JKSSB English MCQs

Explanation

Correct Option: D) without haste

Explanation:
Leisurely means slowly and comfortably, without hurry or haste.

• A) Reassuringly — in a way that gives confidence ❌

• B) Hastily — quickly or hurriedly ❌

• C) With a kickstart — with sudden energy ❌

• D) Without haste — without hurry; slowly and comfortably ✅

Explanation

("Everyone was surprised at his speech") is in the simple past tense. To convert it to the active voice, you make the agent ("His speech") the subject and use the simple past tense of the verb ("surprised"), followed by the object ("everyone").

Reason for incorrectness of others:

• A) His speech surprise everyone: This option is grammatically incorrect. Because the subject "speech" is singular, a present tense verb would need an "s" (surprises). More importantly, it fails to match the past tense of the original sentence.

• B) His speech was surprising to everyone: this uses a linking verb ("was") and an adjective ("surprising"). While technically an active sentence, it changes the grammatical structure of the sentence rather than directly converting the original passive verb into an active one.

• C) His speech is surprising everyone: This option changes the time frame. The original sentence is in the simple past tense ("was surprised"), but this option is in the present continuous tense ("is surprising").

Explanation

Correct Option: A) Upon

Complete sentence:
“Luck does not always favour us, so we must always depend upon our own efforts for success.”

Explanation:
The verb “depend” is followed by the preposition “on” or “upon.” Both are grammatically correct, but “depend upon” fits the given options.

• A) Upon ✅ — depend upon = rely on

• B) For ❌

• C) In ❌

• D) At ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: B) may

Complete sentence:
“Raj hasn’t studied well. He may fail his exam.”

Explanation:
May is used to express possibility. Since Raj has not studied well, failing the exam is a possible outcome.

• A) can — ability/general possibility ❌

• B) may — possibility ✅

• C) could — also expresses possibility, but “may” is the most appropriate choice here.

• D) shall — future intention/requirement, generally with I/we ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: A) “He wants to be an astronaut.”

Explanation:
The noun “astronaut” is a singular countable noun, so it requires an indefinite article (a/an). Since astronaut begins with a vowel sound, we use “an.”

• A) He wants to be an astronaut. ✅

• B) She is going to the airport. ❌ — needs the definite article the.

• C) They visited the temple. ❌ — generally requires the when referring to a specific/known temple.

• D) I saw an elephant at the zoo. ❌ — elephant already has an; zoo needs the in this context.

Explanation

Correct Option: B) Lenient

Explanation:
Stern means strict, firm, or severe in manner. Its opposite is lenient, meaning not strict or more forgiving.

• A) Flippant — not serious or respectful ❌

• B) Lenient — not strict; tolerant or forgiving ✅

• C) Desolate — deserted or miserable ❌

• D) Noxious — harmful or poisonous ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: B) kill

Complete sentence:
“The friends decided to play cards to kill time while waiting for the cab.”

Explanation:
The idiom “kill time” means to spend time doing something while waiting for something else to happen.

• A) ignore ❌

• B) kill ✅ — kill time

• C) move ❌

• D) ease ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: C) Ought

Complete sentence:
“Sheldon ought to study more if he wants to pass the test.”

Explanation:
“Ought to” is used to express duty, advice, or something that is advisable. Here, Sheldon should study more in order to pass the test.

• A) will — expresses future intention/prediction ❌

• B) may — expresses possibility/permission ❌

• C) ought — expresses advice or necessity ✅

• D) shall — mainly expresses future intention or suggestion ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: A) Narcissist

Explanation:
A narcissist is a person who has an excessive admiration of themselves, especially their appearance, abilities, or importance.

• A) Narcissist — a person excessively self-admiring ✅

• B) Egoist — a person who is excessively self-centered or focused on their own interests ❌

• C) Selfish — concerned primarily with one's own interests ❌

• D) Dictator — a ruler with absolute power ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: D) Systemetic

Explanation:
The incorrectly spelt word is “Systemetic.” The correct spelling is “Systematic.”

• A) attempt — correctly spelled ✅

• B) philosophy — correctly spelled ✅

• C) think — correctly spelled ✅

• D) Systemetic ❌ → Systematic ✅

Correct sentence:
“One part of the philosophy of life’s meaning consists of the systematic attempt to identify what people have in mind when they think about the topic.”

Explanation

Correct Option: D) Seize

Explanation:
Confiscate means to officially take something away from someone, especially because it is illegal or against the rules.

• A) Titivate — to make something more attractive ❌

• B) Restock — to replenish supplies ❌

• C) Destroy — to damage or ruin completely ❌

• D) Seize — to take possession of something, often by authority ✅

Explanation

The student wrote that each of the experiments was successful.

Explanation

Correct Option: A) The library lost all its books.

Explanation:
“Its” is a possessive determiner and does not take an apostrophe.

• A) The library lost all its books. ✅ Correct

• B) anyones’ ❌ → anyone’s

• C) your’s ❌ → yours

• D) their’s ❌ → theirs

Explanation

Correct Option: C) have rotted away.

Correct sentence:
“Nine tenths of the pillar has rotted away.”

Explanation:
When a fraction refers to a singular/uncountable noun, the verb agrees with the noun after “of.”

Here, “pillar” is singular, so we use “has”, not “have.”

• Nine tenths of the pillar has rotted away. ✅

• “Nine tenths of the pillars have rotted away.” ✅ (if pillars were plural)

Explanation

Correct Option: D) No improvement

Explanation:
The sentence “If I had played well, I would have won the match.” is grammatically correct.

It is a Third Conditional sentence, used for an unreal or hypothetical situation in the past.

Structure:
If + had + past participle, would have + past participle

→ If I had played well, I would have won the match.

