SSC CGL 20 September 2025 · Shift 1 · English Comprehension — questions with answers

76

The following sentence has been divided into parts. One of them contains an error. Select the part that contains the error from the given options. The newly discovered species was (1)/ quite unique, possessing characteristics (2)/ that set it apart (3)/ from all known organisms. (4)

A.(1)
B.(2)
C.(3)
D.(4)

Solution

Absolute adjective — unique 'Unique' is an absolute (non-gradable) adjective — a thing either is unique or it is not. So it cannot take a qualifier like "quite", "very" or "more". Correct: ‘was unique, possessing characteristics…’ Hence option (b).

77

Select the most appropriate option to substitute the underline/Bold segment in the given sentence. They present their findings on the conference when the power suddenly went out.

A.present their findings at the conference
B.presented their findings at the conference
C.have been presenting their findings at the conference
D.were presenting their findings at the conference

Solution

Past continuous + at An action interrupted by another past event takes the PAST CONTINUOUS. Also, one presents findings AT a conference, not "on" it. So: they were presenting their findings at the conference. Hence option (d).

78

Select the correct indirect/direct form of the given sentence. He said to his friend, "Kindly bring me a glass of water."

A.He told his friend to bring him a glass of water.
B.He requested his friend to bring him a glass of water.
C.He persuaded his friend to bring him a glass of water.
D.He suggested to his friend that he should bring him a glass of water.

Solution

Reported request The word "kindly" marks the sentence as a REQUEST, not an order. So the reporting verb becomes "requested". "Told" suits a command and "persuaded" implies convincing over time. Hence option (b).

79

Select the option that expresses the given sentence in the Active/Passive voice. She helped the students complete their assignments.

A.The students were helped to complete their assignments by her.
B.The students had been helped complete their assignments by her.
C.The students are helped complete their assignments by her.
D.The students will be helped to complete their assignments by her.

Solution

Passive of help "Helped" is simple past active, so the passive is "were helped". In the passive, "help" takes the to-infinitive: were helped TO complete. (b), (c) and (d) change the tense or drop "to". Hence option (a).

80

Select the most appropriate option to substitute the underline/Bold segment in the given sentence. He sat by his in the corner.

A.by him
B.by himself
C.by his own
D.by myself

Solution

Reflexive pronoun The phrase "by oneself" means alone. With the subject "He", the reflexive form is "himself". "By his own" and "by myself" do not fit the subject. Hence option (b).

81

Select the correct indirect/direct form of the given sentence. He said that he was returning the borrowed book the next day.

A.He said, "I return the borrowed book tomorrow."
B.He said, "I am returning the borrowed book tomorrow."
C.He said, "I was returning the borrowed book the next day."
D.He said, "I will return the borrowed book the next day."

Solution

Indirect → direct Reverse the backshift: "was returning" comes from "am returning". "The next day" changes back to "tomorrow" and "he" to "I". (a) drops the continuous form, (c) keeps the reported words, (d) changes the structure. Hence option (b).

82

Sentences of a paragraph are given below in jumbled order. Arrange the sentences in the correct order to form a meaningful and coherent paragraph. 1. It allows for the exchange of ideas and the challenging of assumptions. 2. Open discourse is fundamental for a healthy democratic society. 3. Without it, public debate can become stagnant and divisive. 4. Engaging with diverse viewpoints broadens understanding and promotes empathy.

A.1-4-3-2
B.1-2-3-4
C.3-1-2-4
D.2-1-4-3

Solution

Para jumble — discourse Sentence 2 states the main idea — open discourse is fundamental to democracy. Sentence 1 ("It allows…") explains what it does and sentence 4 adds the benefit of diverse viewpoints. Sentence 3 ("Without it…") closes with the consequence of its absence. Order 2-1-4-3 — option (d).

83

Select the most appropriate antonym of the given word: Silent

A.Quiet
B.Mute
C.Vociferous
D.Taciturn

Solution

Antonym — Silent 'Silent' means making no sound or saying little. 'Vociferous' means loud and outspoken — the true opposite. Quiet, mute and taciturn are all synonyms of silent. Hence option (c).

84

Select the most appropriate option to fill in the blank. Rather than being a drawback, his opposing views acted as a ____ against the group's complacency.

A.counterweight
B.detriment
C.diversion
D.reputation

Solution

Vocabulary — counterweight The sentence contrasts a drawback with something useful. A "counterweight" balances or checks an opposite force — here, complacency. "Detriment" means harm, which contradicts "rather than being a drawback". Hence option (a).

85

Select the option that expresses the given sentence in the Active/Passive voice. The missing equipment was reported to have been discovered by workers near the construction site.

