SBI Clerks General English

Adjectives : The word qualifying a noun or a pronoun is called an Adjective. They are used before a noun or a pronoun.
e.g.: good, fair, kind, brave etc.

Kinds of Adjectives
1. Descriptive Adjectives (Adjectives of Quality): clever, honest, fat, large, big etc.
2. Quantitative Adjectives (Adjectives of Quantity): any, some, little, enough, much etc.
3. Numerical Adjectives (Adjectives of Number)
a) Definite Numerals: one, two, three, four, five etc. (Cardinals).
first, second, third, fourth etc. (Ordinals).
b) Indefinite Numerals: all, no, many, few, some, any, certain, several etc.
4. Distributive Adjectives: each, every, either, neither etc.,
5. Demonstrative Adjectives: this, that, these, those, such etc.,
6. Interrogative Adjectives: what, which, whose etc.,
7. Emphasizing Adjectives: own, very etc.,
8. Exclamatory Adjectives: what and how.
9. Relative Adjectives: what, which, whatever, whichever etc.,
10. Possessive Adjectives: my, our, your, his, her, its, their, mine, ours, yours, his, her, its, theirs.
11. Proper Adjectives: Indian, English etc.,
12. Participial Adjectives: smiling, pleasing, guiding, drunken etc.,

Adjectives – Degrees of Comparison
a) Positive Degree: brave, intelligent
b) Comparative Degree: braver, more intelligent
c) Superlative Degree: bravest, most intelligent Adjectives – Uses
In a sentence, adjectives can be used in two ways.
Attributively: e.g.: Ravi is a brave boy.
Predicatively: e.g.: Ravi is brave.

Read each sentence to find out whether there is any 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 5.

1. We have two routes to reach Secunderabad from Koti. (1)/ One is via Musheerabad and (2)/ the other is via Sitaphalmandi. (3)/ Which is the nearest route? (4)/ No error (5).

2. Since the situation is going to be out of control, (1)/ the Government wants to take (2)/ the most extreme step (3)/ of calling in army to deal with the situation. (4)/ No error (5).

3. The entire class (1)/ has praised Kiran (2)/ for his bravery and wisdom, (3)/ but he is wiser than brave. (4)/ No error (5).

4. We use several metals. (1)/ Of all these, (2)/ iron is more useful (3)/ than any metal. (4)/ No error (5).

5. Many mango trees in this orchard (1)/ are laden (2)/ with fruit. (3)/ Some mangoes taste sourly. (4)/ No error (5).

6. He is fatter (1)/ than tall. (2)/ Hence, he faces (3)/ disappointment in all the selections. (4)/ No error (5).

7. The fact that (1)/ sycophancy (2)/ is on the increase (3)/ is more universal these days. (4)/ No error (5).

8. A variety of reptiles (1)/ take refuge (2)/ in the Pacific ocean, (3)/ because the Pacific is the deepest of all other oceans in the world. (4)/ No error (5).

9. One has to have (1)/ thorough knowledge of the subject (2)/ if
one wants to progress. (3)/ Little knowledge does not ensure spectacular success. (4)/ No error (5).

10. He did the work (1)/ good enough (2)/ but (3)/ it did not satisfy the boss. (4)/ No error (5).

11. Both the cars (1)/ attracted me most (2)/ I finally decided to buy (3)/ the expensive one. (4)/ No error (5).

12. He is the first (1)/ lawyer in Madras High court (2)/ as (3)/ he wins almost all the cases he takes up. (4)/ No error (5).

13. Both Preetham and Praneeth (1)/ are clever, (2)/ but (3)/ Praneeth is more cleverer than Preetham. (4)/ No error (5).

14. Even though I am senior (1)/ than (2)/ a good number of employees (3)/ the Manager has not given me promotion so far. (4)/ No error (5).

15. As he is (1)/ most hardworking teacher (2)/ in the school, (3)/
Sunder is felicitated by the management. (4)/ No error (5).

16. The scheme proposed (1)/ by Sankar (2)/ is preferable than
the schemes proposed (3)/ by the rest of the executives. (4)/ No error (5).

17. Since the two first chapters (1)/ are very interesting, (2)/ I have decided (3)/ to read the book and complete it at a stretch. (4)/
No error (5).

