English is the study of the English language. The goal is to improve communication skills by practicing listening, speaking, reading, writing, and understanding language rules like pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.
Choose the word or phrase closest in meaning to the underlined word:
Colossal means
Options:Like a clock with the pendulum in full swing, the mind moves as fast as time. But we ought to mind our thoughts, for if they turn to be our enemies. They will too many for us and will drag us down to ruin.
But some people may say that they cannot help having bad thought even though they sting like vipers. That may be son, but the question is do they hate them or not? We cannot keep thieves from looking in at our windows, but if we open our doors to them and receive them joyfully, we are bad as they. We cannot help the birds flying over our heads; but we may keep form building their nests in our hair. Vain thoughts will knock at the door but we must not open to them.
Though bad and evil thoughts rise in our hearts, they must not be allowed to reign. He who turns a morsel over and over in his mouth does so because he likes flavours, and he who meditates upon evil, loves it, and is ripe to commit it. think of the devil, and he will appear, turn your thoughts towards will and your hands will soon follow. Snails leave their slime behind them, and so do vain thoughts. An arrow may fly through the air, and level no trace, but an evil though always leaves a trail like serpent.
Where are is much traffic of bad thinking, there will be much mire and dirty. Every wave of wicked thought adds something to the corruption which rots upon the shore of life. It is dreadful to think that a vile imagination. Once indulged, gets the key of our minds, and an get in again very easily, whether or not we let it in, and what may follow, no one knows,. Nurse evil on the laps of thought, and it will grow into a giant.
Therefore, there is wisdom in watching every day, the thoughts and imaginations of our hearts. Good thoughts are blessed guests and should be welcomed, well fed, and much sought after, but bad thoughts must fly out as swiftly as they moved in.
Which of the following statements summarizes the argument of the last paragraph? Options:The passage below has gaps numbered 16 to 25. Immediately following each gap, four options are provided. Choose the most appropriate option for each gap. Each question carries 2 marks.
Believe it or not, change is to human existence what the blood is to the human body. We live in era of amazing …. 16…. [A. well-defined B. fast-paced C. favourable D. social] change spawned by advancing technology and industrialization. However, man’s …17…. [A. knowledge of B. attitude to C. commitment to D. opinion of] promoting and defending change in a deliberate effort to establish…18… [A. customs B. companies C. trade-zones D. variations] that stimulate advancement for man’s concern is proving unfavourable to the climate with threatening ...19… [A. repercussions B. clouds C. pressure D. implication].
Human-induced climate change has awakened widespread concern across the globe. As a matter of fact, climate change is now 20 [A. an acceptable B. a foremost C. the only D. the last] global issue. It is a major test of Africa’s ….21…. [A. popularity B. energy C. ingenuity D. incapability] ! the fourth Assessment Report {AR4} of the intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed that human actions are changing the earth’s climate and creating maker disturbances in human ….22…[A. geography B. societies C. systems D life] and ecosystems. The IPCC reports that the world has warned by an average of 0.76oC since pre-industrial times. The rising global …23…. [A. command B. demand C. warming D. supply] for energy and the adverse changes in the climate put the earth and its inhabitants in a catch -22 situation.
Again, if the effects of climate change on each were commensurate with the level of greenhouse …24 …. [A. structure B. paints C. emulsion D. emissions] in spews out, perhaps Africa would have been spared and would probably be just an amused spectator. But it is, this is not the case. Here again, we see well-meaning global citizens appealing for the rest of the world to take responsibility for the problems of Africa, a strategy that cannot, thus far, termed ….25…. [A. notable B. liable C. credible D. flexible]
In question number 25 above, choose the best option from letters A - D that best completes the gap. Options:To listen properly is hard job and probably one of the toughest skills in the art of communication. Good listening has nothing to do with proper functioning of one’s auditory organs, which is assumed to be inevitable. Good listening in the sense we are interested in is not a biological factor, but a psychological one. Your auditory orangs may be in perfect order, when actually you cannot use them creatively. Creative listening implies your being efficient in the art of concentration; in other words, you concentrate on what one is saying so as to make sure that you hear all that is said. At the same time you are concentrating to hear all that is being said, you are also thinking fast, digesting what is being said, allowing your mental faculties and your memory to accept that which you understand and to reject that which you do not understand, sorting out what you do not understand and storing them somewhere in your brain for future discussion and all at the same time rationalizing what you hear, accepting that which you find rational and rejecting that which you do not find rational.
