English Language

English Reading Comprehension

3,503 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 inferences from the text reading comprehension english
Read the passage given below and choose the option that best fits the question that follows:

It happened one day, about noon, going towards my boat, I was exceedingly surprised with the print of a man's naked foot on the shore, which was very plain to be seen in the sand. I stood like one thunder-struck, or as if I had seen an apparition. I listened, I looked around me, I could hear nothing, nor see anything. I went up the shore, and down the shore, but it was all one; I could see no other impression but that one. I went to it again to see if there were any more, and to observe if it might not be my fancy; but there was no room for that, for there was exactly the very print of a foot-toes, heel and every part of a foot. 


The passage is full of short simple sentences. Their purpose is to ______.

  1. facilitate easy understanding

  2. give a plain narration

  3. convey breathless excitement

  4. imply the inability of the author to write in an better way
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The passage focuses on bringing out the surprise and excitement felt by the author when he notices a foot-print. The passage uses short simple sentence in order to convey this surprise and excitement of the author. Option C is the best answer.

Multiple choice inferences from the text reading comprehension english
Read the passage given below and pick the option that best fits the question that follows:

While I stood drinking in the beauty of this placid scene I became conscious of an alteration. In a moment the sole porter emerged from his midday nap, operated a signal that clanked noisily into position, and then ambled slowly towards me for my return half-ticket, whilst I remarked that his red amiable face and easy-going gait were in perfect harmony with the tranquil surroundings.
 A wisp of smoke on the horizon with a dark snake crawling beneath it announced the approach of the train. As it drew nearer, the deep silence of the place was gradually displaced by a creaking of brakes and a hissing of steam. Save for myself, no one entered the train and no one alighted. The porter with leisurely expertness, trundled a couple of milk churns on board, the door was slammed, the guard signalled to the driver, and we moved off, leaving the small station once more to its drowsy silence.


The meaning of drowsy is 

  1. Untidy

  2. Sleepy

  3. Freezing

  4. Drugged
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The word "drowsy" means half-asleep or sleepy. So, option B is the answer.

Multiple choice inferences from the text reading comprehension english


Read the passage given below and choose the option that best fits the question that follows:

It happened one day, about noon, going towards my boat, I was exceedingly surprised with the print of a man's naked foot on the shore, which was very plain to be seen in the sand. I stood like one thunder-struck, or as if I had seen an apparition. I listened, I looked around me, I could hear nothing, nor see anything. I went up the shore, and down the shore, but it was all one; I could see no other impression but that one. I went to it again to see if there were any more, and to observe if it might not be my fancy; but there was no room for that, for there was exactly the very print of a foot-toes, heel and every part of a foot. 

Which one of the following words best describes the emotion evoked by the foot-print in the author? 

  1. Curiosity

  2. Indifference

  3. Fear

  4. Surprise
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The statement, "I was exceedingly surprised" implies that curiosity was the emotion evoked by the foot-print in the author. So, option A is the answer.

Multiple choice inferences from the text reading comprehension english
Read the passage given below and choose the option that best fits the question that follows:

While I stood drinking in the beauty of this placid scene I became conscious of an alteration. In a moment the sole porter emerged from his midday nap, operated a signal that clanked noisily into position, and then ambled slowly towards me for my return half-ticket, whilst I remarked that his red amiable face and easy-going gait were in perfect harmony with the tranquil surroundings.
 A wisp of smoke on the horizon with a dark snake crawling beneath it announced the approach of the train. As it drew nearer, the deep silence of the place was gradually displaced by a creaking of brakes and a hissing of steam. Save for myself, no one entered the train and no one alighted. The porter with leisurely expertness, trundled a couple of milk churns on board, the door was slammed, the guard signalled to the driver, and we moved off, leaving the small station once more to its drowsy silence.


The central idea of the passage is _____________.

  1. Leisure and peace

  2. Hurry and noise

  3. Activity

  4. The porter
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The correct answer for this would be option A, leisure and peace. The author of the passage has tried to illustrate the serene nature and surrounding of the speaker, juxtaposing it with the humdrum of a train station. The tone of the speaker conveys a peaceful environment. The statements of options B,C and D are incoherent with the tone of the passage, and thus, are incorrect. 

Multiple choice inferences from the text reading comprehension english

Read the following sentences and answer the question that follows:
a. A hunter, however, comes to the rescue and cuts the wolf open. Immediately, Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother emerge unharmed.
b. This tale is about a girl called Little Red Riding Hood, she always wears the red hooded cape. Every day, the girl walks into the woods to deliver food to her grandmother.
c. One day, a wolf approaches the girl and she naively tells him where she is going.
d. In the meantime, the wolf goes to the grandmother's house and eats her. When the girl arrives he eats her too.
e. He suggests the girl pick some flowers for her grandmother who was keeping unwell. She does so.


What is the moral of the story?

  1. Always meet your grandmother in the forest.

  2. Never listen to strangers.

  3. Never be friends with a wolf.

  4. Never tell the truth.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

After Red Riding Hood naively tells the wolf where and why she was going, he distracts her by asking her to pick some flowers for her grandmother and meanwhile goes to her grandmother's place and eats the grandmother. From this we can deduce that it never serves well to trust strangers and talk or listen to them. So, we can say that the moral of the story is choice B- never listen to strangers. The other choices are incorrect as they do not fit the context of the story.


Multiple choice

In The Fox and the Hound, why did Tod (the fox) come to Copper's rescue at the end?

  1. He was being attacked by a Bear

  2. His master turned on him and tried to kill Copper

  3. He was stuck under a fallen branch during a forest fire

  4. He was drowning and he couldn't swim with his bad leg
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Near the climax of the film, a ferocious black bear attacks Amos Slade and Copper. Despite their recent animosity, Tod leaps into the fight to defend his childhood friend Copper from the bear, nearly sacrificing his own life.

Multiple choice

"I knew you were trouble, he never loved or her or anyone or anything yeah!!!" Tswift sucks b/c

  1. she has bad songs

  2. she used the wrong tense in her songs

  3. she shifts tense in verbs and subjects

  4. she only sings about love but can't keep a lover of her own.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The lyric shifts awkwardly from first person ("I knew") to third person ("he never loved") and contains confusing pronoun references. Option C correctly identifies this issue as a shift in verbs and subjects, which disrupts the coherence of the sentence.

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

On which process democracy studies are based?

  1. Beginning of modern science

  2. Policing

  3. Governance of cities

  4. counting and enumeration
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Demography is fundamentally based on the counting and enumeration of people to understand population trends, structures, and changes.

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

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.