18. As a result of (1)/ resentment, (2)/ not less than thirty members of Legislative Assembly (3)/ belonging to different districts
have tendered their resignations. (4)/ No error (5).

19. The party held (1)/ a mammoth conference for two days (2)/ in Hyderabad to mark its Silver Jubilee. (3)/ Hundreds of party men
attended the conference on both days. (4)/ No error (5).

20. We were very happy that (1)/ the audience responded well (2)/ and gave all the speakers (3)/ a patiently listening. (4)/ No error
(5).

21. Nagendra is (1)/ one of the (2)/ efficient (3)/ directors in the company. (4)/ No error (5).

22. She is not (1)/ attending the meetings (2)/ these days (3)/ since she has been sick for six months. (4)/ No error (5).

23. It is a big and spacious library (1)/ but (2)/ the number of books (3)/ available in it is small. (4)/ No error (5).

24. Despite (1)/ scoring nearly cent percent marks, (2)/ in some subjects, he has not been qualified (3)/ in the written examination.
(4)/ No error (5).

25. I cannot (1)/ undertake (2)/ such a strenuous task today, (3)/ as I feel uneasy. (4)/ No error (5).

26. An obedient clerk (1)/ to his officer (2)/ is always (3)/ trustworthy as he renders whole-hearted service. (4)/ No error. (5)

27. A large number of (1)/ students stood (2)/ on either side of (3)/ the road to greet the Prime Minister. (4)/ No error (5).

28. The sailors on (1)/ the sinking boat (2)/ consider the sight of an approaching ship (3)/ a great luck. (4)/ No error (5).

29. He failed for six times (1)/ in his ardent efforts (2)/ to reach his goal. (3)/ Ultimately, he succeeded in his 7th attempt. (4)/ No
error (5).

30. The team is becoming strong (1)/ year by year (2)/ as the players have (3)/ a regular rigorous practice everyday. (4)/ No
error (5).

Key with Explanations
1-4; Write ‘nearer’ instead of ‘nearest’.
Comparative Degree is used in comparing two things or persons. Superlative Degree should not be used.

2-3; Delete ‘the most’.
Unique, perfect, ideal, universal, complete and extreme are the adjectives which are not compared.

3-4; Replace ‘Wiser’ by ‘more wise’.
When two qualities of the same person or thing are compared the comparative ‘er’ is not used. For this purpose, ‘more’ is used.

4-4; Write ‘other’ after ‘any’.
When comparison is made by means of a comparative followed by ‘than’, the thing compared should be excluded from the class of
things with which it is compared by using ‘other’.

5-4; It should be ‘sour’ (adjective).
The adjective is correctly used with a verb when some qualities of the subject rather than the action of the verb is to be expressed.

6-1; Replace ‘fatter’ by ‘more fat’.

7-4; Delete ‘more’.
The adjective ‘universal’ should not be compared.

8-4; Delete ‘other’.

9-4; Write ‘a’ before ‘little’.
“Little” means “hardly any”. “A little” means ‘at least some’. “The little” means ‘not much but all there is’.

10-2; Replace ‘good enough’ by ‘well enough’.

11-4; Write ‘more’ before ‘expensive’.

12-1; Replace ‘first’ by ‘foremost’.
‘First’ means “first in order”. ‘Foremost’ means “leading or most eminent”.

13-4; Delete ‘more’.
We should avoid using double comparatives and double superlatives.

14-2; Replace ‘than’ by ‘to’.
Senior, junior, prior, anterior, posterior, superior, inferior and preferable are the comparative adjectives, which should be followed
by ‘to’ instead of ‘than’.

15-2; Article ‘the’ should precede the Superlative Degree.

16-3; Replace ‘than’ by ‘to’.
The word ‘preferable’ has the force of a comparative. So, it should be followed by ‘to’.

17-1; It should be ‘the first two chapters’.

18-3; Replace ‘not less’ by ‘no fewer’.
“Less” denotes ‘quantity’. “Fewer” denotes ‘number’.

19-4; It should be ‘on both the days’.
When the word ‘both’ is used as an ‘adjective’, it should be followed by ‘the’.

20-4; It should be ‘patient’ (adjective).

