SSC CHSL Tier 1 2021 English Comprehension Questions with Solutions

Explanation

The active voice sentence is in the simple past tense and contains a prepositional verb, laughed at. To change such a sentence into the passive voice, the object of the preposition (the clown) becomes the subject of the passive sentence. The simple past tense verb laughed is converted into was laughed, and the preposition at must remain immediately after the verb. Finally, the agent is introduced using by followed by the objective pronoun me. This gives the correct passive structure: The clown was laughed at by me.

Explanation

The error lies in the segment "to an environment" because the definite article "the" must be used before "environment" when referring to the natural world. Since "the environment" refers to a specific, unique entity (the Earth's ecological system), the indefinite article "an" is grammatically incorrect. The sentence should correctly read "about the dangers to the environment."

Explanation

The correct spelling of the word is acquaintance, which includes the letter c before q. An acquaintance refers to a person whom one knows slightly but who is not a close friend. The spelling in the option lacks the letter c, making it incorrect.

Explanation

The preposition "at" is used to denote a specific point in time on the clock. In the given sentence, "6.00 a.m." is a precise time of day, so "at" is the correct preposition to introduce this time of departure.

Explanation

The word sacred refers to something that is holy, consecrated, or dedicated to a religious purpose, deserving of deep respect and veneration. The term profane serves as its direct antonym, referring to things that are secular, non-religious, or disrespectful toward sacred things.

Explanation

The word omniscient is derived from the Latin prefix omni- meaning all, and sciens meaning knowing. Thus, it refers to a state of having complete, unlimited, or infinite knowledge, perfectly substituting the phrase knows everything and has unlimited knowledge.

Explanation

A rampart is a defensive wall or a broad elevation of earth raised as a fortification around a castle, fort, or city to protect it from assault. A bulwark is also a defensive wall or barrier built for protection and security. Because both terms refer to a protective, defensive structure or safeguard, bulwark is a direct synonym for rampart.

Explanation

Perusal refers to the act of reading or examining something, typically in a thorough, attentive, and careful manner. It is the noun form of the verb peruse, which means to read through or scan with care to understand or analyze the details.

Explanation

The given sentence is in the present perfect tense in the passive voice, which follows the grammatical structure of: Subject + has/have + been + third form of the verb.

To convert this sentence into the active voice, the original tense must be maintained. The structural format for the present perfect tense in the active voice is: Subject + has/have + third form of the verb + Object.

Because the performer of the action is omitted in the passive sentence, a logical subject is introduced to perform the action. Using the logical subject, the conversion yields the active voice structure with the auxiliary verb has followed by the verb defeated and the object our team.

Explanation

In the given sentence, the actions of greeting (greeted) and learning about the treachery (had learned) are written in the past tense and past perfect tense respectively. To maintain grammatical consistency and a logical sequence of events, the verb in the first clause must also be in the past tense. Changing sees to saw establishes that the entire sequence of events occurred in the past, with the learning of the treachery taking place prior to the meeting.

Explanation

The verb advise requires a gerund (the -ing form of a verb) when it is not followed by a direct object. Since there is no noun or pronoun acting as an object between the verb advise and the subsequent action, the gerund form living must be used.

Explanation

The word premitivism is misspelled. The correct spelling is primitivism, which is spelled with an i in the first syllable instead of an e. Primitivism refers to a belief in the value of what is simple and unsophisticated, or a movement in art and literature that prefers the style of non-Western or pre-industrial societies.

Explanation

A hypocrite is defined as a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion, or who pretends to possess certain beliefs, feelings, or principles that they do not actually hold. The underlined phrase describes someone who is falsely representing their true character or identity to deceive others, which is the precise definition of being a hypocrite.

Explanation

The idiom pull a long face means to have an expression on one's face that shows sadness, disappointment, or unhappiness. When a person is unhappy, their facial features tend to droop, particularly the mouth and jaw, which visually elongates the face and gives the appearance of looking sad.

Explanation

The word mild is the standard adjective used to describe weather that is pleasantly warm, gentle, and not harsh or severe. During transitional periods such as the end of February, weather often shifts from extreme winter cold to a more moderate temperature, making mild the most natural and contextually appropriate fit.

Explanation

The word personal is an adjective meaning belonging to, relating to, or affecting a particular person. In this context, a diary entry is a private and individual record of a person's daily life, thoughts, and feelings. Therefore, personal is the grammatically and semantically correct term to describe such an account of one's day.

Explanation

The word treacherous (misspelled in the question as treasheros) means guilty of or involving betrayal, deception, or disloyalty. The direct antonym of this term is faithful, which means remaining loyal, steadfast, and trustworthy.

