English Language

English Reading Comprehension

2,692 Questions

English reading comprehension questions assess the ability to understand, analyze, and interpret written passages. Formats include paragraph rearrangement, cloze tests, and fact finding from text. Regular practice is essential for scoring well in the English sections of banking, SSC, and railway exams.

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English Reading Comprehension Questions

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (viii).

  1. the

  2. a

  3. an

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

(2) and (3) are incorrect because the noun ‘fox’ has been repeated.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (vii).

  1. an

  2. the

  3. a

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

(2) is incorrect because the word ‘awful’ comes for the first time. (3) is incorrect because the word ‘awful’ begins with a vowel sound.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (vi).

  1. the

  2. an

  3. a

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

(2) and (3) are incorrect because the noun ‘grapes’ is plural.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (v).

  1. An

  2. A

  3. The

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

(1) and (2) are incorrect because the noun ‘fox’ has been repeated.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (xi).

  1. a

  2. an

  3. the

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

(1) and (2) are incorrect because the noun ‘fox’ has been repeated.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (iii).

  1. the

  2. a

  3. an

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

(2) and (3) are incorrect because the noun ‘fox’ has been repeated.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (ix).

  1. an

  2. a

  3. the

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

(1) is incorrect because the word ‘long’ begins with a consonant sound. (3) is incorrect because it does not refer to a special time.

Multiple choice

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Once (i) hungry fox went to (ii) garden. There (iii) fox saw grapes hanging from (iv) vine. (v) fox jumped again and again, but could not reach (vi) grapes. It was (vii) awful moment for (viii) poor animal. It went on attempting for (ix) long time, but all in vain. At last, (x) fox gave it up and went away saying, ''(xi) grapes are sour.''

Fill in blank (x).

  1. the

  2. a

  3. an

  4. No article needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

(2) and (3) are incorrect because the noun ‘fox’ has been repeated. 

Multiple choice

Which of the following is the best revision of the underlined portion of sentence no. (5) below?

The mere and naked material of nature we eye with in difference, or trample on with disdain.

Directions: Read the passage and select the best answer for the question:

(1) There is something humbling to human pride in a rustic life. (2) It grates against the heart to think of the tone in which we unconsciously permit ourselves to address a rustic. (3) We see in him humanity in its simplest state. (4) It is a sad thought to feel that we despise him; that all we respect in our species is what has been created by art; the gaudy dress, the glittering equipage, or even the cultivated intellect. (5) The mere and naked material of nature we eye with in difference, or trample on with disdain. (6) Poor child of toil, from the gray dawn to the setting sun one long test of endurance. (7) No ideas elicited, no thought awakened beyond those that suffice to make him the machine of others, the serf of the hard soil. (8) And then too, mark how we frown upon his scanty holidays, how we hedge in his mirth, and how we turn hilarity into crime. (9) We make the whole of the gay world, wherein we take our snares and perils to him a place of pleasure. (10) Do we not mistake the idyllic, unaffected rustic charm for uncouth, inelegant artlessness?
(11) Why not look upon the whole issue from the other angle – the viewpoint of the ‘observed’? (12) How did the rustic view the uptown gentry? (13) The view will surely not be very flattering. (14) The ‘rustic’ has the civility to ‘waive off’ such ‘reckless’ opinions about the urban folk and restrict himself to the upkeep of values only on his own part.

  1. (As it is now)

  2. The mere and naked material of nature we eye with indifference.

  3. The mere and naked material of nature we eye with in deference.

  4. The mere and naked material of nature we eye with deference.

  5. The naked material of nature we eye with indifference.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

This is the best revision of the sentence because coldness and insensitivity are 'indifference', not 'in difference'.

Multiple choice

Which of the following if placed after sentence (14) will be the most effective concluding sentence for the passage?

Directions: Read the passage and select the best answer for the question:

(1) There is something humbling to human pride in a rustic life. (2) It grates against the heart to think of the tone in which we unconsciously permit ourselves to address a rustic. (3) We see in him humanity in its simplest state. (4) It is a sad thought to feel that we despise him; that all we respect in our species is what has been created by art; the gaudy dress, the glittering equipage, or even the cultivated intellect. (5) The mere and naked material of nature we eye with in difference, or trample on with disdain. (6) Poor child of toil, from the gray dawn to the setting sun one long test of endurance. (7) No ideas elicited, no thought awakened beyond those that suffice to make him the machine of others, the serf of the hard soil. (8) And then too, mark how we frown upon his scanty holidays, how we hedge in his mirth, and how we turn hilarity into crime. (9) We make the whole of the gay world, wherein we take our snares and perils to him a place of pleasure. (10) Do we not mistake the idyllic, unaffected rustic charm for uncouth, inelegant artlessness?
(11) Why not look upon the whole issue from the other angle – the viewpoint of the ‘observed’? (12) How did the rustic view the uptown gentry? (13) The view will surely not be very flattering. (14) The ‘rustic’ has the civility to ‘waive off’ such ‘reckless’ opinions about the urban folk and restrict himself to the upkeep of values only on his own part.

  1. So who do you think is the culprit?

  2. So who is gracious and mannerly ultimately?

  3. So the shoe is on the other foot

  4. So who will judge the ‘civility’?

  5. So let us introspect.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The essay begins with the 'urban' viewpoint of the 'rustic'. It ends with what might be the countryman's viewpoint of the city folk. The urban viewpoint is shown in negative light, but the rural viewpoint is condescending. So who is truly civilized?

