SSC CGL – SSC MTS 2024 Test - 2

Comprehension Passage<br> My next pet, Ari, was a pigeon. He became convinced that he was not a bird at all and refused to ____ 1 . If he wanted to get on a table or a chair, he stood below it, cooing until someone picked him up. He would even try to come ____ 2_ walks with us. This, however, we had to stop for, _____ 3____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ______ 4_____ to suit his, for should you get too far ahead, you would find him running after you, cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with _5.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 1.

Explanation: In the passage, Ari is a pigeon but became convinced that he was not a bird at all and therefore refused to ____. The most logical and context-fitting verb is fly, because flying is a natural bird behavior that he would reject if he believed he was not a bird. The other options (read, flea, file) do not match the meaning, grammar, or situation described.

Comprehension Passage<br> My next pet, Ari, was a pigeon. He became convinced that he was not a bird at all and refused to ____ 1 . If he wanted to get on a table or a chair, he stood below it, cooing until someone picked him up. He would even try to come ____ 2_ walks with us. This, however, we had to stop for, _____ 3____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ______ 4_____ to suit his, for should you get too far ahead, you would find him running after you, cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with _5.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 2.

Explanation: The correct phrase is come on walks with us , which is a common and idiomatic expression in English. It means to accompany someone while they are walking. Come by walks or come at walks are incorrect, and come in walks does not convey the intended meaning. The sentence clearly describes Ari trying to join the family during their walking trips, so on is the natural fit.

Comprehension Passage<br> My next pet, Ari, was a pigeon. He became convinced that he was not a bird at all and refused to ____ 1 . If he wanted to get on a table or a chair, he stood below it, cooing until someone picked him up. He would even try to come ____ 2_ walks with us. This, however, we had to stop for, _____ 3____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ______ 4_____ to suit his, for should you get too far ahead, you would find him running after you, cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with _5.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 3.

Explanation: The sentence structure is: This, however, we had to stop for, ____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. The correct connector is either, because the passage presents two alternatives. The correct pair is either…or. Neither would require nor and would imply both options are not allowed, which is not intended. Never and ever do not fit grammatically here.

Comprehension Passage<br> My next pet, Ari, was a pigeon. He became convinced that he was not a bird at all and refused to ____ 1 . If he wanted to get on a table or a chair, he stood below it, cooing until someone picked him up. He would even try to come ____ 2_ walks with us. This, however, we had to stop for, _____ 3____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ______ 4_____ to suit his, for should you get too far ahead, you would find him running after you, cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with _5.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 4.

Explanation: The sentence says: If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ____ to suit his. The correct word is pace, meaning speed or walking rate. That is exactly what must be adjusted to match a slower walker. Peace is a mental state, piece is a part of something, and space refers to distance or area. Only pace fits both meaning and context in a sentence about walking speed.

Comprehension Passage<br> My next pet, Ari, was a pigeon. He became convinced that he was not a bird at all and refused to ____ 1 . If he wanted to get on a table or a chair, he stood below it, cooing until someone picked him up. He would even try to come ____ 2_ walks with us. This, however, we had to stop for, _____ 3____ you carried him on your shoulder or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, you had to slow down your own ______ 4_____ to suit his, for should you get too far ahead, you would find him running after you, cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with _5.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 5.

Explanation: The line describes Ari running after them cooing frantically, his chest pouted out with ____. The phrase pouted out with indignation matches the idea of offended anger when he is left behind. Indignation means resentment or anger at being treated unfairly, which suits a pet’s exaggerated reaction. Intimation (hint), inclination (tendency), and ignition (starting a fire/engine) do not match the emotional tone or meaning.

In the following sentence the underlined part contains an error. Alternatives to the underlined part are given as options. Select the correct alternative.

All in all, he had the <strong>more splendid</strong> collection of antique paintings ever.

Explanation: The sentence uses the more splendid collection, but the structure the + comparative is generally used when comparing two things (e.g., the more splendid of the two ). Here, there is no comparison stated, and ever suggests an absolute, highest degree. So the correct form is the superlative: the most splendid collection … ever. The other options are incorrect: more splendider is double comparison, splendid removes needed degree, and splendidest is non-standard.

Select the most appropriate ANTONYM of the underlined word in the given sentence.

The company plans to <strong>expand</strong> its operations into global markets soon.

Explanation: Expand means to increase in size, scope, or range, especially in business operations. The opposite idea is to limit, reduce, or keep within boundaries, which is exactly what restrict means. Eliminate means remove completely, which is not a direct opposite of expand. Spread is close in meaning to expand, not an antonym. Diversify means to widen variety, also related to expanding rather than opposing it. Hence restrict is the best antonym.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the idiom from the options given below.

To show the white feather

Explanation: The idiom to show the white feather traditionally means to display cowardice or lack of courage. It comes from the idea that a white feather (notably in cockfighting references) was seen as a sign of a weak or inferior bird, and later became a symbolic way of calling someone fearful. The other options do not match this established idiomatic meaning: it has nothing to do with anger, peacekeeping, or bravery. Therefore, to act cowardly is correct.

The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.

My brother trains young girls at the football academy, whereas I gets a handsome salary to teach mathematics at the same place.

Explanation: The error is in subject–verb agreement. The subject is I , which takes the verb get, not gets. Correct form: whereas I get a handsome salary… The other segments are grammatically fine: My brother trains young girls is correct, at the football academy, whereas correctly introduces contrast, and to teach mathematics at the same place is a proper infinitive phrase showing purpose. Hence the incorrect segment is I gets a handsome salary.

Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word.

Reverent

Explanation: Reverent means showing deep respect, often toward something regarded as sacred, important, or worthy of honor. Among the options, respectful matches both the core meaning and the tone of reverent behavior. Rushed relates to speed, not attitude. Important describes status, not the manner of behavior. Related concerns connection, not respect. So the closest synonym is respectful, making option D correct.

Select the grammatically correct sentence from the given options.

Explanation: Option A is grammatically correct because it uses the proper article An before a vowel sound in unexpected, and it uses natural, meaningful noun phrases: the plan (a specific plan already known in context) and the team (a specific group). Option B sounds awkward and indefinite ( a plan of a team ). Option C is wrong because A unexpected violates article usage. Option D is incorrect because an plan should be a plan.

In the following sentence the underlined part contains an error. Alternatives to the underlined part are given as options. Select the correct alternative.

The bread was <strong>drier</strong> and stale.

Explanation: The phrase drier and stale is faulty because it mixes a comparative adjective ( drier ) with a base adjective ( stale ) without establishing a comparison. The sentence is describing the condition of bread, so the parallel structure should be two base-form adjectives: dry and stale. Option A fixes this by restoring parallelism and correct sense. Much drier would still keep a comparison without context. Driest changes meaning to superlative. More drier is a double comparative and incorrect.

Select the correct spelling of the underlined word in the given sentence.

After their disagreement, they decided to <strong>saparate</strong> their belongings and part ways.

Explanation: The correct spelling is separate. A common mistake is inserting extra vowels or changing the order of letters, as in seperate or seprate. In the sentence, the meaning is to keep things apart, and the correctly spelled verb is separate. The other options are incorrect spellings and are not accepted in standard English. Therefore, C is the only correct spelling that fits both the sentence and standard usage.

One of the four underlined words in the given sentence is incorrectly spelt. Select the INCORRECTLY spelt word.

Let us <strong>appreciate</strong>, support and <strong>contribute</strong> our might to the <strong>promotional</strong> efforts of the <strong>comunity</strong>.

Explanation: The incorrectly spelt word is comunity. The correct spelling is community, with double ‘m’: com-mu-ni-ty. The other words— appreciate, promotional, and contribute —are correctly spelled. Since the question asks for the incorrectly spelt underlined word, option D is correct because it points to the misspelling. This type of error is common because people often omit one ‘m,’ but standard English requires both.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in the blank.

The scientist conducted a series of experiments to _______ his hypothesis.

Explanation: In scientific writing, experiments are performed to verify (confirm or check the truth/accuracy of) a hypothesis. The sentence needs a verb that expresses testing to confirm. Variation and variable are nouns/adjectives and do not fit grammatically after to. Vague is an adjective and also does not fit meaningfully. Verify is the only option that matches both the grammar ( to + verb ) and the scientific context of checking whether the hypothesis is correct.

Select the option that has an error in the use of phrasal verb.

Explanation: Option A misuses the phrasal verb break out. Break out is used for events like a fire breaking out, a disease breaking out, a fight breaking out, or someone breaking out in a rash. It does not mean argue with or quarrel with people. In this sentence, the intended meaning seems to be frequent quarrelling, which would require phrases like fall out with or pick a fight with. The other options use phrasal verbs correctly in context.

In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in the blanks.

Johannes Gutenberg invented the first printing press that could print thousands of ______________ a day. This made books cheaper and information ______________ widely available.

Explanation: Print thousands of pages a day is the most natural and accurate collocation because printing presses produce pages, and Gutenberg’s innovation enabled large-scale printing. The second blank also fits best as information more widely available, which is a correct comparative structure showing that availability increased after the invention. Other choices are incorrect or unnatural: sheet/leaf/sides do not fit as smoothly, and much/many/most widely available do not match the grammar and meaning as well as more widely available.

The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.

Although she is usually / rude with everyone, / she behaved nice / with all of us today.

Explanation: The error is in the word choice after the verb behaved. Behaved is a verb and should be modified by an adverb, not an adjective. So it should be she behaved nicely , not she behaved nice. This is a common error because nice is an adjective used for nouns (a nice person), while nicely is an adverb describing how an action is done. The other segments are grammatically acceptable and fit the intended contrast in the sentence.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the underlined word.

I cannot see without my <strong>glasses</strong>.

Explanation: In the sentence I cannot see without my glasses, the word glasses clearly refers to spectacles worn to improve vision. This meaning is directly connected to eyesight and the need for correction. The other options do not fit the context: a container would refer to drinking glasses, but that meaning makes no sense with cannot see. Fragile object and unbreakable object are vague and do not match the standard, context-based meaning of glasses in relation to vision correction.

Select the most appropriate ANTONYM that can substitute the underlined segment in the given sentence.

They all felt that the movie was truly <strong>captivating</strong> and unforgettable.

Explanation: The underlined segment captivating and unforgettable carries a strongly positive meaning: something highly engaging and memorable in a good way. The best antonym must therefore express a strong negative reaction. Repugnant means disgusting or intensely unpleasant, which directly contrasts with the admiration implied by captivating. The other options do not work as antonyms: tantalising and charismatic are positive or attractive, while relatable is neutral-to-positive. Hence repugnant is the most suitable opposite.