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.

Passage based inferenceParagraph rearrangementCloze test fillingVocabulary replacementReading accuracy tests

English Reading Comprehension Questions

Multiple choice

Having looked at the ark of the covenant, his face melted.

  1. Since he looked at the ark of the covenant, his face melted.

  2. no change
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The original sentence contains a dangling modifier because "Having looked..." grammatically modifies "his face", but his face is not what looked at the ark. Option A resolves this by turning the phrase into a subordinate clause with a clear subject ("he").

Multiple choice

Based on what we know of Chandragupta, why might he have feared for his life?

  1. He had heart disease.

  2. His rule was harsh and people may have wanted him dead.

  3. Asoka was looking to take over the throne.

  4. Assassins were always being caught in the king's palace.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Chandragupta Maurya established a highly centralized and often harsh rule to maintain control over his vast empire. This authoritarian style created many enemies and led to his constant fear of assassination.

Multiple choice

Chandragupta became fearful of assassination when he got older. Being afraid he...

  1. made servants taste his food.

  2. slept in different rooms each night.

  3. left the throne and became a monk.

  4. All answers are correct.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Historical accounts suggest that Chandragupta became increasingly paranoid as he aged, leading him to take extreme precautions like having servants taste his food and frequently changing his sleeping quarters.

Multiple choice

Alaska

Andrew: Have you ever thought about visiting Alaska?

Mike:

Andrew:

Mike:

Andrew:

Mike:

  1. But don’t the bears and other wild animals there make it dangerous to climb? I can’t go hiking if I am worried about wild animals.

  2. Fine, but it will still be so cold and I don’t want to go somewhere where I will freeze to death.

  3. Of course not! It is so cold and I wouldn’t know what to do there for fun.

  4. There actually isn’t that many attacks from wildlife. There was only 60 bear attacks in 17 years. So you will be safe.

  5. Are you kidding? There is so much to do! For example, in Alaska you can hike up snowy mountains and see incredible views.

  1. 1-2-3-4-5

  2. 3-5-1-4-2

  3. 4-2-3-1-5

  4. 3-2-1-4-5
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The logical flow is: Andrew asks about Alaska (3), Mike gives a reason for hesitation (2), Andrew counters the hesitation (1), Mike provides a statistic (4), and Andrew concludes with positive aspects (5).

Multiple choice

What is the moral of the story How the Grinch Stole Christmas?

  1. It’s all about the gifts and food

  2. Family and friends during the holidays are important

  3. Santa Claus isn’t real

  4. When you're green, you hate Christmas
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Grinch learns that Christmas is not about material possessions like gifts or food, but about the joy of community and being with loved ones.

Multiple choice

Which of the following lines from The Gift of the Magi uses a simile?

  1. “I’ve learned to drive a hard bargain.”

  2. “whirl of skirts and a brilliant sparkle in her eye . . .”

  3. “A final tear splashes on the worn carpet.”

  4. “....shining like a cascade of brown water.”
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

A simile is a figure of speech that compares two things using the words like or as. The phrase shining like a cascade of brown water uses like to compare hair to water.

Multiple choice

Why couldn't Voldemort love?

  1. He was conceived under the effects of a love potion.

  2. He thought love was a weakness.

  3. He was abused as a child.

  4. No one taught he how.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Voldemort's inability to love is a direct result of being conceived under the influence of a love potion used by his mother, Merope Gaunt, on his father, Tom Riddle Sr.

Multiple choice

How did an apple falling from a tree give Newton an idea?

  1. It knocked some sense into him

  2. It drew his attention to gravity

  3. It made him wonder how living things grow

  4. It suggested that events occur in cycles
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The legend of the apple falling is famously associated with Newton's realization that the same force pulling the apple to the ground also keeps the Moon in orbit around the Earth, leading to his theory of gravity.