21-3; It should be ‘most efficient’.

22-4; Replace ‘sick’ by ‘ill’.
‘To be sick’ means to be temporarily indisposed. ‘To be ill’ means ‘to be unwell for a long period’.

23-5; No error.
‘Less’ is the comparative form of ‘little’. Hence ‘small’ should be used here.

24-2; It should be ‘nearly full marks’.
To express that a person has got almost hundred percent of marks, we should say “He got nearly full marks”.

25-4; Replace ‘uneasy’ by ‘unwell’.
“Uneasy” conveys ‘mental discomfort’ and ‘unwell’ conveys ‘physical discomfort’.

26-1; It should be ‘a clerk obedient’.
Usually an ‘adjective’ comes before a noun, but when an adjective is connected with other word/words, it should come after the ‘noun’.

27-3; Replace ‘either side’ by ‘each side’ or ‘both sides’.
We should not say ‘either side’, because ‘either side’ means ‘either this side or that side’. It does not mean ‘both sides’.

28-4; Replace ‘great luck’ by ‘good luck’.

29-4; Replace ‘7th’ by ‘seventh’.
In English, how to write ‘numbers’ is very important.
a) Kings and queens – Roman numbers – King George V
b) Ordinal numbers- from 1 to 12 – in letters only.
c) Dates- September 5th or 5th September.
d) Cardinal numbers – from 1 to 12 in letters only. While indicating ‘time’, number can be used. e.g.: 8 a.m.
e) Number above 12 can be written either in numbers or letters.

30-1. Replace ‘strong’ by ‘stronger’.
To indicate gradual increase or change, comparative should be used.

An ‘adverb’ is a word which modifies the meaning of a verb, an adjective or another adverb.

1. Adverbs of Place: Words denoting ‘where the work is done’.
here, there, near, up, below, out, in, away, within, down, backward, outside, inside, far,etc.,
e.g.: He came in.

2. Adverbs of Time: Words denoting ‘when the work is done’.
ago, before, formerly, already, immediately, since, then, today, tomorrow, late, lately, never, still, just, soon, etc.,
e.g.: Please, come soon.

3. Adverbs of Frequency: Words denoting ‘how often or how many times the work is done’. frequently, usually, occasionally, regularly, never, always, once, twice, thrice, again, often, etc.,
e.g.: He usually drinks coffee.

4. Adverbs of Manner: Words denoting ‘how or in what manner the work is done’. clearly, quickly, beautifully, bravely, slowly, fast, loudly, well, thus, carefully, etc.,
e.g.: The doctor has advised me to walk slowly.

5. Adverbs of Degree / Quantity: Words denoting ‘how much or in what degree or to what extent the work is done’. sufficiently, fully, wholly, quite, extremely, rather, almost, so, any, enough, as, too, very etc.,
e.g.: He is rather busy today.

6. Adverbs of Affirmation / Negation: These adverbs say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ about the work that is done.
e.g.: The director told him not to be late.

7. Adverbs of Reason: These adverbs show the reason of the work that is done. hence, so, therefore, etc.,
e.g.: He, therefore, requested you for a loan.

8. Interrogative Adverbs: These adverbs are used in ‘asking questions’. why, how, when, where, etc.,
e.g.: Why is he unable to complete the work?

USES OF ADVERBS
Adverbs used both as adjectives and adverbs.
e.g.: Better: Ravi knows better than Rani. (Adverb)
He is not better than a miser. (Adjective)

Adverbs suffixed by ‘ly’ forming other adverbs.
e.g.: 1. He came near. (Adverb)
He is nearly happy. (Adverb)
2. He always comes to office late. (Adverb)
He has not been in the town lately. (Adverb)
3. The artist works hard. (Adverb)
The artist hardly works. (Adverb)

‘The’ used as an Adverb:
e.g.: The more you work, the more you earn.

The use of adverb ‘not’: The adverb ‘not’ is not used with words having negative meaning.
e.g.: The guide forbade us not to go beyond the fence. (Wrong)
The guide forbade us to go beyond the fence. (Correct)

COMPARISON OF ADVERBS
Positive Degree: ‘as …… as’ is used for positive
statement and ‘so ……… as’ is used for negative statement.
e.g.: Ishant bowls as fast as Yadav.
Praveen does not bowl so fast as Ishant.