Explanation

Correct Answer: D

The word scarce means insufficient, limited, or in short supply. An antonym is a word opposite in meaning. The opposite of scarce is abundant, which means existing or available in large quantities, plentiful, or more than sufficient. Placing abundant in the blank space directly provides the exact opposite meaning to scarce, indicating that there is a large amount of evidence.

Explanation

The phrasal verb cut in means to interrupt someone while they are speaking. In the given sentence, the context describes the impolite habit of interrupting a person who is in the middle of a conversation, making cut in the most grammatically correct and contextually appropriate phrase.

Explanation

The idiom "bed of roses" refers to an easy, comfortable, and pleasant situation or condition of life that is completely free from difficulties, worries, or hardships.

Explanation

The subordinating conjunction "although" introduces a contrast between the widespread desire for success and the limited number of individuals who truly understand its elements. The determiner "a few" is used with plural countable nouns like "people" to mean a small number. This fits the context perfectly, emphasizing that while everyone desires success, only a small number of people actually comprehend what builds it.

Explanation

The passage discusses the common misunderstanding of what constitutes true success, contrasting external achievements like wealth and power with inner peace and happiness. In the second sentence, the author highlights how the modern perception of success is mistakenly identified with material wealth. The preposition "with" following the blank pairs with "confused" to form the phrase "confused with", which means to mistake one thing for another. This fits the context perfectly as the author argues that people mistakenly treat making money as synonymous with achieving success.

Explanation

The context of the passage discusses how people commonly equate success with material acquisitions, power, and prestige. However, the author argues that these external achievements do not represent the true essence of success, which lies in inner happiness and peace. In this context, the word measure is the most appropriate fit as it refers to a standard, gauge, or indicator used to evaluate or assess something. Thus, outer things and external achievements are not a true gauge or measure of actual success.

Explanation

The passage discusses the concept of success, questioning whether external factors such as power, prestige, and material wealth truly define a person's success. After mentioning that a person with all these external achievements might still be intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually barren, the author poses a rhetorical question to challenge the traditional, materialistic definition of success. Using successful in blank 4 directly connects this rhetorical question to the core theme of the passage, prompting the reader to rethink what it truly means to be successful before transitioning to the definition of true success in the subsequent sentences.

Explanation

The word harmony perfectly fits the context of the sentence, which speaks about living in a state of peace, agreement, and balance. The phrase peaceful harmony is a standard English collocation that denotes a state of peaceful coexistence and internal or external tranquility. In the passage, this refers to maintaining a balanced and serene relationship with oneself, the surrounding people, and the broader cosmic laws of God.

Explanation

The noun ardor directly represents intense devotion, eagerness, passion, or burning enthusiasm. Derived from the Latin verb ardere, which means to burn, the term metaphorically signifies a fiery intensity of feeling or zeal toward a cause, activity, or person.

Explanation

Sentence B serves as the perfect introductory sentence because it introduces the central theme, Covid-19, and its broad impact on all fields. Sentence C logically follows Sentence B by narrowing the focus from all fields to a specific area, which is education and its impact on students. Sentence D continues this theme by discussing the impact of the pandemic specifically on teachers within that same education sector. Finally, Sentence A concludes the paragraph by using the transition word "too" to connect the misery faced by those in the education sector back to people in other professions. This establishes a coherent flow of ideas from the general impact to a specific sector, then to specific actors within that sector, and finally extending the conclusion to other professions.

Explanation

The phrasal verb look into means to investigate, explore, or examine a matter or possibility. In this sentence, Vishnu and his family are exploring the possibility of moving to Canada. The present continuous form are looking into is grammatically correct and fits the context perfectly to denote an ongoing process of investigation or consideration.

Explanation

The sentence requires the contraction of "it is", which is written as "it's", to serve as the subject and verb of the main clause. The word "its" is a possessive pronoun used to indicate ownership, which is grammatically incorrect in this context as there is no noun being possessed. Replacing "Its" with "It's" correctly completes the idiomatic expression "it is time" or "it's time".

Explanation

The idiom make one's blood boil means to cause someone to become extremely angry or furious. In the given sentence, the attitude of the culprit elicited an intense feeling of anger from the judge, making this phrase the exact idiomatic replacement for the highlighted text.

Explanation

Sentence C introduces Watt and establishes his connection with the University of Glasgow. Sentence B flows directly from C, describing how he acted on the advice of his well-wishers at this university and went to London to learn his trade. Sentence D follows B by detailing his experience in London, where he discovered the seven-year apprenticeship rule. Sentence A concludes the paragraph by explaining the purpose of this rule, which was to qualify as a journeyman. This creates a coherent chronological and logical progression.

Explanation

The word Involv is misspelled. The correct spelling is Involve, which is a verb meaning to include, affect, or contain something as a necessary part or consequence. It requires the letter e at the end.