Multiple choice summary writing english

Mr. Kilner and writer Michael Wright joined forces to tell the story of the students in their book, The Fortunate Souls. In the book, it is stated that China sent one hundred twenty boys to America to acquire knowledge about developments that could help modernize their country.

  1. "The Fortunate Souls" by Mr. Kilner and Michael Wright tells the story of Chinese boys who were sent by China to America to learn about developments that could modernize their country.

  2. "The Fortunate Souls" by Mr. Kilner and Michael Wright tells the story of Chinese boys who came to America to learn how to modernize their country.

  3. In the book, "The Fortunate Souls", the story of many Chinese boys who went to America to learn how to help their country is told.

  4. The book, "The Fortunate Souls" is about many Chinese boys who learnt how to help their country.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The correct answer is option B. This option mentions the whole idea of the given sentence in minimum number of words which makes the sentence nearly one third of the main sentence. Option A is incorrect as even though it mentions the whole idea but the sentence is longer and does not adhere to the format of summarizing. Options C and D are incorrect as they do not portray the whole idea even though the sentences are smaller.

Multiple choice summary writing english

Identify the main idea/point in the following:

Through the long, carpeted hallways, where her dormmates silently threw questioning glances at her, out through the majestic steel gates that barricaded the college grounds from the outside world, and down the road that led to her home Clara ran.

  1. Clara runs away from college.

  2. Clara drops out of college.

  3. Clara stays in a dorm at a college.

  4. Clara's dormmates dislike her.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The main idea or point of a text or the main point summary should include the most important fact contained in the text.
The correct answer is Option A. The text suggest that Clara ran through all the hallways and then through the steel gates out of her college. So, the main idea is given by Option A.
Options B, C and D are incorrect as the complete fact of the text is not appropriately contained in these summaries.

Multiple choice summary writing english

Identify the main idea/point of the following:

He walked carefully into the tiny room. Then he saw a picture above the mantlepiece. He pondered over who was in the picture. He walked over the polished wooden floors. He was certain he had seen that face before. He looked once more at the white hair and empty eyes. He couldn't remember where he had seen them before. Finally, it struck him: he was a friend of his father.

  1. A man walks into a room and looks at the pictures.

  2. A man looks at a picture and tries to remember the person in it.

  3. A man tries to remember something.

  4. A picture is seen by someone.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The main idea or point of a text or the main point summary should include the most important fact contained in the text.
The correct answer is Option B. The text suggest that a man walks into a room where he sees a picture and tries to remember the person in it and finally remembers it. So, the main idea is given by Option B.
Options A, C and D are incorrect as the complete fact of the text is not appropriately contained in these summaries.

Multiple choice

According to the myth of Narcissus, what happened when he saw his reflection in the water?

  1. He fell in love with himself

  2. He became vain and arrogant

  3. He turned into a flower

  4. He died of starvation
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Narcissus, a beautiful young man, fell in love with his own reflection in the water and eventually died of unrequited love.

Multiple choice

In the story of 'The Fox and the Grapes', what does the fox do when it cannot reach the grapes?

  1. Climbs the tree

  2. Finds another tree

  3. Gives up

  4. Says they are sour
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The fox, unable to reach the grapes, tries to convince itself that they are sour and not worth eating.

Multiple choice

In the tale of "The Talking Mongoose", what did the mongoose do to save the merchant from the snake?

  1. It bit the snake and killed it

  2. It tricked the snake into leaving the house

  3. It sang a song to distract the snake

  4. It convinced the snake to become its friend
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The mongoose used its cleverness to trick the snake into leaving the house, saving the merchant's life.

Multiple choice

In the tale of "The Foolish Brahmin and the Talking Cat", what did the cat tell the Brahmin to do to become rich?

  1. To sell his house and buy a magic carpet

  2. To invest all his money in a gold mine

  3. To plant a magic beanstalk

  4. To marry a princess
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The cat told the Brahmin to plant a magic beanstalk that would grow to the sky, allowing him to climb up and steal the riches from the gods.