A.Workers are reported to have discovered the missing equipment near the construction site.
B.Workers reported to discover the missing equipment near the construction site.
C.It was reported that workers discover the missing equipment near the construction site.
D.The construction site is reported to discover the missing equipment.

Solution

Passive → active The inner clause "discovered by workers" turns active with the workers as subject. The reporting structure stays: are reported to have discovered. (b) and (d) are ungrammatical; (c) mixes the tenses. Hence option (a).

86

Sentences of a paragraph are given below in jumbled order. Arrange the sentences in the correct order to form a meaningful and coherent paragraph. 1. It delivers oxygen and nutrients to cells. 2. The human body has a complex circulatory system. 3. This keeps all our tissues functioning correctly. 4. The heart pumps blood through this network.

A.1-4-3-2
B.3-4-1-2
C.2-3-4-1
D.2-4-1-3

Solution

Para jumble — circulation Sentence 2 introduces the circulatory system. Sentence 4 tells us the heart pumps blood through it and sentence 1 what that blood delivers. Sentence 3 ("This keeps…") closes with the result. Order 2-4-1-3 — option (d).

87

Directions (Qs. 87-91): In the following passage some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. A schizochronic state, in which outdatedness and modernism exist at the same time, is often seen in postcolonial infrastructures. Flyovers abandoned mid-construction, railway terminals immobilized during renovation, and electrical networks fluctuating between overload and blackout do not merely indicate dysfunction. Instead, they reveal a (87) ____ temporality in which the present moment is severed from historical continuity and refuses alignment with a predictable future. These structures do not operate as neutral utilities but function as affective markers of temporal disruption. Modernity, once announced through concrete and steel, now intermittently appears within these stalled projects — visions of advancement immobilized by administrative inertia. Here, efficiency becomes irrelevant. What gains significance is the performative (88) ____ of development: highways that suggest movement despite being unusable, and transit systems that evoke futurity even while remaining static. Within this framework, infrastructure ceases to be a technical concern and becomes a narrative apparatus — a spatial discourse that (89) ____ the aspirational promises of the nation-state into durable form. Perpetually unfinished bridges and endlessly reconstructed airports do not signify breakdown, but persistence — the sustained repetition of incomplete intention. Such built forms demand a revised interpretive lens. A literal reading obscures their symbolic charge. Their deterioration is not collapse but (90) ____: a visual lexicon of state temporality, wherein incompletion itself becomes the political language of continuity. This represents a temporal mode defined by expectancy without fulfillment. Consequently, the postcolonial built environment articulates not immobility, but (91) ____ — a condition in which movement persists without direction and progress is enacted through endless incompletion.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number (87).

A.stagnant
B.regressive
C.disjunctive
D.authoritative

Solution

Cloze — disjunctive The blank describes a temporality "severed from historical continuity" and out of step with the future. "Disjunctive" means marked by disconnection — exactly that break. Stagnant suggests standstill and regressive a backward move, neither of which conveys the severing. Hence option (c).

88

Directions (Qs. 87-91): In the following passage some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. A schizochronic state, in which outdatedness and modernism exist at the same time, is often seen in postcolonial infrastructures. Flyovers abandoned mid-construction, railway terminals immobilized during renovation, and electrical networks fluctuating between overload and blackout do not merely indicate dysfunction. Instead, they reveal a (87) ____ temporality in which the present moment is severed from historical continuity and refuses alignment with a predictable future. These structures do not operate as neutral utilities but function as affective markers of temporal disruption. Modernity, once announced through concrete and steel, now intermittently appears within these stalled projects — visions of advancement immobilized by administrative inertia. Here, efficiency becomes irrelevant. What gains significance is the performative (88) ____ of development: highways that suggest movement despite being unusable, and transit systems that evoke futurity even while remaining static. Within this framework, infrastructure ceases to be a technical concern and becomes a narrative apparatus — a spatial discourse that (89) ____ the aspirational promises of the nation-state into durable form. Perpetually unfinished bridges and endlessly reconstructed airports do not signify breakdown, but persistence — the sustained repetition of incomplete intention. Such built forms demand a revised interpretive lens. A literal reading obscures their symbolic charge. Their deterioration is not collapse but (90) ____: a visual lexicon of state temporality, wherein incompletion itself becomes the political language of continuity. This represents a temporal mode defined by expectancy without fulfillment. Consequently, the postcolonial built environment articulates not immobility, but (91) ____ — a condition in which movement persists without direction and progress is enacted through endless incompletion.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number (88).

