FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR RECRUITMENT TO POSTS IN BPS-17, UNDER THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, 2000
ENGLISH (PRÉCIS & COMPOSITION)
Correct the following sentences:
- The lake froze rapidly.
- The firm was unwilling to forego its usual commission.
- We watched the lambs gamble on the green.
- He belonged to the gild of carpenters.
- He had not ought not have spoken.
(1) Is this his half-brother.
- Hay! Watch out for the car!
- This is the historical spot where he was shot dead.
- We bought a Japanese print.
- Fresh flowers smell sweetly.
Solution:
- The lake froze rapidly.
- The firm was disinclined to forego its usual commission.
- We watched the lambs gambol on the green.
- He belonged to the guild of carpenters.
- He ought not to have spoken. (1) Is he his step-brother?
- Hay! Watch out the car.
- This is the historic spot where he was shot dead.
- We bought Japanese print.
- Fresh flowers smell sweet.
❑ Use the following idioms in sentences to make their meaning clear:
1. | Blow one’s top / blow one’s stack | 2. | A cock-and-bull story |
3. | Find one’s feet | 4. | Call it a night |
5. | The tip of the iceberg | 6. | Below par / under par |
7. | From pillar to post | 8. | Hang up on |
9. | Turn someone on | 10. | By and by |
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- Blow one’s top / blow one’s stack
Meaning: to set very angry
Use in sentence: He is’ volatile and likely to blow his top if his demands are not met.
- A cock-and-bull story
Meaning: a fanciful and unbelievable tale
Use in sentence: That was really cock and bull story you just said.
- Find one’s feet
Meaning: to grow in confidence in a new situation as one gains experience
Use in sentence: If you ask for help when you need it, you will soon find your feet.
- Call it a night
Meaning: to go to bed to sleep
Use in sentence: We left the party and I wanted to call it a night, but Waseem invited people back for coffee.
- The tip of the iceberg —
Meaning: only a small part of a much larger problem
Use in sentence: This is just the tip of iceberg, with many missing but not reported.
- Below par / under par —
Meaning: average or normal amount, degree, health or condition
Use in sentence: I am feeling below par today, but I am sure I will recover by tomorrow.
- From pillar to post —
Meaning: to and fro
Use in sentence: The youth needs somewhere to go because at the moment they moved from pillar to post.
- Hang up on —
Meaning: to end a telephone call
Use in sentence: Do not hang up on me – we must talk.
- Turn someone on —
Meaning: to create feeling of excitement, interest, lust, pleasure, etc. Use in sentence: Jazz has never really turned me on.
10 Turn someone off
Meaning: to create feelings of dislike, repulsion, disgust etc.
Use in sentence: People had been turned off by both candidates in the election.
- By and by —
Meaning: after a while, soon
Use in sentence: She’ll be along by and by.
❑ Use five of the following pairs of words in sentenc:s:
(i) Knead, Need: (ii) Queue, Cue:
(iii) Quarts, Quartz: (iv) Choral, Coral:
(v) Discrete, Discreet: (vi) Epoch, Epic:
(vii) Libel, Liable: (viii) Male, Mail:
(ix) Banned, Band: (x) Barred, Bared:
- Knead: Meaning: massage of muscles
Use in sentence: The doctor kneaded the affected muscles of the player so that he could play the final match.
Need:
Meaning: urgent want, time of difficulty
Use in sentence: A friend in need is a friend indeed.
- Queue: Meaning: a line of persons waiting their turn
Use in sentence: Please, wait at the end of the queue.
Cue:
Meaning: a signal
Use in sentence: This is my cue, I must now go on the stage.
- Quarts: Meaning: quarter of a gallon
Use in sentence: The buffaloes of the Punjab give six quarts of milk daily.
Quartz:
Meaning: silica in various mineral forms
Use in sentence: Quartz crystals are used to make watches.
- Choral: Meaning: sung by or together with a choir
Use in sentence: The French choir sang the classical chorals excellently.
Coral:
Meaning: stone like red or white substance
Use in sentence: Corals are built on the sea bed by small sea creatures.
- Discrete: Meaning: separate
Use in sentence: A mixture is usually composed of discrete parts.
Discreet:
Meaning: tactful in what one says and does
Use in sentence: Being discreet personality, he soon became a successful businessman.
- Epoch:
Meaning: period of history marked by special events
Use in sentence: Creation of Pakistan made a new epoch in the Muslim world.
Epic:
Meaning: continuous poetic narrative of the deeds of hero
Use in sentence: “The Rape of the Lock” by Alexander Pope is a mock epic poem.
- Libel:
Meaning: printed defamation):
Use in sentence: Publishers never publishes a libel material against national interests.
Liable:
Meaning: legally responsible
Use in sentence: The principal warned the students that they would be liable for any damage caused by them during the strike.
- Male:
Meaning: masculine, opposed to female
Use in sentence: This book is recommended to our male readers.
Mail:
Meaning: post, the carriage which brings the mail
Use in sentence: The mail train arrives at this station in the evening.
- Banned:
Meaning: order forbidding something
Use in sentence: The government has banned any kind of political activities during the martial law.
Band:
Meaning: group of persons playing music together
Use in sentence: The police band won first prize in All-Pakistan Band Competition.
- Barred:
Meaning: Something that stops progress
Use in sentence: The police barred the main boulevard during the strike, so that the procession could not reach the airport
Bared:
Meaning: un-covered
Use in sentence: The mountains were completely bared when we visited the area.