• A) I played well ❌

• B) I play well ❌

• C) I am playing well ❌

• D) No improvement ✅

Explanation

Correct Option: A) Barely managed to escape

Explanation:
The idiom “by the skin of his teeth” means to escape or succeed by a very narrow margin, just barely avoiding failure or danger.

Here, the youth barely escaped from the accident.

• A) Barely managed to escape ✅

• B) Very arrogant ❌

• C) Always taking calculated decisions ❌

• D) Deficiency of funds ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: A) yet travelled by bus

Explanation:
The error is in “yet travelled by bus” because “yet” is a conjunction that needs proper punctuation and connection with the preceding clause.

The sentence should be:

“He lived close to the train station, yet travelled by bus.”

However, if the question is testing grammatical error only, the phrase “yet travelled by bus” itself is grammatically acceptable; the issue is the missing comma before yet.

Therefore, among the given parts, A is the intended answer.

Explanation

Correct Option: B) Raghav asked Meera if she was upset with him.

Explanation:
The direct speech is a Yes/No question, so in reported speech:

• said to → asked

• Are you → if she was

• you → she

• me → him (referring to Raghav)

• Question form changes to statement word order.

Direct: “Are you upset with me?”
Reported: Raghav asked Meera if she was upset with him.

Explanation

Correct Option: D) less tragic than

Correct sentence:
“Edward II is less tragic than some other plays by the dramatist.”

Explanation:
The sentence compares Edward II with some other plays, so we need the comparative degree.

The correct comparative structure is:

less + adjective + than → less tragic than ✅

• A) as least tragic as ❌ — incorrect comparative structure.

• B) No substitution required ❌ — “is tragic than” is grammatically incorrect.

• C) the most tragic ❌ — superlative degree doesn't fit a comparison with “some other plays.”

• D) less tragic than ✅

Explanation

Correct Option: B) Philanthropic

Explanation:
Altruistic means selfless and concerned with the welfare of others, often involving a willingness to help others without expecting anything in return.

• A) Phenomenal — extraordinary or remarkable ❌

• B) Philanthropic — charitable; concerned with helping others ✅

• C) Phonotypical — related to phonetic representation ❌

• D) Phantasmal — imaginary or unreal ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: D) Fashion

Explanation:
The phrase “in vogue” means currently fashionable, popular, or widely accepted.

So, the closest synonym is “fashion.”

• A) Demand — a need or requirement ❌

• B) Obscurity — the state of being unknown ❌

• C) Standard — a level or criterion ❌

• D) Fashion — a popular or current trend/style ✅

Correct sentence:
“Narcotic drug addiction is in fashion these days, as it is the most popular form of substance abuse.”

Explanation

Correct Option: B) Turbulence

Explanation:
Turbulence means a state of violent disturbance, disorder, or upheaval. It can describe sudden and chaotic changes or unrest.

• A) Equanimity — calmness and composure ❌

• B) Turbulence — violent disturbance or upheaval ✅

• C) Tranquility — peace and calmness ❌

• D) Serenity — peacefulness and calmness ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: A) cold feet

Complete dialogue:
Person B: “No. You are just getting cold feet. You have prepared for this.”

Explanation:
The idiom “get cold feet” means to become nervous or lose confidence before doing something important, especially before an event or decision.

Here, Person A is nervous about giving a speech, so “cold feet” is the correct idiom.

• A) cold feet ✅

• B) hot feet ❌

• C) cold foot ❌

• D) cold hand ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: A) Gauge

Explanation:
The word “guage” is incorrectly spelled. The correct spelling is “gauge.”

• ❌ Guage

• ✅ Gauge — to measure or assess something.

Correct sentence:
The trainer tried to gauge the learners’ understanding of the subject by asking several new questions.

Explanation

Correct Option: B) After we came out of the restaurant

Correct sentence:
“After we came out of the restaurant, it was half past eleven.”

Explanation:
The original phrase “When we are came out” is grammatically incorrect because “are came” cannot be used together.

“After we came out” correctly uses the Simple Past Tense (came) for an action completed in the past.

• A) When we had come out — grammatically possible in some contexts, but unnecessarily changes the structure here.

• B) After we came out of the restaurant — ✅ best correction.

• C) When we have come out — incorrect tense for this past context.

• D) No improvement — ❌

Explanation

Correct Option: B) Could

Complete sentence:
“Could you show me the road to the market?”

Explanation:
Could is commonly used to make a polite request. Here, the speaker is politely asking someone to show them the way.

• Could → polite request ✅

• Might → possibility

• May → permission/possibility

• Shall → suggestion/offer, usually with I/We

Explanation

Correct Option: A) the

Complete sentence:
“He is the captain of the team.”

Explanation:
We use “the” before captain because it refers to a specific position/person—the particular captain of the team.

• the captain ✅ — specific person/position

• a captain ❌ — would mean one captain among several, which doesn't fit the intended sentence

Explanation

Correct Option: A) Was that noise heard by you?

Explanation:
The active sentence “Did you hear that noise?” is in the Simple Past Tense.

Active: Did + subject + V₁ + object?
→ Did you hear that noise?

For passive voice:

Object + was/were + V₃ + by + subject?
→ Was that noise heard by you?

• Did hear → was heard

• you → by you

• that noise becomes the subject.

Explanation

Correct Option: D) No article

• Sentence: I need to buy milk.

• Explanation: Milk is an uncountable noun when referring to milk in general, so we normally do not use a/an before it. We also don't use the unless referring to specific milk already known or mentioned.

Explanation

Correct Option: D — Do everything to make something successful

• Idiom: Pull out all the stops

• Meaning: To make every possible effort or use every available means to achieve a successful result.

• Explanation: In the sentence, the team plans to make their maximum effort to ensure their presentation is successful.