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'Forgetting the roots' means...
English Language Section of IBPS Exam contains different topics like Reading Comprehension, Cloze Test, Sentence Skills, Synonyms, antonyms, Sentence correction, Spotting Errors, Jumbled sentences etc. Candidates who are aspiring to book their berth in this exam should meticulously prepare on all these topics in a methodical way. Let us take a look at some of the useful tips in order to crack the questions pertaining to different categories.
Cloze Test:
Cloze test is a type of comprehension exercise in which the candidate is required to supply words that have been omitted from the text. In Cloze Test, generally a passage is provided with 10 or 12 spaces. The candidates have to fill up the spaces with the most appropriate words/phrases provided in the options. These type of questions are asked to judge the candidates vocabulary power, grammatical knowledge, and common sense.
Strategy to Tackle Cloze Tests:
To tackle the Cloze test, the candidate should read the entire passage once to get the theme as sometimes more than one option seems appropriate for a blank. Complete passage reading will help the candidate to choose the best option and gives a fair idea about the content of the passage. Good Knowledge of Grammar, command over vocabulary and a little bit of common sense will be ideal for attempting these questions. In the examination you will find a small passage with numbered blanks. Below the passage these numbers are repeated and against each number four or five words are given. You are required to choose an appropriate word from the given choices to fill in the respective blanks in the passage. This test is designed to evaluate your knowledge of words and their correct grammatical usage so as to keep the meaning of the passage intact.
Practice Test:
Jill was walking to her class slowly. She was -------- (1) about the History test she would have to take that morning. As she -------- (2) the classroom, a piece of paper suddenly fluttered down and landed near her feet. As Jill glanced -------- (3) at the paper, her heart nearly missed a beat. It was the History test paper complete -------- (4) answers! Jill's very first thought was not to tell -------- (5) about what she had found. She would memorize all the answers and -------- (6) extremely well in the test. After some hard thinking, however, she knew that it would be a very dishonest thing to do. Besides, it would not be fair to her classmates.
In the end, Jill returned the paper to her History teacher, Miss James."Thanks, Jill. I -------- (7) searching high and low for it," said the teacher.
"I...I've read all the questions already, Miss James," Jill confessed.
Miss James told her not to worry as she would think of new questions for the test. Jill's heart sank. She was half -------- (8) that the test would be cancelled. Nevertheless, she did her best in the new test later that day. A few days later, the test papers were returned to the class. To her -------- (9) surprise, Jill discovered that she had scored eighty marks. "You know something," she told her friends. "I could easily have scored full marks if I ------- (10) on this test. But I wouldn't be as pleased as I am now with the eighty marks I obtained."
1. a) worried b) worry
c) weird d) tired
2. a) were reaching b) was reaching
c) is reached d) have been reaching
3. a) upon b) on
c) down d) up
4. a) with b) by
c) at d) for
5. a) many b) any
c) no one d) anyone
6. a) did b) do
c) done d) does
7. a) has been b) had been
c) have been d) will be
8. a) hope b) hoping
c) hoped d) hopping
9. a) pleasuring b) please
c) pleasing d) pleasant
10. a) had cheated b) has cheated
c) was cheated d) were cheated
Answers 1) a; 2) b; 3) c; 4) a; 5) d;
6) b; 7) c; 8) b; 9) d; 10) a.
READING COMPREHENSION
Reading comprehension is a major component in the English language section. In order to crack this section the candidates are expected to read the questions first, so that it helps to find what one is trying to look for. Identify the tone of the paragraph, as it helps in answering very quickly.
SAMPLE PASSAGE
Read the passage given below and answer the questions. Each question has five options choose the appropriate answer from the options given below each question.Iyer's observations on the life of Ladakh, people, animals and landscape, and the uniqueness of the place are very interesting, and in particular the comparisons to Bhutan and Tibet are very interesting. He describes the marmots scrambling across their path and spots kiang - or wild asses at a distance - as he proceeds along his way to Nubra Valley.
He also observes the unique two-humped Bactrian camels foraging in the dunes in the backdrop of milky white landscape. There were also seen white two storied buildings amid apricot and willow trees.
Iyer was stuck by the sudden and majestic appearance of Diskit Gompa - a Buddhist monastery - rising high into the heavens on his way to Ladakh, a traditional Buddhist city called "the world's last Shangri La" - an imaginary and remote paradise. The author had gathered some interesting information on the place and its life through books like "Journey to Ladakh" by Andrew Harvey.
Through his wide travels he had also learnt that the pastoral life still exists there untouched by any trace of modernity. During his visit to the place he found that the place is full of Indian soldiers because of the border disputes with Pakistan and that the place is also cosmopolitan in nature due to the international trade activity there. He was surprised by these because he had expected this place to have had no contacts with the outside world. He also saw men and women resembling the people of various neighbouring nations.
Iyer discovered the true paradoxical nature of the place. He found at the place young people who were on the verge of forgetting their roots in an attempt to catch up with the so called modernization hanging out in the pubs and neglecting their culture and traditions. And, on the other hand he also found people, just 10 km away from Ladakh, celebrating the traditional Ladakhi festivals and sports with all the zeal and fervor. The author also observes some developmental work taking place here and there on the streets of Ladakh - mainly to develop the tourism. He was also amused by the sight of the shopping malls and pizza huts.
The author laments the fact that the Ladakhis these days are not only abandoning their past but also packaging their culture in an effort to attract more and more foreign tourists.The author also describes with admiration the efforts of people like Helena Norberg-Hodge, a foreigner settled in Ladakh, to preserve the uniqueness and the purity of the place by creating environmental awareness in the locals as well as in the visiting tourists. The members of the women's alliance set up by her were also actively taking part in the campaign started by this foreign lady.Iyer passionately declares in a nostalgic tone that for him and many others, Ladakh presents a way of retrieving the childhood ecstasy experienced by all of us and concludes saying that it truly represents the lost paradise on the earth.
1. The author describes Ladakh 'world's last Shangri La' as ---------
a) Beautiful and pristine
b) Serene and unique
c) Imaginary and remote paradise
d) Paradise on earth.
e) Pure and paradise
2. Journey to Ladakh is written by ---------
a) Author b) Iyer
c) Andrew Harvey d) Helena
e) Hodge
3. The efforts for environmental awareness by --------- are praised by the author.
a) Iyer b) Andrew Harvey
c) Helena Norberg Hodge
d) People e) Tourists
4. The antonym of paradoxical is ---------
a) Consistent b) Ironical
c) Absurd d) Sarcastic
e) Illogical
5. The synonym of pastoral is ---------
a) Urban b) Idyllic
c) City d) Conurbation
e) Impure
6. The border dispute with which nation is talked about in the passage?
a) Bhutan b) Tibet
c) Iran d) Pakistan
e) Nepal
7. 'Forgetting the roots' means ---------
a) Not to remember
b) Remembering the tree
c) Forgetting the family tree
d) Forgetting members
e) Remembering ancestry
8. Women's alliance was set up by ---------
a) Locals b) Tourists
c) Iyer d) People
e) Helena Norberg Hodge
9. The tone of the passage is
a) Reflective b) Satiric
c) Didactic d) Humorous
e) Ironic
10. The most appropriate title to the above passage may be
a) Valley b) Lost Paradise
c) Travelogue d) Tour guide
e) Heaven's gate
Answers 1) c; 2) c; 3) c; 4) a; 5) b; 6) d; 7) c; 8) e; 9) a; 10) e
