In the following question, the sentence is given with blank to be filled in with an appropriate word. Select the correct alternative out of the four and indicate it by selecting the appropriate option.

The recession is going to cause ___________ times for families who are already struggling to pay their bills.

In the following passage some words have been deleted. Fill in the blanks with the help of the alternatives given. Select the most appropriate option for each blank.

The Ashoka pillars are a series of columns (1)_____ in northern India by King Ashoka (2)______ his reign in the 3rd century BCE. (3)_____ pillars are inscribed with edicts by the Mauryan king. At an average (4)______ 50 feet in height and weighing up to 50 tons each, (5)______19 pillars survive today.

Select the most appropriate option for blank No. 3.

Directions: In the following questions, choose the word which is most opposite in meaning to the given word.

WICKED

In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Fill in the blanks with the help of the options given. Select the most appropriate option for each blank.

Recently, there was a news report about a man who tried to catch a robber but suffered a hip (1)______ in the process. The victim was a plumber and he was (2)______ in the hall outside the bedroom. He had left the bedroom door open for better ventilation. (3)______ two hours after midnight, he heard some noise from the bedroom. When he went in to check, he found a man (4)______ open the cupboard and taking away jewellery and cash. On seeing him, the robber tried to escape and jumped from the second floor. The plumber (5)______ the robber and jumped after him. Unfortunately, he hit a concrete wall and broke his hip; he was rushed to a nearby hospital. The robber managed to escape.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank no. 4.

The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.
 She had resign / from the / post before / he apologised.

You have eight brief passages with 10 questions following each passage. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives 

Time was when people looked heavenward and prayed, “Ye Gods, give us rain, keep drought away.” Today there are those who pray. “Give us rain, keep El Nino away.” 

El Nino and its atmospheric equivalent, called the Southern Oscillation, are together referred to as ENSO, and are household words today. Meteorologists recognize it as often being responsible for natural disaster worldwide. But this wisdom dawned only after countries suffered, first from the lack of knowledge, and then from the lack of coordination between policy making and the advances in scientific knowledge. 

Put simply, El Nino is a weather event restricted to certain tropical shores, especially the Peruvian coast. The event has diametrically opposite impacts on the land and sea. The Peruvian shore is a desert. But every few years, an unusually warm ocean current - El Nino - warms up the normally cold surface-waters off the Peruvian coast, causing very heavy rains in the early half of the year, 

And then, miraculously, the desert is matted green. Crops like cotton, coconuts and banana grow on the otherwise stubbornly barren land. These are the Peruvians’ anos de abundencia or years of abundance. The current had come to be termed El Nino, or the Christ Child because it usually appears as an enhancement if a mildly warm current that normally occurs here around every Christmas. 

But this boon on land is accompanied by oceanic disasters. Normally, the waters off the South American coast are among the most productive in the world because of a constant upwelling of nutrient rich cold waters from the ocean depths. During an El Nino, however waters are stirred up only from near the surface. The nutrient-crunch pushes down primary production, disrupting the food chain. Many marine species, including anchoveta (anchovies) temporarily disappear. 

This is just one damning effect of El Nino. Over the years its full impact has been studied and what the Peruvians once regarded as manna, is now seen as a major threat. 

How can we say that El Nino proves to be a boon for South American Coast ?  

Select the option that will improve the underlined part of the given sentence. In case no improvement is needed, select 'No improvement required'.
I knew very little Spanish when I came here, but I have been learning and can now make myself understood.

Given below are four jumbled sentences. Select the option that gives their correct order.

A. The prehistoric ring of standing stones at this site is carefully aligned to point to the sunset.

B. To get a view of the sun, Stonehenge in England is considered as one of the most iconic sites.

C. As the sun rises and sets on this day in the northern hemisphere, it is the year’s shortest day.

D. Winter solstice on December 21st marks the beginning of longer daylight hours.