A.collapse
B.semiotics
C.hesitation
D.restoration

Solution

Cloze — semiotics The sentence says efficiency is irrelevant; what matters is what these structures SIGNIFY. "Semiotics" is the study of signs and meaning — the performative sign-value of development. Collapse, hesitation and restoration do not fit "performative ____ of development". Hence option (b).

89

Directions (Qs. 87-91): In the following passage some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. A schizochronic state, in which outdatedness and modernism exist at the same time, is often seen in postcolonial infrastructures. Flyovers abandoned mid-construction, railway terminals immobilized during renovation, and electrical networks fluctuating between overload and blackout do not merely indicate dysfunction. Instead, they reveal a (87) ____ temporality in which the present moment is severed from historical continuity and refuses alignment with a predictable future. These structures do not operate as neutral utilities but function as affective markers of temporal disruption. Modernity, once announced through concrete and steel, now intermittently appears within these stalled projects — visions of advancement immobilized by administrative inertia. Here, efficiency becomes irrelevant. What gains significance is the performative (88) ____ of development: highways that suggest movement despite being unusable, and transit systems that evoke futurity even while remaining static. Within this framework, infrastructure ceases to be a technical concern and becomes a narrative apparatus — a spatial discourse that (89) ____ the aspirational promises of the nation-state into durable form. Perpetually unfinished bridges and endlessly reconstructed airports do not signify breakdown, but persistence — the sustained repetition of incomplete intention. Such built forms demand a revised interpretive lens. A literal reading obscures their symbolic charge. Their deterioration is not collapse but (90) ____: a visual lexicon of state temporality, wherein incompletion itself becomes the political language of continuity. This represents a temporal mode defined by expectancy without fulfillment. Consequently, the postcolonial built environment articulates not immobility, but (91) ____ — a condition in which movement persists without direction and progress is enacted through endless incompletion.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number (89).

A.converts
B.articulates
C.conceals
D.materializes

Solution

Cloze — materializes The blank needs a verb meaning to give physical shape to the promises of the nation-state. "Materializes … into durable form" carries exactly that sense. "Conceals" reverses the meaning and "converts" would need a different preposition. Hence option (d).

90

Directions (Qs. 87-91): In the following passage some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. A schizochronic state, in which outdatedness and modernism exist at the same time, is often seen in postcolonial infrastructures. Flyovers abandoned mid-construction, railway terminals immobilized during renovation, and electrical networks fluctuating between overload and blackout do not merely indicate dysfunction. Instead, they reveal a (87) ____ temporality in which the present moment is severed from historical continuity and refuses alignment with a predictable future. These structures do not operate as neutral utilities but function as affective markers of temporal disruption. Modernity, once announced through concrete and steel, now intermittently appears within these stalled projects — visions of advancement immobilized by administrative inertia. Here, efficiency becomes irrelevant. What gains significance is the performative (88) ____ of development: highways that suggest movement despite being unusable, and transit systems that evoke futurity even while remaining static. Within this framework, infrastructure ceases to be a technical concern and becomes a narrative apparatus — a spatial discourse that (89) ____ the aspirational promises of the nation-state into durable form. Perpetually unfinished bridges and endlessly reconstructed airports do not signify breakdown, but persistence — the sustained repetition of incomplete intention. Such built forms demand a revised interpretive lens. A literal reading obscures their symbolic charge. Their deterioration is not collapse but (90) ____: a visual lexicon of state temporality, wherein incompletion itself becomes the political language of continuity. This represents a temporal mode defined by expectancy without fulfillment. Consequently, the postcolonial built environment articulates not immobility, but (91) ____ — a condition in which movement persists without direction and progress is enacted through endless incompletion.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number (90).

A.expression
B.default
C.entropy
D.sentimentality

Solution

Cloze — expression The passage says the decay is "not collapse but ____ : a visual lexicon of state temporality". A lexicon is a language, so the blank needs a word about conveying meaning — "expression". Entropy would simply repeat the idea of decay. Hence option (a).