After you must have listened creatively to what you have been told, then you can respond if the need arises. It is quite proper that you respond because the process of response enhances the art of communication. But your response ought to be only a necessary response; a response that will improve your understanding. This response should involve your mentioning some things you have been told but which do not understand, or politely questioning the rationality of some of the speaker’s argument. But your response must be constructive; must enhance the communicative worth. It should not be an unnecessary argument, or an opportunity for you to express dissatisfaction. The ability properly aids communication and understanding
Creative listening involves all the following EXCEPT Options:In the question below choose the phrase or word which best completes the meaning of each sentence:
He was _____ he had no time to eat
Options:From time to time I hear someone say, ‘But Yoga comes from India, therefore is something “foreign” and I don’t see how we can make use of it’. Of course this is foolishness. It is like saying, ‘I don’t want to listen to the music of Bach because he was a German’, or it is like someone in India declaring, ‘We don’t want to use electricity, because Thomas Edison was an American’ Yoga is universal, it is a priceless gift from the East and its benefits are available to all of us who would accept them.
It is very tragic that many of us, not knowing the facts, have for many years confused Yogis (a person who practices ‘Yoga’ is a Yogi) with a certain class of people in India who are known a s Fakirs. Fakirs have gain extra ordinary control of their senses, but use this control to subject their bodies to abnormal conditions. For example, they sit on the famous ‘bed of nails’ stick pins and feats. They are generally persons of low mentality, and they perform these supernatural things for money, food, favours and so forth. These Fakirs should never be confused with Yogis nor do snake charmers or Indian rope trick practitioners have anything to do with Yoga. Yoga is a natural development for body and mind and a true Yogi will never permit anything harmful or unnatural to be done to his body or mind.
Finally, there is the question of ‘religion’. I am often asked, ‘Is Yoga a religion?’ My answer is, ‘Definitely not! For us, Yoga is a dynamic system of physical exercise and a practical and valuable philosophy to apply to everyday life. In short, Yoga is way of life and everyone, regardless of his religion, can benefit greatly from any6 one or all aspect of Yoga.
Which of the following statement is true according to the passage Options:Choose the option nearest in meaning to the underlined word?
The noise across the road downed the sound of the keyboard in my room?
Options:Choose the option opposite in meaning to the underlined word(s).
My father's advice to me was quite invaluable?
Options:Gossip! Yes gossip is universal. In some language, it may have an outright negative connotation but in English, it basically means ‘idle talk’, chat about trivial things or matter. When moderated and kind, ‘casual talk’ may serve to exchange useful information as a means of updating one’s knowledge. The whole neighborhood may grow gossipy with who got married, pregnant, died, or it may just be a humorous chi-chat devoid of malicious intent.
However, idle talk more often than not, degenerates beyond the bounds of property and good taste. Facts get embellish, exaggerated or deliberately distorted. Humiliation is made the source of humor. Privacy is violated, confidence betrayed and reputations injured or ruined. Condemnation takes the place of commendation, murmuring and fault finding are extolled. The end result is like the mud thrown on a clean piece of white cloth. It does not stick but it leaves a dirty and sometimes permanent stain behind.
Gossip has been blamed for sleepless nights, headache and indigestion. Certainly, it must have caused you some personal anguish at one time or the other that is someone must at some times have tried getting a knife between your shoulder blades. Negative gossip is almost universally frowned upon. Among the Indians in the United States, gossiping about someone is classified with lying and stealing. Among the Yoruba of Nigeria, the tale bearer is detested and often avoided. Indeed, throughout history, measures have been taken to curb this ‘deadly’ disease. Between the 15th and 18th centuries, the ducking stool was popularly used in England and Germany and later in the United States.
The gossip was tied to a chair and repeatedly ducked in water. In modern times, the war against gossiping has also been fought. Rumor control centers have been established to even respond to rumors that were potentially harmful to government activities. Law have been passed to curb gossip. Nicknames have been given to those who peddle the trade. Ever heard of ‘Amebo’!
Such efforts notwithstanding, gossip survives. It is alive and flourishing. Gossip is everywhere. There is neighborhood gossip, office gossip, party gossip, family gossip and funnily enough, religious gossip. Gossip transcends all cultures, race and civilizations, and it has flourished and it is still flourishing at every level of the society. Gossip is deeply a part of human nature. Yet gossip is not inherently evil. There is a positive side to casual talk. Knowing where to draw harmless and harmful gossip is the key to avoiding victimizing others and being victim yourself.
When gossip ‘degenerates beyond the bounds of propriety and good taste’ it becomes Options:Choose the most appropriate option opposite in meaning to the underlined words.
If you are really keen on immediate results, you just have to adopt his pragmatic approach?
Options: