21 February 2025 · Shift 3

Subject-verb agreement The sentence states a general fact about edible flowers, so it needs the simple present tense; 'was' and 'were' are past forms and are ruled out at once. 'Edible flowers' is a plural subject, so the verb must be the plural form 'are' - the singular 'is' can never follow a plural noun. Reading it back: 'Edible flowers are made up of a large group of flowers that have different characteristics.' Hence the correct option is (a).

Contextual vocabulary The blank describes the demeanor that helped her attract the judges' attention, so it must name a positive, attractive quality. 'Bewitching' means so charming that it holds people spellbound - exactly the quality that draws attention, and it sits naturally beside 'intellect'. Repellent, repugnant and revolting all mean causing disgust and driving people away; each of the three would flatly contradict 'attract the attention', so none can fill the blank. Hence the correct option is (b).

Synonym: abandon 'Abandon' means to give something up completely and go away from it, leaving it behind for good. 'Leave' carries the same core sense of going away from something and not continuing with it, so it is the synonym asked for. Hold = to keep something firmly in one's grasp, and Claim = to assert ownership of something; both move towards keeping, which is the opposite of abandoning. Weave = to make cloth by interlacing threads, which has no connection with the given word. Hence the correct option is (c).

Spelling: doubling rule The misspelt word is 'Alloting'; the correct spelling is 'Allotting', with a double t. Rule: when a verb ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel and the last syllable carries the stress (al-LOT), that consonant doubles before -ing or -ed - allot becomes allotting, allotted; compare permit becoming permitting. Attendance, Accompany and Automatic are all spelt correctly. Hence the incorrectly spelt word is option (b).

Spelling: -ous words The misspelt word is 'Couragiously'; the correct spelling is 'Courageously'. It is built as courage + -ous + -ly. The final 'e' of courage is kept so that the g keeps its soft sound, giving courageous - and there is no 'i' anywhere in the word; compare outrage becoming outrageous. Categorically, Concurrently and Charmingly are all spelt correctly. Hence the incorrectly spelt word is option (b).

Antonym: succinct 'Succinct' means expressed in very few words - brief and clearly to the point. Its antonym must describe speech that uses far too many words, and 'Long-winded' is exactly that. Laconic (using very few words), Pithy (short but full of meaning) and Concise (brief and to the point) are all synonyms of succinct, not opposites - three near-synonyms and one odd word out is itself the clue. Substituting: 'The explanation provided by the professor was long-winded' reverses the original sense, as an antonym should. Hence the correct option is (b).

Subject-verb agreement The sentence states a general truth about what pollution does, so it needs the simple present tense. 'Pollution' is an uncountable noun and behaves as a third person singular subject, so in the simple present the verb takes -s: 'damages'. 'damage' is the base form and does not agree with a singular subject; 'damaging' is a participle and cannot stand alone as the finite verb; 'is damage' puts a noun where a verb is needed. Hence the correct option is (a).

Idiom meaning 'To bark up the wrong tree' means to follow a mistaken line of thought or action - to aim your effort at the wrong person, place or idea. The picture behind it: the hunted animal has slipped away into another tree while the dog stands baying at the foot of an empty one. So the colleague means that convincing the boss is the wrong course to take, or that your assumption about him is mistaken - which is option (d). (a) reads the idiom literally; (c) reverses it by calling the assumptions right; (b) is the tempting one, but the idiom comments on the approach being misdirected, not on giving the project up. Hence the correct option is (d).

Adverb placement The error is in the first segment, 'Jawed refused politely'. Rule: an adverb of manner must not stand between a transitive verb and its object; it goes either before the main verb or after the whole object. Here the object 'a second serving of the custard' follows immediately, so 'politely' has to move in front of the verb: 'Jawed politely refused a second serving of the custard'. The other three segments are sound - 'a second serving of the custard by', 'the host at' and 'Hotel Grand yesterday' contain no grammatical fault. Hence the segment with the error is option (a).

Collocation and past tense The fixed collocation in English is 'make a decision' - one makes a decision, never does one or has one, so 'have' and 'do' are out. 'after careful consideration' points to a completed past action, and the sentence carries no auxiliary verb, so the finite verb must itself be in the past form: 'made'. The bare form 'make' fails on two counts here - it is present, and with 'She' the present would in any case need 'makes'. Hence the correct option is (b).

