IBPS Clerk Prelims English Quiz
Direction (1-10): Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words are given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
Arjuna was one of the five Pandava brothers of the Mahabharata epic. He was born to Kunti and and king Pandu with the energy of Indra, the leader of the gods. At a very young age he got acclaim for his sincerity and skill in archery. He was known for his steadfastness and single mindedness in pursuing his goals. He was instrumental in winning Draupadi in a contest for himself and his brothers as their joint wife. He also married Subhadra the sister of Krishna and Balarama and kept his friendship with them forever. Lord Krishna became his mentor and guide for the rest of his life.
He was known by different names or rather titles, such as Phaalgun, Keerti, Paartha, Savyashachee, Dhanajaya and so on. During his sojourns to faraway places in the subcontinent, he married Chitrangada, daughter of the king of Manipur and Ulupi, a naga princess. Two brave warrior sons were born to him. They were Abhimnyu through Subhadra and Bhabhruvahana through Chitrangada. Both his sons played an important role during the Mahabharata war.
During the exile, when all the Pandava brothers had to leave behind their kingdom and wander in the forests for twelve years as a part of their agreement with the Kauravas, Arjuna had a strange encounter with Lord Siva from whom he got Pasupatha. During the same period he met with Indra and other gods in the heavens from whom he received training and also helped them in return by slaying some asuras. While he was in the heavens he displeased Urvashi, the heavenly nymph, by turning away her advances. She cursed him out of anger to turn into a eunuch for a year in his life as chosen by him.
Apart from archery, he also excelled in the arts of dancing, singing and acting which enormously helped the Pandavas when they had to stay in the court of Virat in total disguise as a part of their agreement with the Kauravas in the thirteenth year of their exile. Arjuna took advantage of the curse he got from Urvashi and turned himself into Brihannala, a eunuch and acted as dance master for the royal household, especially Uttara, the daughter of Virat. At the end of the one year stay, he helped king Virat by fighting a battle with Kauravas who invaded his kingdom Matsya. After realizing that the five people who were working in his court were indeed Pandavas in disguise, king Virat offered to marry his daughter to Abhimanyu the son of Arjuna in return for the services rendered by the brothers, a marriage that proved crucial in the post mahabharata period as the son borne out of the wedlock was the only surviving member of the Pandava clan.
He could have been a great king in his own right, but he remained loyal to his elder brother Dharmaraj Yudhishtir who ascended the throne of Hastinapur by virtue of being the eldest in the family. After the battle of Mahabharata, he assisted his brother greatly in expanding their empire by annexing several outlying kingdoms and defeating warring tribes. Strangely after the passing away of Lord Krishna, he forgot most of his skills as an archer and spent the rest of his life in humility and devotion. Arjuna serves as an example of a great human being, a dutiful householder, a loyal brother, a great warrior, a devout husband and a sincere devotee of God.
Q1. What stopped Arjun to become the great King of Hastinapur?
(a) He wanted to expand their empire after the battle of Mahabharata.
(b) He wished to remain loyal to his eldest brother who has the first right over the throne.
(c) Since he forgot his skills as an archer, he wanted to spend his life in humility and devotion.
(d) He wanted to devote his time in developing his skills in the arts of dancing, singing and acting
(e) None of these
Q2. What helped Arjun to disguise himself as Brihannala to complete his thirteenth year of exile?
(I) The curse of Urvashi that transformed Arjun into a eunuch for a year.
(II) The meeting of Arjun with Lord shiva and Indra during his exile.
(III) Arjun has excellent skills in the arts of dancing, singing and acting.
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (II)
(c) Only (III)
(d) Both (I) and (III)
(e) All (I) (II) and (III)
Q3. Who among the following is not the wife of Arjun?
(a) Subhadra who was the sister of Lord Krishna and Balarama.
(b) Draupadi whom he won in a context for himself and his brothers.
(c) Uttra who was the daughter of King Virat of Matsya Kingdom.
(d) Chitrangada who was a Naga princess and the daughter of King of Manipur and Ulupi.
(e) None of these
Q4. Which of the following qualities of Arjun are highlighted in the passage?
(I) Conscientious
(II) Combatant
(III) Earnest
(IV) Devotee
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (II)
(c) Only (I) (II) and (IV)
(d) Both (II) and (IV)
(e) All (I) (II) (III) and (IV)
Q5. Which of the following statement is FALSE according to the given passage?
(a) Arjun was born with the energy of Indra, the king of Gods.
(b) Bhabhruvahana was the son of Arjun and Chitrangada.
(c) Arjun pleased the heavenly nymph Urvashi by accepting her advances.