Superlative Degree: In Superlative Degree ‘of all’ is used. It is important to know that ‘the’ is not used before the Superlative Degree of adverbs.
e.g.: Kiran runs fastest of all the competitors.

Read each sentence to find out whether there is any 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 5.

1. Vasu quickly completed the assignment (1)/ given to him (2)/ as he wanted to attend his friend’s marriage (3)/ without fail. (4)/ No
error (5).

2. The batsman gave (1)/ an easy catch. (2)/ He should have not
played (3)/ that ball thoughtlessly. (4)/ No error (5).

3. As he is, (1)/ some what fat (2)/ for his age. (3)/ He looks older
than all his brothers. (4)/ No error (5).

4. The doctor (1)/ comes on Thursdays (2)/ here (3)/ to examine
the patients. (4)/ No error (5).

5. ‘A bird in the hand (1)/ is worth two in the bush’. (2)/ You are proved to be (3)/ fairly foolish to give up your present job. (4)/ No
error (5).

6. Some philanthropists are (1)/ enough rich (2)/ to share their wealth (3)/ with downtrodden people. (4)/ No error (5).

7. Having met (1)/ after 30 years, (2)/ we exchanged banters (3)/ and heartily laughed for sometime. (4)/ No error (5).

8. The audience were not able (1)/ to perceive abstruse (2)/ things spoken by the speaker. (3)/ Hence, he explained vividly their meanings. (4)/ No error (5).

9. Since (1)/ he is a chain smoker, (2)/ I warn him always (3)/ against smoking heavily. (4)/ No error (5).

10. The Chairman of the institution (1)/ often has praised (2)/ Mr. Babji for his qualities (3)/ of head and heart. (4)/ No error (5).

11. I shall certainly contact (1)/ the president (2)/ immediately (3)/ after reaching Hyderabad. (4)/ No error (5).

12. He approached the Minister merely (1)/ with a request (2)/ for the kind help (3)/ in securing a job. (4)/ No error (5).

13. The checking squad (1)/ forbade the candidates (2)/ with printed / written material (3)/ not to enter the Examination Hall. (4)/ No
error (5).

14. No one scarcely (1)/ appreciates those people who resort to (2)/ undue accolades (3)/ for personal gains. (4)/ No error (5).

15. The worker cleaned the floor very tidy (1)/ and so was given (2)/ extra money for his sincerity (3)/ in doing even small things in a great manner. (4)/ No error (5).

16. The notification emphasises (1)/ that a candidate should be firstly diligent (2)/ and secondly intelligent (3)/ in carrying out the work entrusted to him. (4)/ No error (5).

17. Mr. Sivaram seldom or ever (1)/ comes late for recording. (2)/ Hence his punctuality (3)/ is liked by many organizers. (4)/ No
error (5).

18. It is nothing else (1)/ than (2)/ sheer personal vanity (3)/ to “blow one’s own trumpet”. (4)/ No error (5).

19. “I never remember (1)/ having hurt (2)/ people with harsh words”, (3)/ he said confidently. (4)/ No error (5).

20. Kiran appears so weak today (1)/ because of hard work (2)/ he turned out yesterday (3)/ from dawn to dusk. (4)/ No error (5).

21. The price of the product (1)/ is too high. (2)/ That is the reason (3)/ the consumers are not able to buy it easily. (4)/ No error (5).

22. It is much surprising (1)/ to find (2)/ that the institution has (3)/ very good percentage of successful candidates. (4)/ No error (5).

23. After protracted discussions, (1)/ the members are of the opinion (2)/ that the ensuring transparency (3)/ in administration
is not so easy as we conceive. (4)/ No error (5).

24. A friend of mine (1)/ had been (2)/ in the U.S.A. for 25 years. (3)/ But presently he is in India only. (4)/ No error (5).

25. He bears (1)/ trials and tribulations in his life (2)/ patiently. (3)/ Never he has begged his kith and kin for help. (4)/ No error (5).

26. He wants to complete the project (1)/ before the stipulated date. (2)/ But he has hardly (3)/ enough money for the purpose. (4)/ No error (5).