Multiple choice

Which of the following is the best revision of the underlined portion of sentence no. (8) below?

how we frown upon his scanty holidays, how we hedge in his mirth, and how we turn hilarity into crime.

Directions: Read the passage and select the best answer for the question:

(1) There is something humbling to human pride in a rustic life. (2) It grates against the heart to think of the tone in which we unconsciously permit ourselves to address a rustic. (3) We see in him humanity in its simplest state. (4) It is a sad thought to feel that we despise him; that all we respect in our species is what has been created by art; the gaudy dress, the glittering equipage, or even the cultivated intellect. (5) The mere and naked material of nature we eye with in difference, or trample on with disdain. (6) Poor child of toil, from the gray dawn to the setting sun one long test of endurance. (7) No ideas elicited, no thought awakened beyond those that suffice to make him the machine of others, the serf of the hard soil. (8) And then too, mark how we frown upon his scanty holidays, how we hedge in his mirth, and how we turn hilarity into crime. (9) We make the whole of the gay world, wherein we take our snares and perils to him a place of pleasure. (10) Do we not mistake the idyllic, unaffected rustic charm for uncouth, inelegant artlessness?
(11) Why not look upon the whole issue from the other angle – the viewpoint of the ‘observed’? (12) How did the rustic view the uptown gentry? (13) The view will surely not be very flattering. (14) The ‘rustic’ has the civility to ‘waive off’ such ‘reckless’ opinions about the urban folk and restrict himself to the upkeep of values only on his own part.

  1. Change commas (,) to semi-colons (;)

  2. Change period (.) to mark of interrogation (?)

  3. Change period (.) to mark of exclamation (!)

  4. Delete repetitive 'how'

  5. No change needed
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

This is the correct answer because the sentence is correct as given.

Multiple choice

It was somewhere in the seventies when old Peaceful Harry woke to a realization that gold-hunting and lumbago do not take kindly to one another, and the fact that his pipe and dim-eyed meditation appealed to him more keenly than did his prospector's pick and shovel and pan seemed to imply that he was growing old. He was a silent man, by occupation and by nature, so he said nothing about it; but, like the wild things of prairie and wood, _____________________.

What is the most critical completion of the passage?

  1. quietly understood that the wheel of life has turned again and this time against

  2. instinctively began preparing for the winter of his life

  3. prepared to live a life in the wild

  4. courageously stood up to the challenge

  5. strived to protect himself from the elements
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

 It logically continues how 'Peaceful Harry' made peace with his affliction and dimming desire to prospect for gold. Harry instinctively started preparing for the winter of his life.

Multiple choice

Directions: This question presents a sentence, all or part of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is the best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose any one of the others.

There was something very strange and weird about that sound, which sent a chill of horror through both the hearers, and they laughed the next moment at their fears, for the noise was only such as could be given out by a pair of rusty hinges.

  1. and they laughed the next moment at their fears

  2. and they were laughing the next moment at their fears

  3. but they laughed the next moment at their fears

  4. and they laughed at the next moment at their fears

  5. but they laughed at the next moment at their fear
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Explanation for (1): The sentence bears error of conjunction. The 'laughter' provides a contrast to the 'chill of horror'. The two contrasting expressions should be connected by 'but', not by 'and'.

Explanation for (2): This option does not rectify the error of conjunction and introduces another error of tense shift from simple past to past continuous tense.

Explanation for (3): This option corrects the error of conjunction. The 'laughter' provides a contrast to the 'chill of horror'. The two contrasting expressions should be connected by 'but'.  
Explanation for (4): This option does not rectify the error of conjunction. Besides, it introduces another error of redundancy by inserting 'at' before the next moment. Explanation for (5): This option corrects the error of conjunction, but introduces another error of redundancy by inserting 'at' before the next moment.

Multiple choice

Directions: The question is a logical sequence of statements with a missing link, the location of which is shown parenthetically. Choose the alternative that best fits the sequence logically.

The shafts of the mine still bear on their rocky walls the marks made by the pick of the workman who toiled to excavate them. The space between each prop in the underground galleries might be marked as a miner's grave; who can tell what (…), in privations, in unspeakable wretchedness to the family who depended on the scanty wage of the worker cut off in his prime by fire damp, rock fall or flood?

  1. <span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;mso-fareast-font-family:"Times" new="">each of these graves has cost, in tears

  2. these poor souls have gone through

  3. lies ahead for the family

  4. price the family paid
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Option (1) is correct because '…in tears' in the answer syntactically continues with 'in privations', 'in unspeakable wretchedness'.

Multiple choice

Directions: The question is a logical sequence of statements with a missing link, the location of which is shown parenthetically. Choose the alternative that best fits the sequence logically.

Many of the white race looked upon them as beggars, which was bad enough, or as thieves, which was worse; and in a general way they could not deny the truth of it. But they never stole from the Harts, and they never openly begged from the Harts. The friends of the Harts, however, must (.) before they could hope for better than imperturbable neutrality.

  1. be rich enough

  2. 'love' them enough

  3. convince them of their good intentions

  4. prove their friendship
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

can be derived from 'But they never stole from the Harts, and they never openly begged from the Harts. The friends of the Harts, however….' These qualities were not good enough to earn friendship. They must 'prove their friendship'.