APPSC GROUP-I MAINS
GENERAL ENGLISH
PREVIOUS PAPER-2008
1.Read the passage
given below and answer the questions that follow: 20
At the Beardless there was constant speculation about Selvi's early
life. Varma heard at the gossip table Selvi had been brought up by her mother
in a back row of Vinayak Mudali Street, in a small house with tiles falling
off, with not enough cash at home to put the tiles back on the roof and had
learnt music from her, practising with her brother and sister accompanying her
on their instruments. At this time Mohan had a photo studio on Market Road.
Once Selvi's mother brought the girl to be photographed for a school magazine
after she had won the first prize in a music competition. Thereafter Mohan
visited them casually now and then as a sort of well - wisher of the family,
sat in the single chair their home provided, drank coffee, and generally
behaved as a benign god to that family by his advice and guidance. Sometimes he
would request Selvi to sing, and then dramatically leave the chair and sit down
on the floor cross - legged with his eyes shut, in an attitude of total
absorption in her melody, to indicate that in the presence of such an inspired
artist it would be blasphemous to sit high in a chair.
i.
What was Selvi's work?
ii.
How many persons are referred to in the para graph? who are they?
iii.
Why could the house not be repaired?
iv.
Who taught Selvi music?
v.
How did Mohan meet Selvi?
vi.
Why did Selvi's mother take her for a photograph?
vii.
How do we know that they had very little furniture in the house?
viii.
What was the relationship of Mohan with the family?
ix.
What was the reaction of Mohan to Selvi's singing?
x.
In the last sentence to whom does the phrase inspired artist ' refer?
2. Read the passage
given below and make a precise of it in one - third its original length. Give
an appropriate title for the passage. 15
Phototaxis
is the automatic movement of an organ ism either towards or away from a light.
Have you ever seen moths flocking to the nearest source of bright light, and
wondered why this was so? Well, now know that the source of this phenomenon
lies in phototaxis.
Creatures like cockroaches and
moths make a bee line for the nearest source of light, no matter how dangerous
that source be, Butterflies and moths come from an insect group called Lepidoptera,
the fourth largest insect group in terms of species diversity. The name
Lepidoptera means ' scale wings ' and moths fit this description wonderfully as
there are covered with thousands of tiny scales that are less than 1 / 100th of
an inch wide.
Moths have been around for about 140 million
years and studies tell us that they are sensitive to particular wavelengths of light.
For instance, a white light will attract more moths than a yellow light.
Scientific research has shown that some types of moths are known to migrate,
and they depend on the night sky for navigation. In fact, studies have shown
that moths might use the moon as the central reference point so that they move
through the night following the moon's path across the night sky.
Moths can't distinguish between the moon and
any other source of light -- that is why they are generally confused when they
end up near another source, like a light bulb or a fire.
So, if they are confused, why do moths stay fluttering around lights? This is because a moth's eyes contain light sensors which they adjust according to the amount of light that these sensors detect. But once come too close to a bright light, the moth's eye sensors experience difficulty going back into the dark, as the tiny creature is rendered blind for a while.
3. Rearrange the following sentences in sequential order to form a meaningful and coherent paragraph: 10
i.
When she was taken to Madras the doctors tried hard to stop the growth
of the infection.
ii.
The family had gone there for their annual pilgrimage.
iii.
About eight years ago, Sudha was a promising seventeen - year - old dancer.
iv.
Finally, they were forced to amputate her leg from about eight
centimetres below the knee.
v.
In the terrible months that followed, Sudha's search began to find a
way of dancing again.
vi.
She had given more than eighty performances.
vii. Perhaps, she was not treated properly at the
local hospital to which she was rushed.
viii. Then, one day she was injured in a road
accident about twenty - five kilometres from Tiruchchirappalli, Tamil Nadu.
ix.
In any case, her injuries resulted in gangrenous infection.
x.
Almost everyone in the audience knew the story of Sudha's courage.
4. Correct any ten
of the following sentences: 20
i.
It is now or ever.
ii.
Passengers should reach the station latest half an - hour before the
train time.
iii.
Because of her illness Radha had to keep away from office.
iv.
There is interesting programme on TV at 8 pm tonight.
v.
Please collect all your personal thing before leaving
vi.
Madhusudhan woke up when he hear a noise from the next room.
vii.
The carpenter has do good job.
viii.
The truck was overload with coal.
ix.
Sudhakar is Minister's right - handed man.
x.
Can you please guided me to the post office.
xi.
Raju was work in that company last year.
xii.
One of the file is missing.
5. Give synonyms of
any ten of the following: 10
i. begin ii. expand iii. Pleased iv. grow v. foolish vi. attach
vii. inform viii. adequate ix. Forgive X. possess xi. gather xii. permit
6. Give the antonyms of any ten of the following:
10
i. difficult ii. tiny iii.
Weak iv. Large v. dry vi. open
vii. lend ix. smooth x. increase xi. Appear xii. break
7. Fill in the
blanks in any ten of the following sentences using suitable articles /
prepositions / conjunctions: 10
i.
Once upon a time there was a king .......... Was
fond of listening to stories.
ii. There
was only one book ............. the shelf.
iii. He
disliked eating beans ............... his wife never cooked that vegetable.
iv. The
barber wanted to know ............ he could enter the king's court.
v. There
was ........... small hole in the net.
vi. Summer
is usually hot ............. sunny
vii. What
did you do ............ college yesterday?
viii. Oh!
I liked every minute of ........... day.
ix. At
the auditorium the Principal spoke .......... the college and its traditions.
x. They
had arranged an entertainment programme
xi. You
must make ....... attempt to learn the language.
xii. My
uncle came ........... a friend to my that evening.
8. Write the correct spelling of any ten of the following:
10
i. dangerous ii. beginning iii. Cassette iv. Competition v.
anshient
vi. recommend vii. planned viii. Special ix. villan x. tuition
xi. temporary xii. moveable
9. Make sentences with five of the following
pairs of words clearly bringing out the difference in meaning between the two words.
Choose any five of the pairs. 10
i. Dear Deer
ii. Feet – Feat
iii. Son - Sun
iv. Fare - Fair
v. Bank (B8 noun) -
Bank (as verb)
vi. Meet - Meat
vii. Cut (as noun)
- Cut (as verb)
10. Give
appropriate one - word substitutes for any five of the following items: 5
i. The study of things found on the earth's surface,
physical features, climate etc.
ii. Person who sets up a factory
iii. Light food
eaten between meals.
iv. A person who
speaks two languages.
v. Related to the
sense of hearing.
vi. A small room just below the roof where
things can be stored.
vii. A child who has lost both parents.
viii. An arrangement that is not permanent.
11. Use any ten of the following idioms and
phrases in sentences of your own: 20
i. to make both ends meet
ii. to develop cold feet
iii. to break the news
iv. to give away
v. to ask for
vi. to hold up
vii. to look up
viii. to carry on
ix. to back out
x. to be made up of
xi. to see through
xii. to think highly of
12 Insert
appropriate punctuation marks in the following sentences: 6
i. Electricity
comes to a house through cables.
ii. In cities the
cables are usually laid underground.
iii. But in towns
they may be carried on poles.
iv. Inside the
house, this cable is connected with a main switch.
V. In an emergency,
the power can be turned off at this switch.
13. i understand
youre ready to buy a house mr rao if it doesn't cost too much in the sentences
given some words are underlined. Identify the parts of speech of the underlined
words: 5
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