UCO Bank Clerk (First Shift) Exam, 2011 : English Language Solved Paper

UCO Bank Clerk (First Shift) Exam., 2011
(Held on 23-1-2011)
English Language : Solved Paper

Directions—(Q. 1–15) Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words are printed in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.

A pundit was visiting a remote town. The people of the town worried him everyday with invitations for lunch or dinner. “I will only eat in a house where no one has ever told a lie,” said the pundit. A very rich man stepped up and said, “Come to my house, Oh master. No one in my home has ever told a lie.” The pundit accepted the invitation. Before going to the rich man’s house, the pundit inquired about the rich man and learned everything he could about him. Walking along with the rich man, the pundit asked, “How many children do you have ?’’ “Only one son,” replied the rich man. “The people of this town said he had three sons ! Why is he saying he has only one ? Is he lying ?” wondered the pundit, “but I should not be too hasty to judge him. Perhaps he is telling the truth. Let me wait.” “How old are you now ?” asked the pundit. “I am ten years old,” answered the rich man. “There he goes again ! His hair is gray, his face has wrinkles, he can barely walk, and he says he is only ten years old ! No, No. I should not come to a rushed conclusion. I shall give him one more chance,” decided the pundit. “How many acres of land do you have ?” asked the pundit, “I have only six feet of land for myself”, said the rich man. “This is like trying to hide a whole pumpkin in a spoonful of rice !” thought the pundit. “This man is indeed the king of liars ! How can I eat in his house ? Will it turn me into a liar as well ? Let me see how far he can go.”

When they arrived at the house the rich man told his wife, we have a special guest today so make him your best lunch. I will take him to the lake for a walk. We will be back soon. On their way back from the river, they passed an orchard. The rich man plucked two ripe mangoes, and cut a bunch of ripe bananas. “Whose orchard is this ?” asked the pundit. “This orchard belongs to the ones who do not sleep a wink at night,” replied the rich man. At the house, the rich man’s wife had laid out the lunch. “Please come and eat” she said. “I need to clarify a few things first,’’ declared the pundit. “What is it ?” asked the rich man. “I know you have three sons, why did you say you had only one ?’’ demanded the pundit. The rich man immediately called for his sons and gave them a task. The eldest and the youngest both said, “Father, you are forever ordering us around”. Only the middle son promptly agreed to obey. “Did you see that, Oh Master ?” asked the rich man. “I do have three sons, but only one of them truly listens to me.” “Fine, but why did you claim that you were only ten years old ?’’ asked the pundit. “I am over sixty, ” replied the rich man. “But for the last ten years, I have devoted myself to a spiritual life. I believe that it is only then since I have truly lived,’’ replied the rich man.

Excellent answer applauded the pundit. “But you own thousands of acres of fertile land. Why did you claim to have only six feet ? “I have acquired thousands of acres of land. I did every trick in the trade to become rich, but it has only made my sons proud and arrogant. What use is all this wealth to me ? When I die, the six feet of land where I will be buried is all that will truly be mine,” said the rich man.

The pundit sat down to eat. As he was taking his leave, he asked the rich man, “What did you mean when you said the orchard belongs to the ones who do not sleep a wink at night ?” ‘‘I do own the orchard and work hard tending to my trees, but at night, I am so tired that I fall asleep. Meanwhile the thieves, who stay awake all night, steal most of my yield. So in truth the orchard belongs to them. The ones who do not sleep a wink at night” said the rich man.

1. On what condition did the pundit agree to invitations for lunch or dinner ?
(A) He would only eat from a rich man’s plate.
(B) He would only eat in a house where no one had lied.
(C) He would eat in a house that cooked only vegetarian food.
(D) He would only eat from a banana leaf.
(E) None of these
Ans : (B)

2. Which of the following is said to be true of the rich man ?
1. The rich man had three sons.
2. The rich man was fifty years old.
3. The rich man owned vast acres of land.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Only 3
(D) Only 1 and 2
(E) Only 1 and 3
Ans : (E)

3. What was the rich man trying to imply when he said that he was only ten years old ?
(A) He had a near death experience ten years ago.
(B) The rich man was trying to appear younger than his actual age.
(C) He had truly lived only after he devoted himself to spiritual life.
(D) The rich man was trying to convey his innocence to the pundit.
(E) The rich man wanted the pundit to know that he was still a child at heart.
Ans : (C)


4. In the passage, why did the rich man say that he had only six feet of land, when he owned the whole orchard ?
(A) He did not want the pundit to know that the orchard belonged to him.
(B) The orchard was distributed equally among his sons and he had only six feet for himself.
(C) He believed that when he died, he would have only six feet of land that would truly be his.
(D) The land that was productive in the whole orchard was only six feet long.
(E) The orchard belonged to his ancestors and only six feet was rightfully his.
Ans : (C)

5. In the passage, what did the pundit imply by using the phrase trying to hide a pumpkin in a spoonful of rice ?
1. That only pumpkin and rice was served for dinner.
2. That the rich man was a liar.
3. That the rich man grew only pumpkins in his orchard.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Only 3
(D) Only 1 and 2
(E) Only 2 and 3
Ans : (B)

6. What did the rich man mean when he said that the orchard belonged to the ones who do not sleep a wink at night ?
(A) The orchard belonged to his sons who looked after it.
(B) The orchard belonged to the thieves who robbed from it.
(C) The owls looked after the orchard during the night.
(D) The orchard belonged to the neighbours.
(E) The orchard was donated to charity.
Ans : (B)

7. Why was the pundit hesitant to eat at the rich man’s house ?
(A) The pundit was not accustomed to having rich food.
(B) He felt that the rich man was proud and a two-faced human being.
(C) The rich man’s sons were not at home for lunch.
(D) He did not want to cause any trouble to the rich man’s wife.
(E) He felt that the rich man lied to him.
Ans : (E)

8. Why did the pundit feel that the rich man was lying ?
(A) The pundit was spying on the rich man.
(B) The pundit had inquired and learned about the rich man prior to the lunch.
(C) The rich man was avoiding certain questions asked by the pundit.
(D) The pundit found it hard to believe that the rich man never lied.
(E) The rich man had too many secrets.
Ans : (B)

9. The rich man claimed to have only one son because—
(A) His middle son was the only child who obeyed him.
(B) His eldest and youngest sons had long been married.
(C) He had adopted his other two sons.
(D) He did not want to introduce his eldest and youngest sons to the pundit.
(E) He only loved his second son, who was taking care of him.
Ans : (A)

10. Why did the pundit agree to eat at the rich man’s house ?
(A) The rich man claimed to have never told a lie.
(B) The rich man was an old friend of the pundit.
(C) The rich man could afford to treat the pundit.
(D) The rich man owed the pundit a favour.
(E) The pundit travelled a long distance and he was tired.
Ans : (A)

Directions—(Q. 11–13) Choose the word which is most nearly the same in meaning as the word printed in bold as used in the passage.

11. Tending
(A) Growing
(B) Supplying
(C) Watching
(D) Attending
(E) Contributing
Ans : (C)

12. Clarify
(A) Confirm
(B) Explain
(C) Simplify
(D) Describe
(E) Express
Ans : (A)

13. Barely
(A) Easily
(B) Hardly
(C) Scantily
(D) Poorly
(E) Completely
Ans : (B)

Directions—(Q. 14 and 15) Choose the word which is most opposite in meaning of the word printed in bold as used in the passage.

14. Tired
(A) Drained
(B) Sleepy
(C) Relaxed
(D) Energised
(E) Exhausted
Ans : (D)

15. Special
(A) Unique
(B) Exclusive
(C) Rare
(D) Important
(E) Ordinary
Ans : (E)

Directions—(Q. 16–25) Read each sentence to find out whether there is any grammatical error in it. The error, if any, will be in one part of the sentence. The letter of that part is the answer. If there is no error, the answer is (E) i.e. ‘No error’. (Ignore the errors of punctuation, if any.)

16. Jason sell his house and (A) / moved to a flat (B) / because it was (C) / expensive to maintain. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (A)

17. He accepted the offer (A) / because there was (B) / nothing more better (C) / coming his way. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (C)

18. Most villages were cut off (A) / from the rest of (B) / the country (C) / owing heavy floods. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (E)

19. The trainer revised (A) / his work thorough (B) / so that no one (C) / could find fault with it. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (B)

20. The band will play (A) / the National Anthem when (B) / the President arrives (C) / on the country. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (D)

21. If you are (A) / caught stealing (B) / in the super market, (C) / you will be fined. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (E)

22. They left very early (A) / for the station (B) / for fear that they might (C) / be held up on traffic. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (D)

23. By the time the (A) / fire engine arrived (B) / at the scene, (C) / the building had already collapsing. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (D)

24. Gloria and Fiona (A) / are always in (B) / a state of disagreement (C) / for one another. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (D)

25. The man which stole the camera (A) / hid it in his home (B) / until he could safely (C) / get it out of town. (D) No error (E)
Ans : (A)

Directions—(Q. 26–30) Each sentence below has a blank/s, each blank indicates that something has been omitted. Choose the word/s that best fit/s the meaning of the sentence as a whole.

26. Sunita had ……… been out of the hospital ……… she slipped and fractured her arm.
(A) hardly, when
(B) just, as
(C) well, and
(D) then, when
(E) also, as
Ans : (A)

27. During the strike, all work at the factory came to a ……… .
(A) stoppage
(B) close
(C) decline
(D) end
(E) halt
Ans : (E)

28. A parable is a story with a moral, the story being ……… of the underlying moral.
(A) familiar
(B) identical
(C) irrelevant
(D) illustrative
(E) summary
Ans : (E)

29. Jason promised to ……… an attempt to get better grades this year.
(A) give
(B) make
(C) take
(D) keep
(E) have
Ans : (B)

30. The teacher read ………… the children the story of the ‘Titanic’.
(A) also
(B) to
(C) again
(D) well
(E) by
Ans : (D)

Directions—(Q. 31–35) In each question below, four words printed in bold type are given. These are lettered (A), (B), (C) and (D). One of these words printed in bold may either be wrongly spelt or inappropriate in the context of the sentence. Find out the word that is inappropriate or wrongly spelt, if any. The letter of that word is your answer. If all the words printed in bold are correctly spelt and appropriate in the context of the sentence then mark (E) i.e. ‘All correct’ as your answer.

31. The Principle (A) insisted that the teachers (B) set an example (C) for the students. (D) All correct (E)
Ans : (A)

32. All drivers (A) must carry (B) their lisense (C) and insurance (D) papers. All correct (E)
Ans : (C)

33. Children (A) normally respond (B) to praise (C) and encoragement. (D) All correct (E)
Ans : (D)

34. Modern (A) farm implements (B) have revolusionised (C) the agricultural industry. (D) All correct (E)
Ans : (C)

35. The mountain (A) range (B) has many high peaks (C) and deep canyones. (D) All correct (E)
Ans : (E)

Directions—(Q. 36–40) Rearrange the following six sentences 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 in the proper sequence to form a meaningful paragraph; then answer the questions given below them—
1. O-nami was very strong and knew the art of wrestling. In his private spells he defeated even his teacher, but in public he was so timid, that his own pupils defeated him.
2. The teacher advised him saying “Your name means Great Waves, imagine that you are huge waves sweeping everything before you, swallowing everything in your path. Do this and you will be the greatest wrestler in the country.”
3. O-nami soon registered for a wrestling match and won. After that, no one in Japan was able to defeat him.
4. In the early days of the Meiji era there lived a well-known wrestler called O-nami, Great Waves.
5. In the days that followed, O-nami meditated on the advice given by the Zen master.
6. O-nami felt he should go to a Zen master for help. He approached Hakuju a wandering teacher and told him of his great trouble.

36. Which of the following should be the SECOND sentence after the rearrangement ?
(A) 1
(B) 4
(C) 6
(D) 2
(E) 5
Ans : (A)

37. Which of the following should be the FIRST sentence after the rearrangement ?
(A) 5
(B) 2
(C) 4
(D) 3
(E) 6
Ans : (C)

38. Which of the following should be the FIFTH sentence after the rearrangement ?
(A) 5
(B) 4
(C) 2
(D) 3
(E) 6
Ans : (A)

39. Which of the following should be the SIXTH (LAST) sentence after the rearrangement ?
(A) 1
(B) 4
(C) 6
(D) 5
(E) 3
Ans : (E)

40. Which of the following should be the FOURTH sentence after the rearrangement ?
(A) 4
(B) 6
(C) 2
(D) 5
(E) 3
Ans : (C)

Directions—(Q. 41–50) In the following passage, there are blanks, each of which has been numbered. These numbers are printed below the passage and against each, five words are suggested, one of which fits the blank appropriately. Find out the appropriate word in each case.

There was once a poet who fell upon such hard times that he was no longer able to …(41)… his family. Hearing that the king greatly encouraged talent and was famed for his generosity, the poet set off for the Royal Palace. When brought…(42)… the king, he …(43)…. low and requested permission to recite a poem. On hearing his recitation, the king was well pleased and asked him to name his reward.

The poet, …(44)… to a chessboard before the king, said, “your highness, if you place just one grain of rice on the first square of this chess-board, and double it for every square, I will consider myself well …(45)…” “Are you sure ?” asked the king, greatly …(46)…. “Just grains of rice, not gold” ? “Yes, your highness,’’ affirmed the poet. “So it shall be” ordered the king. His courtiers started …(47)… the grain on the chess-board. One grain on the first square, two on the second, four on the third, …(48)… on the fourth and so no. By the time they reached the tenth square they had to place five hundred and twelve grains of rice. The number rose to lakhs on the twentieth square. When they …(49)…. the half way mark, the grain count was over hundred crores ! Soon the count …(50)… to lakhs of crores and eventually the helpless king had to hand over his entire kingdom to the clever poet. And it all began with just one grain of rice.

41. (A) surrender
(B) fight
(C) care
(D) feed
(E) defend
Ans : (D)

42. (A) before
(B) following
(C) after
(D) by
(E) aside
Ans : (A)

43. (A) hunched
(B) knelt
(C) fell
(D) stand
(E) bowed
Ans : (E)

44. (A) talking
(B) across
(C) pointing
(D) eyeing
(E) looking
Ans : (C)

45. (A) deserved
(B) rewarded
(C) blessed
(D) fortunate
(E) equipped
Ans : (E)

46. (A) surprised
(B) vigilant
(C) understanding
(D) happy
(E) honoured
Ans : (A)

47. (A) sampling
(B) hiding
(C) finding
(D) placing
(E) moving
Ans : (D)

48. (A) seven
(B) eight
(C) three
(D) five
(E) six
Ans : (B)

49. (A) entered
(B) reached
(C) revised
(D) arrived
(E) interrupted
Ans : (B)

50. (A) justified
(B) enlarged
(C) risen
(D) improved
(E) increased
Ans : (C)