Fill in the Blanks Questions and Answers

Answer: B

The correct word is 'the'. The sentence 'Shanti selected the largest piece of her favourite cake' needs the definite article, because a superlative such as largest names one particular piece that stands above all the others, and the definite article is used before a superlative.

The indefinite article 'a' does not go with a superlative of this kind, since there is only one largest piece. 'One' would make the phrase mean a single piece and leaves the sentence unnatural ('one largest piece'). 'No word required' is wrong because 'largest' is a superlative with no possessive or other determiner before it, so the article is needed.

Answer: C

The correct pair is 'a; a'. The sentence is 'It was not a cold evening, so Kusum did not wear a warm jacket.' Both nouns, evening and jacket, are singular countable nouns that are mentioned for the first time and are not particular ones, so each takes the indefinite article. The article 'a' is used because cold and warm both begin with a consonant sound.

The first option uses 'the', which would refer to a known evening, and leaves the second blank empty, which cannot be right for a singular countable noun. The second option uses 'an', which is only used before a vowel sound, and cold begins with a consonant sound. The fourth option leaves out the first article. Only 'a; a' is correct.

Answer: A

The correct word is 'smart'. In an exclamation of the form 'How ____ of you to solve the puzzle so fast!' the adjective stands in its simple form after how, and it says how clever the person was: 'How smart of you'.

'Smarter' is a comparative and needs something to be compared with, such as 'than', which is not there. 'Smartest' is a superlative that would need 'the' and a group to be the best of. 'Smarting' is the participle of the verb to smart, which means to feel a stinging pain, and does not fit the sense of cleverness. So the first option is correct.

Answer: D

The correct word is 'Although'. The sentence 'Although we wore our raincoats, we were drenched in the downpour' sets two facts against each other: the raincoats should have kept us dry, but we got wet all the same. A word that shows contrast between the two clauses is needed, and although does that.

'Otherwise' means 'if not' and is not a conjunction that joins the clauses in this way. 'Because' gives a reason, which would say that the raincoats were the cause of the drenching. 'Even' alone cannot begin the clause (it would need 'even though' or 'even if'). Only the fourth option gives the right sense and structure.

Answer: B

The correct word is 'of'. The phrase 'in advance of' means 'before', so the sentence says that the tickets can be booked one day before the actual date of the journey.

'To', 'with' and 'at' do not form a correct phrase with 'in advance': we do not say 'in advance to', 'in advance with' or 'in advance at' the date. The fixed form 'in advance of' is used with a date or an event. So the second option is the answer.

Answer: C

The correct word is 'Ouch'. It is the interjection used for a sudden pain, and the speaker hit a foot on a stone, which is a painful knock.

'Wow' shows surprise or admiration, 'Whoa' is used to ask someone or something to stop or slow down, and 'Alas' expresses sorrow or regret in a more formal or literary way, not a sharp physical pain. Of the four, only 'Ouch' expresses pain from a hurt foot, so the third option is correct.

Answer: B

The correct word is A.

The article before 'university' is 'a', because the word starts with a consonant sound (a 'yoo' sound). The article 'an' goes before vowel sounds.

'Many' and 'all' would need a plural noun, which 'university' is not.

The rule depends on sound, not spelling. The word 'university' starts with the sound 'yoo', which is a consonant sound, so it takes 'a'. In the same way 'a European' and 'a unit' are correct, while 'an hour' takes 'an' because the 'h' is silent.

Answer: D

The correct word is a.

'Lack of a proper mentor' needs the indefinite article before the singular noun 'mentor'. 'These' and 'many' would need plural nouns, and 'an' is used before vowel sounds, while 'proper' begins with a consonant sound.

So only 'a' fits.

The noun 'mentor' is singular and countable, so it needs an article. Since 'proper' starts with a consonant sound, the article is 'a'. 'These' and 'many' go with plural nouns, and 'an' would go before a vowel sound such as 'an excellent mentor'.

Answer: B

The correct option is 'When Bullu said that she was coming to see me the next day I wondered which cake she would bring.'

All the verbs in the brackets must be in the past tense. 'Said', 'was coming' and 'wondered' keep the sentence in the past and show that the visit was planned for the next day.

Options A and C use the present 'is coming' and 'am wondering', and D uses 'was saying', which changes the meaning.

In reported past narration, the verbs in the bracket take the past forms: 'said', 'was coming' and 'wondered'. The first clause 'When Bullu said' sets the time as past, and 'the next day' is a future in the past, expressed with 'was coming'. The remark 'She always brings cakes' stays in the present.

Answer: B

The correct option is 'most exciting'.

The sentence compares Disneyland with all other places, so it needs the superlative of the adjective 'exciting', which is 'most exciting'. 'Excitest' is not a word, 'most excited' describes a person's feeling and 'most excitable' means easily excited.

The place causes excitement, so 'exciting' is the right form.

The adjective 'exciting' has the superlative 'most exciting' because it has three syllables. The word 'exciting' describes something that makes people feel excited, and 'excited' describes the person who feels it. Here the place is the cause, so 'exciting' is right.