Exercise 1: Articles
Fill in each blank with a, an, the, or leave it blank if no article is needed.
| Sentence | Answer |
|---|---|
| Kuvempu was __ first Kannada writer to win the Jnanpith. | the |
| Roof was __ expert election campaigner. | an |
| Marcus built __ biggest house in the area. | the |
| Fatima hired __ bicycle every evening. | a |
| __ water is not simply a chemical for the wada. | no article |
| Mikes travelled to __ Japan and Brazil. | no article |
| Pudukkottai is __ district in Tamil Nadu. | a |
| They walked to __ big canal every morning. | the |
| She is __ M.A. in English. | an |
| Achebe is __ Nigerian novelist. | a |
| __ Himalayas stand in the north. | The |
| Cycling gave them __ hour of freedom each evening. | an |
Exercise 2: Subject-Verb Agreement
| Sentence | Answer |
|---|---|
| One of the elders __ (was / were) unhappy with two shillings. | was |
| Each of the women __ (has / have) her own cycle now. | has |
| The number of women cyclists __ (is / are) rising. | is |
| A number of villagers __ (was / were) waiting at the booth. | were |
| Neither Roof nor the elders __ (was / were) honest. | were |
| Mathematics __ (is / are) her favourite subject. | is |
| Rs.1,400 __ (was / were) too much for a bicycle. | was |
| The committee __ (has / have) sanctioned the loan. | has |
| There __ (was / were) five elders in the room. | were |
| Bread and butter __ (is / are) all she ate that day. | is |
| The leader of the campaign boys __ (was / were) Roof. | was |
| He is one of the trainers who __ (work / works) free of charge. | work |
Exercise 3: Verb Forms
| Sentence | Answer | Signal |
|---|---|---|
| Water __ (know) everything, says the poet. | knows | universal truth, singular subject |
| Six dalits __ (be) killed at Karamchedu in 1985. | were | a finished past time |
| The women __ (train) new learners at present. | are training | "at present" |
| UNICEF __ (sanction) fifty mopeds so far. | has sanctioned | "so far" |
| Fatima __ (cycle) since 1992. | has been cycling | "since" |
| Roof __ (swear) on the iyi before he entered the booth. | had sworn | an earlier past action |
| The results __ (be) published tomorrow. | will be | "tomorrow" |
| Water must __ (save) by everyone. | be saved | after a modal, passive sense |
| They wanted __ (learn) cycling. | to learn | after "to" |
| He did not __ (tear) the paper in front of anyone. | tear | after "did" |
| If you __ (practise) daily, you will score well. | practise | if + present |
| The poet __ (remember) her childhood whenever she sees water. | remembers | habit, singular subject |
Exercise 4: Rearrange the Segments
| Segments | Sentence |
|---|---|
| is / a / where / will / there / there / way / is / a | Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| the / knows / water / everything | The water knows everything. |
| freedom / in / is / cycling / there | There is freedom in cycling. |
| my / it / right / is | It is my right. |
| a / for / of / water / drop / they / single / fought | They fought for a single drop of water. |
| never / that / believe / will / books / I / disappear | I believe that books will never disappear. |
| to / people / devoted / he / his / remained | He remained devoted to his people. |
| bathed / the / twice / village / entire / a / day | The entire village bathed twice a day. |
Exercise 5: Four Mixed Items (exam format)
Answer all four, as in the paper.
Set A i) Kuvempu is called _ Rashtrakavi of Karnataka. (Use appropriate article) ii) knows / water / difference / the / of / race (Rearrange the segments) iii) Each of the campaign boys (was / were) given a jute bag. (Choose the verb that agrees) iv) Honesty _ (be) the best policy. (Appropriate form of the verb)
Answers: the · Water knows the difference of race. · was · is
Set B i) Achebe wrote _ novel called Things Fall Apart. (Use appropriate article) ii) storm / the / by / took / town / they (Rearrange the segments) iii) One of the women (hire / hires) a cycle every evening. (Choose the verb that agrees) iv) The Malapalle _ (burn) to ashes for want of water. (Appropriate form of the verb)
Answers: a · They took the town by storm. · hires · burnt
Set C i) _ poor are the worst affected by floods. (Use appropriate article) ii) the / power / people / exercise / every / five / years (Rearrange the segments) iii) Neither the village nor the wada (was / were) willing to give in. (Choose the verb that agrees) iv) She _ (walk) miles to the canal in her childhood. (Appropriate form of the verb)
Answers: The · Every five years the people exercise power. · was · walked
Exercise 6: Correct the Error
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Everest is tallest peak in the world. | Everest is the tallest peak in the world. | Superlatives take the. |
| One of my friend is a dancer. | One of my friends is a dancer. | One of is followed by a plural noun. |
| God help those who help themselves. | God helps those who help themselves. | Singular subject in the present takes -s. |
| The news are good today. | The news is good today. | News is singular. |
| She is an university topper. | She is a university topper. | The sound is "yu". |
| He must went first. | He must go first. | After a modal, use the base form. |
| Ten kilometres are a long walk. | Ten kilometres is a long walk. | Distance takes a singular verb. |
| everything is fair in love and war | Everything is fair in love and war. | A rearranged sentence needs a capital letter and a full stop. |
[Exam Tip] — When you rearrange a sentence, write it out fully and punctuate it. Examiners cut the mark for a sentence that has the right order but no capital letter or no full stop.