(d) Arjun assisted his elder brother in expanding their empire by annexing several outlaying kingdoms.
(e) Indra and some other gods helped pandavs by providing training and slaying some asuras.
Directions (6-8): Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning as the word printed in bold as used in the passage.
Q6. WEDLOCK
(a) Nuptial
(b) Hurdle
(c) Imprison
(d) Godsend
(e) Source
Q7. PURSUING
(a) Calculating
(b) Seeking
(c) Fleeing
(d) Gathering
(e) Assembling
Q8. EXILE
(a) Compliance
(b) Shelter
(c) Domicile
(d) Salutation
(e) Banishment
Directions (9-10): Choose the word which is the OPPOSITE in meaning as the word printed in bold as used in the passage.
Q9. CRUCIAL
(a) Requisite
(b) Compelling
(c) Critical
(d) Insignificant
(e) Pivotal
Q10. HUMILITY
(a) Acceptability
(b) Vanity
(c) Modesty
(d) Diffidence
(e) Timidity
Directions (11-15): Read each sentence to find out whether there is any grammatical or idiomatic error in it. The error, if any, will be in one part of the sentence. The number of that part is the answer. If there is ‘No error’, the answer is ‘e’). (Ignore errors of punctuation, if any.)
Q11. All the workers (A)/ of this factory hold the view (B)/ that Mrs. Suhasini is a very wise (C)/ and an intelligent executive. (D)/ No error. (E)
(a) A
(b) B
(c) C
(d) D
(e) E
Q12. Ramesh told me (A)/ that he had gone to (B)/ one of the CBI officers’ farmhouses (C)/ and stayed there all night (D). / No Error (E).
(a)A
(b)B
(c)C
(d)D
(e)E
Q13. In one of our first conversation (A)/ Pooja informed me (B)/ that she had lost her parents (C)/ in a car accident (D)/ No Error (E).
(a) A
(b) B
(c) C
(d) D
(e) E
Q14. It is unfortunate (A)/ that the daughter of rich (B)/ should indulge (C)/ in robbery. (D)/ No error (E).
(a)A
(b)B
(c)C
(d)D
(e)E
Q15.Sujane was among those (A)/ luckiest woman who (B)/ attained name and fame not by (C)/ labour but by chance (D)/ No Error. (E)
(a) A
(b) B
(c) C
(d) D
(e) E
Solutions
S1. Ans. (b)
Sol. Arjun was one of the Pandav brothers having the eldest brother Dharamraj Yudhishtir. Therefore, Arjun wanted to remain loyal to his eldest brother who has the first right over the thorne being the eldest son of the family. Refer to the first line of the 5th paragraph “He could have been a great king in his own right, but he remained loyal to his elder brother Dharmaraj Yudhishtir who ascended the throne of Hastinapur by virtue of being the eldest in the family.”
All the other options describe the characteristics of Arjun but fail to provide the precise reason. Hence, option (b) is the most suitable answer choice.
S2. Ans. (d)
Sol. In an agreement with Kaurwas, Pandavs accepted an exile of thirteen years i.e. to wander twelve years in forests while in the thirteenth year they had to disguise themselves. Arjun choose to transform himself as Brihannala. Following points helped him to disguise himself
(i) The curse of Urvashi that transformed Arjun into a eunuch for a year.
Refer to the 3rd line of the 4th paragraph “Arjuna took advantage of the curse he got from Urvashi and turned himself into Brihannala, a eunuch and acted as dance master for the royal household, especially Uttara, the daughter of Virat.”
(iii) Arjun has excellent skills in the arts of dancing, singing and acting.
Refer to the first line of the 4th paragraph “Apart from archery, he also excelled in the arts of dancing, singing and acting which enormously helped the Pandavas when they had to stay in the court of Virat in total disguise as a part of their agreement with the Kauravas in the thirteenth year of their exile.”
Hence, option (d) is the most suitable answer choice.
S3. Ans. (c)
Sol. Subhadra, Chitrangada and Draupdi were the wives of Arjun, however, Uttara was the wife Arjun and Subhadra’s son Abhimanyu. Refer to the sixth line of the 4th paragraph “After realizing that the five people who were working in his court were indeed Pandavas in disguise, king Virat offered to marry his daughter to Abhimanyu the son of Arjuna in return for the services rendered by the brothers”. Hence, option (c) is the most viable answer choice.
S4. Ans. (c)
Sol. Options (I) (II) and (IV) are described in the passage.
Conscientious means wishing to do one’s work or duty well and thoroughly.
Combatant means a person or nation engaged in fighting during a war.
Devotee means a person who is very interested in and enthusiastic about someone or something.
Refer to the last line of the passage “Arjuna serves as an example of a great human being, a dutiful householder, a loyal brother, a great warrior, a devout husband and a sincere devotee of God.”
However, earnest means resulting from or showing sincere and intense conviction. The passage has not described anywhere regarding the firm beliefs of Arjun. Hence, option (c) is the most suitable answer choice.
S5. Ans. (c)
Sol. All the given statements are true in context of the passage, except for option (c).
For option (a) refer to 2nd line of 1st paragraph “He was born to Kunti and and king Pandu with the energy of Indra, the leader of the gods”.
For option (b) refer to the last line of 2nd paragraph “They were Abhimnyu through Subhadra and Bhabhruvahana through Chitrangada. Both his sons played an important role during the Mahabharata war.”
For option (d), refer to the 2nd line of the last paragraph “After the battle of Mahabharata, he assisted his brother greatly in expanding their empire by annexing several outlying kingdoms and defeating warring tribes.”
For option (e) Refer to the 3rd line of 3rd paragraph “During the same period he met with Indra and other gods in the heavens from whom he received training and also helped them in return by slaying some asuras.”
However, option (c) is not true. Refer to the 4th line of 3rd paragraph “While he was in the heavens he displeased Urvashi, the heavenly nymph, by turning away her advances.”
Hence, option (c) is the most suitable answer choice.
S6. Ans. (a)
Sol. Wedlock means the state of being married. Nuptial means relating to marriage or weddings. Since both the words are synonyms of each other, option (a) is the most suitable answer choice.
Hurdle means a problem or difficulty that must be overcome.
Godsend means a very helpful or valuable event, person, or article.
S7. Ans. (b)
Sol. Pursuing means seek to attain or accomplish (a goal) over a long period. Seeking means attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something). Since both the words are synonyms of each other, option (b) is the most suitable answer choice.
Fleeing means run away from a place or situation of danger.
Assembling means (of people) gather together in one place for a common purpose.
S8. Ans. (e)
Sol. Exile means the state of being barred from one’s native country, typically for political or punitive reasons. Banishment means the punishment of being sent away from a country or other place. Since both the words are synonyms of each other, option (e) is the most suitable answer choice.
Compliance means the action or fact of complying with a wish or command.
Domicile means the country that a person treats as their permanent home, or lives in and has a substantial connection with.
Salutation means a gesture or utterance made as a greeting or acknowledgement of another’s arrival or departure.
S9. Ans. (d)
Sol. Crucial means decisive or critical, especially in the success or failure of something. Insignificant means too small or unimportant to be worth consideration. Since both the words are antonyms of each other, option (d) is the most suitable answer choice.
Requisite means made necessary by particular circumstances or regulations.
Compelling means evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way
Pivotal means of crucial importance in relation to the development or success of something else.
S10. Ans. (b)
Sol. Humility means the quality of having a modest or low view of one’s importance. Vanity means excessive pride in or admiration of one’s own appearance or achievements. Since both the words are antonyms of each other, option (b) is the most suitable answer choice.
Diffidence means modesty or shyness resulting from a lack of self-confidence.
Timidity means lack of courage or confidence.
S11. Ans. (d)
Sol. The use of article ‘an’ before the adjective ‘intelligent’ is incorrect. When two adjectives are used for the same person, then the article is used before the first adjective only.
Hence, there is an error in (D), and option (d) is the correct answer.
S12. Ans. (c)
Sol. When ‘one of’ is followed by two nouns, then we don’t tell the possession or ownership with the use of ‘s but with the help of ‘of’. The reason is that after ‘one of’ noun is plural, and thus, if two nouns are used, then it becomes more difficult to determine which of the noun is plural. In such cases, the expression starts giving double-meaning. The correct phrase would be ‘the farmhouse of one of the CBI officers’.
Hence, there is an error in the part (C), and option (c) is the correct answer.
S13. Ans. (a)
Sol. Instead of the singular ‘conversation’, the noun ‘conversation’ should be plural i.e. ‘conversations’. So, there is an error in the part (A) of the sentence, and option (A) is the correct answer.
S14. Ans. (b)
Sol. An article would be used before the noun ‘rich’.
Hence, there is an error in the part (B), and option (b) is the correct answer.
S15. Ans. (b)
Sol. The noun ‘woman’ in the part (B) should be plural i.e. ‘women’ because the expression ‘among those’ indicates that there is more than one woman. So, there is an error in the part (B) of the sentence, and hence, option (b) is the correct answer.