27. The instructor said to the student, (1)/ “Adhere to any method, (2)/ Which (3) / helps you solve the problem”. (4)/ No error (5).

28. You should be planned (1)/ in allotting time. (2)/ Divide your time wisely between (3)/ studying, playing, and practicing music. (4)/ No error (5).

KEY WITH EXPLANATIONS
1-1; It should be ‘Vasu completed the assignment quickly’. Adverbs should be placed after the objects of the transitive verbs.

2-3; It should be ‘He should not have played’. In a compound verb ‘not’ comes after the first auxiliary.

3-2; Replace ‘some what’ with rather. ‘Some what’ here is not correct.

4-3; ‘here’ should be placed before ”on Thursdays”. The adverb of place ‘here’ should precede the adverb of time ”on Thursdays”.

5-4; Replace ‘fairly’ with ‘rather’. ‘Fairly’ is used before only ‘positive adverbs’ and ‘positive adjectives’. It is not used for undesirable or things which are viewed with disapproval. In such cases, ‘rather’ should be used.

6-2; It should be ‘rich enough.’ The adverb ‘enough’ should be placed
after the word it qualifies.

7-4; It should be ‘laughed heartily’. Adverbs qualifying intransitive verbs should be placed immediately after them.

8-4; It should be ‘explained their meanings vividly’. Adverbs qualifying the transitive verbs should be placed after their objects.

9-3; It should be ‘I always warn him’. Adverbs of Time such as always, ever, seldom, often, sometimes, never, frequently, generally,
rarely and merely should be placed before the verbs they qualify.

10-2; It should be ‘has often praised’.

11-5; No error. When a verb consists of an auxiliary and a principal verb, the adverb qualifying it should be placed between the auxiliary and the principal verb.

12-1; It should be ‘he merely approached the Minister’. ‘Merely’ should be placed before the verb it qualifies.

13-4; Delete ‘not’. If there are two negatives in a sentence, it
gives a positive meaning. Two negatives can be used only to express a positive meaning.

14-1; It should be ‘Scarcely any one’. Two negatives should not be used in the same sentence unless we wish to make an affirmation. In this sentence, ‘Scarcely’ is negative and ‘no one’ is also negative. Hence ‘any one’ should be used.

15-1; It should be ‘very tidily’. Adjectives should not be used for adverbs.

16-2; Replace ‘firstly’ with ‘first’. While enumerating, we should say ‘firstly; secondly’, ‘thirdly’ etc., The word ‘first’ itself is
an adverb.

17-1; It should be ‘seldom or never’. ‘Seldom or never’ means ‘very rarely’. Hence this is the correct expression.

18-2; It should be ‘but. ‘Else’ should always be followed by ‘but’.

19-1; It should be ‘I do not remember ever’. ‘Never’ should not be used for ‘not’.

20-1; Replace ‘so weak’ with ‘very weak’. The Adverb of Degree ‘so’ must not be used absolutely (i.e. without a correlative).

21-2; It should be ‘very high’. The adverb ‘too’ means ‘more than
enough’. It should not be substituted for ‘very’ or ‘much’. ‘Too’ is usually ‘to’ or ‘for’.

22-1; It should be ‘very’ instead of ‘much’. ‘Much’ is used before Past Participles and adjectives. Very is used before Present
Participles.

23-5; No error As + adjective positive degree + as is used in affirmative sentences. So + adjective in positive degree + as is used in negative sentences.

24-4; Instead of ‘presently’, write ‘at present’. ‘At present’ means ‘at the present time’. ‘Presently’ means ‘shortly’.

25-3; It should be ‘Never has he begged’. When the words ‘never’, ‘seldom’, ‘rarely’, ‘neither’, ‘nor’, ‘not only’ and ‘no sooner’ are at the beginning of sentences, the verb comes before the subject as in the interrogative sentences.

26-3; Write ‘scarcely’ instead of ‘hardly’. ‘hardly’ refers to degree while ‘scarcely’ refers to ‘quantity’.

27-3; Replace ‘which’ with ‘that’. In relative sentences, ‘any’ is usually followed by ‘that’, not by ‘which’ or ‘who’.

28-5; No error. The word ‘divide’ is used with ‘between’.