Explanation

The word terse is defined as using very few words to say something, often in a way that is brief and direct. The antonym is verbose, which refers to using or containing more words than are necessary, representing the exact opposite of being brief and concise.

Explanation

The segment contains a grammatical error because it uses the objective pronoun "me" instead of the subjective pronoun "I" as part of the compound subject of the sentence. Since the pronoun is performing the action of the verb "go", it must be in the nominative or subjective case. Furthermore, proper English usage requires the first-person pronoun to be placed after the other subject in a compound structure. The segment should therefore be corrected to "My friends and I".

Explanation

The word bereft means to be deprived of or lacking something, especially a non-material asset like hope, joy, or support. In the given sentence, being bereft of hope means being entirely without hope. The term devoid also means entirely lacking or free from, which precisely matches the denotation of bereft in this context.

Explanation

The word excruciating means intensely painful, acute, or severe. Similarly, piercing is used to describe a sharp, penetrating, and extremely intense sensation or pain, making it the most appropriate synonym.

Explanation

The word "Adrointness" is incorrectly spelt. The correct spelling of the word is "adroitness", which is the noun form of the adjective "adroit", meaning cleverness or skill in using the hands or mind. The correct spelling does not contain the letter "n" after the "i".

Explanation

The word Comittee is misspelt. The correct spelling is Committee, which contains a double m, a double t, and a double e. It refers to a group of people appointed for a specific function by a larger body.

Explanation

The idiom hit the books is an informal expression meaning to study with intense focus, energy, and dedication. It is commonly used by students when they need to prepare thoroughly for exams, complete assignments, or review academic material.

Explanation

Cloud computing is a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources such as networks, servers, storage, applications, and services. In this computing paradigm, multiple users and devices access the same physical infrastructure and hardware, which are dynamically allocated and reallocated according to demand. By pooling and sharing these computing processing resources among many clients, cloud providers achieve high efficiency, optimal resource utilization, and significant economies of scale. This makes shared the most logically and contextually accurate term to describe the resources provided by cloud computing.

Explanation

The verb provide follows a specific grammatical pattern when connecting a recipient and an object. When the recipient of the action (users and enterprises) precedes the thing being provided (various capabilities), the standard English collocation requires the preposition with. This establishes the structural pattern of providing someone with something.

Explanation

The context of the sentence refers to the entities or establishments where traditional supercomputing or high-performance computing power is normally utilized. The term research facilities is a standard English collocation representing buildings, laboratories, or complex locations dedicated to conducting scientific or technological research. Therefore, facilities is the most appropriate noun to follow military and research to describe the organizations or places operating these advanced computing systems.

Explanation

The context refers to consumer-oriented applications in the financial domain where high-performance supercomputing power is applied to process complex data. A financial portfolio represents a collection of investments and financial assets held by an individual or organization. Utilizing cloud computing for managing financial portfolios allows for real-time risk analysis, asset valuation, and the processing of vast amounts of market data to deliver personalized investment information to consumers.

Explanation

In the context of the passage, cloud computing is described as a model that provides on-demand computing resources, similar to how traditional public utilities like electricity or water are supplied. The term utility refers to a service that is provisioned on demand and paid for based on consumption. Thus, cloud computing became widely recognized as a highly demanded service or utility due to its on-demand accessibility, high computing power, and cost-effectiveness.

Explanation

The word devastate means to destroy or ruin something completely, or to cause severe and widespread damage. Thus, destroy is its direct synonym as it also means to end the existence of something by damaging or attacking it.

Explanation

Innocence is a characteristic trait universally associated with childhood. In the given sentence, the comparison "like children" establishes a context that requires an adjective representing a defining, positive, and desirable quality of being a child. The word "innocent" fits this context perfectly, expressing the sentiment of wanting to remain pure, simple, and free from the complexities and corruption of adulthood.

Explanation

The segment contains a grammatical error because the adjective vivid is used to modify the verb remember. An adverb must be used to modify a verb, so the adjective vivid should be replaced with the adverb vividly. The correct phrasing is I remember vividly.

Explanation

The auxiliary verb did is used in simple past tense negative sentences and is always followed by the base form of the main verb. In the phrase gone to, the past participle gone is incorrect and must be replaced with the base form go. This makes the grammatically correct construction did not go.

Explanation

The word squalid refers to a place or condition that is extremely dirty, filthy, and unpleasant, often as a result of poverty or neglect. The antonym of a word representing dirtiness and neglect is one that denotes hygiene and orderliness. Therefore, clean, which means free from dirt, marks, or pollution, is the most appropriate antonym.

Explanation

Vanity refers to an excessive pride in or admiration of one's own appearance, abilities, or achievements. Conceit is its direct synonym, denoting an excessively high opinion of oneself, one's merit, or one's importance. Both terms are used to describe a state of being overly proud, self-important, or egotistical.