Antonym: scarce 'Scarce' means available in far too small a quantity - hard to come by. Its opposite must mean available in plenty, and 'Ample' means more than enough. 'Less' is the trap: it only means a smaller amount, so it moves in the same direction as scarce instead of against it. 'Tiny' speaks of size and 'Heavy' of weight; neither says anything about how much of a thing is available. Hence the correct option is (c).

Cloze: adjective placement Fix the blanks one at a time by asking which noun each adjective has to describe. Blank (2) stands before 'grass' and sits in the list beside 'tall trees' and 'vibrant flowers', so it needs a word describing grass: 'green'. Blank (3) stands before 'retreat for the city's busy residents' - what busy people seek is quiet, so 'peaceful'. That leaves 'spacious' (having plenty of room) for blank (1), which suits a park large enough to hold grass, trees and flowers. Hence (1) spacious; (2) green; (3) peaceful - option (a).

Antonym: clandestine 'Clandestine' means done in secret and deliberately kept hidden, because it would not survive public view. Its antonym must mean done openly, and 'Overt' means exactly that - not concealed, plain for everyone to see. 'Under the table', 'Hush-hush' and 'Furtive' are all synonyms of clandestine (money paid under the table, a hush-hush deal, a furtive glance), so three options move the same way and the odd one out is the answer. Hence the correct option is (d).

Synonym: insipid 'Insipid' means lacking flavour, and by extension lacking interest or liveliness. 'Bland' means precisely that - mild and without any strong taste - so it is the synonym required. Flavourful, Spicy and Tangy all name a strong or sharp taste, so each is an opposite of the given word rather than a synonym. Hence the correct option is (a).

Adjective vs adverb Segment (A) prints 'He usual jogs in the early morning'. Rule: a word that tells how or how often an action happens modifies the verb, so it must be an adverb; 'usual' is an adjective and can only qualify a noun, as in 'his usual route'. The verb 'jogs' therefore needs the adverb form: 'He usually jogs in the early morning'. Segments (B), (C) and (D) are all grammatical, so the error lies in (A) - which the options list as (a). Hence the correct option is (a).

Cloze: adjective choice Blank (76) describes the 'quest' for the meaning and purpose of life - a search a person carries on inside their own mind. 'Introspective' means given to examining one's own thoughts and feelings, which is precisely such an inward quest. 'Extrovert' describes an outgoing person, not a quest, so it cannot qualify the noun here. 'Unthoughtful' and 'superficial' both deny reflection, and a search for the meaning of life is the very opposite of unreflecting. Hence the correct option is (b).

Cloze: noun choice The blank is the first item of the list 'rooted in (77), kindness and love', so it must be a noun naming a warm feeling towards others, matching the two that follow it. 'Compassion' - a deep sympathy for the suffering of others - fits that list, and the very next sentence confirms it by speaking of a 'compassionate attitude'. 'Apathy' is the absence of feeling, the direct opposite of kindness and love. 'Remorse' is regret for one's own wrongdoing and 'ignominy' is public disgrace; neither belongs beside kindness and love. Hence the correct option is (c).

Cloze: adjective choice The blank describes the 'nature of suffering in all living beings', and the phrase 'in all living beings' tells us the adjective must mean present everywhere. 'Pervasive' means spread through every part - and it is exactly that universality which makes acknowledging suffering produce a compassionate attitude. 'Abrasive' (harsh, grating) and 'corrosive' (eating away) describe how something acts, not how widely it is spread, so neither answers 'in all living beings'. 'Unfamiliar' contradicts the passage outright, since suffering shared by every living being is anything but unfamiliar. Hence the correct option is (d).

Cloze: noun choice The blank follows 'Cultivating moral', and the closing sentence speaks of 'the pursuit of moral excellence', so the noun must name good moral qualities. 'Virtues' are exactly those qualities, and they are what one cultivates in order to transcend the suffering inherent in existence. 'Maleficences' (evil deeds) and 'scourges' (causes of great suffering) are the reverse of moral excellence, so neither can be cultivated to escape suffering. 'Advantage' names a gain or benefit rather than a moral quality, and its singular form does not sit with the plural sense the sentence needs. Hence the correct option is (c).

Cloze: adjective choice The final sentence sums the passage up: recognising shared suffering and pursuing moral excellence give life the very thing the passage set out to find. The passage opened with 'The meaning and purpose of life', so the adjective that closes the circle is 'meaningful' - having meaning or purpose. 'Trivial' (of little worth) and 'irrational' (against reason) contradict that conclusion outright. 'Diligent' describes a hard-working person, not the kind of life such a search produces. Hence the correct option is (a).