91

Directions (Qs. 87-91): In the following passage some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. A schizochronic state, in which outdatedness and modernism exist at the same time, is often seen in postcolonial infrastructures. Flyovers abandoned mid-construction, railway terminals immobilized during renovation, and electrical networks fluctuating between overload and blackout do not merely indicate dysfunction. Instead, they reveal a (87) ____ temporality in which the present moment is severed from historical continuity and refuses alignment with a predictable future. These structures do not operate as neutral utilities but function as affective markers of temporal disruption. Modernity, once announced through concrete and steel, now intermittently appears within these stalled projects — visions of advancement immobilized by administrative inertia. Here, efficiency becomes irrelevant. What gains significance is the performative (88) ____ of development: highways that suggest movement despite being unusable, and transit systems that evoke futurity even while remaining static. Within this framework, infrastructure ceases to be a technical concern and becomes a narrative apparatus — a spatial discourse that (89) ____ the aspirational promises of the nation-state into durable form. Perpetually unfinished bridges and endlessly reconstructed airports do not signify breakdown, but persistence — the sustained repetition of incomplete intention. Such built forms demand a revised interpretive lens. A literal reading obscures their symbolic charge. Their deterioration is not collapse but (90) ____: a visual lexicon of state temporality, wherein incompletion itself becomes the political language of continuity. This represents a temporal mode defined by expectancy without fulfillment. Consequently, the postcolonial built environment articulates not immobility, but (91) ____ — a condition in which movement persists without direction and progress is enacted through endless incompletion.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number (91).

A.inertia
B.kinesis
C.exhaustion
D.stability

Solution

Cloze — inertia The closing line describes movement that persists without direction. That sustained motion going nowhere is best captured by "inertia" in the sense used through the passage (administrative inertia). Kinesis means purposeful movement and stability the opposite of the idea. Hence option (a).

92

Select the correct spelling.

A.Serine
B.Sirene
C.Serene
D.Sereen

Solution

Correct spelling 'Serene' — calm and peaceful — is the correct spelling. Serine is an amino acid and "siren" a different word altogether. The other options misplace the vowels. Hence option (c).

93

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom: His early success in films turned out to be just a flash in the pan.

A.A bright idea
B.A sudden success that fails to last
C.A criminal plan
D.A methodical worker

Solution

Idiom — flash in the pan 'A flash in the pan' means a brief success that is not repeated. The phrase comes from flintlock guns, where powder flashed without firing a shot. So his early success did not last. Hence option (b).

94

Choose the one-word substitute for: The court ordered the cancellation of the fine imposed on the offender.

A.Acquittal
B.Remission
C.Reprieve
D.Amnesty

Solution

One-word — Remission 'Remission' is the cancellation or reduction of a penalty. An acquittal is a verdict of not guilty and a reprieve only postpones punishment. Amnesty is a general pardon granted to a group. Hence option (b).

95

Select the correct spelling to fill in the blank. He has only a ____ knowledge of computer programming.

A.Rudimentry
B.Rudimentary
C.Rudementary
D.Rudamentary

Solution

Spelling — Rudimentary 'Rudimentary' — basic or elementary — is the correct spelling. It comes from rudiment + -ary. The others drop or change a vowel. Hence option (b).

96

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom: He bites his thumb at someone in the audience.

A.To ridicule one's own sense of pride
B.To show open contempt or insult someone
C.To flatter someone insincerely
D.To reveal inner fear

Solution

Idiom — bite the thumb 'To bite one's thumb at someone' is an old gesture of open insult. It appears famously in the opening scene of Romeo and Juliet. So it means to show contempt. Hence option (b).

97

Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word: CONFUSION

A.Exposition
B.Clarity
C.Transparency
D.Obfuscation

Solution

Synonym — Confusion 'Confusion' means a lack of clearness or understanding. 'Obfuscation' means the act of making something unclear — the closest synonym. Exposition, clarity and transparency all point the other way. Hence option (d).

98

Select the option which contains the most appropriate HOMONYM of the word given in bold/underline. The cloth placed on the altar was trimmed with a red galloon.

A.The tailor stitched a decorative galloon onto the robe.
B.The supplier delivered rolls of galloon for church garments.
C.The doctor advised taking a galloon daily for better health.
D.The ceremonial fabric was bordered with a silk galloon.

Solution

Homonym — galloon In the given sentence 'galloon' means a narrow decorative braid or trimming. Options (a), (b) and (d) all use it in that same textile sense. In (c) the word is used quite differently, as something to be consumed. Hence option (c).

99

Select the most appropriate option to fill in the blank. The teacher asked the scholar to ____ her research idea.

A.follow up
B.expand on
C.go over
D.call for

Solution

Phrasal verb — expand on 'Expand on' means to give more detail about something. The teacher wants the scholar to develop the idea further. 'Follow up' means to pursue later; 'go over' means to review. Hence option (b).

100

Select the option that can be used as a one-word substitute for the given group of words: 'The use of deception or subterfuge to achieve one's purpose.'

A.Corruption
B.Chicanery
C.Diplomacy
D.Propaganda

Solution

One-word — Chicanery 'Chicanery' means the use of trickery or subterfuge to achieve an end. Corruption involves dishonest use of power, usually for money. Diplomacy is tactful negotiation and propaganda is biased publicity. Hence option (b).