    • Corroborate = confirm, establish
    • Unravel = explain, disentangle
    • Ascribe = assign, attribute
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7 comments:

  1. Sir plzzz post material for appost mts recruitment.plzzz sir plzzzz.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sirr reasoning.. Arhematic topic wise practice tests conduct

    ReplyDelete
  3. Please suggest me a good book for English..I am not good at it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. sir please post some english words meanings and opposite also

    ReplyDelete

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