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com
Presents

Verbal Ability
for

CAT 2009
Sentence Correction
Complete the following sentence…

 Despite the supposedly primitive lifestyle,

Australian aborigines developed the
boomerang, a ________ and _________
hunting tool that maximizes gain with
minimum effort.
(1) ponderous…expensive
(2) clean….dynamic
(3) dangerous….formidable
(4) sophisticated….efficient
(5) useful….attractive
Method: Steps to follow
 What are the ideas in the sentence?

 Think of a word that makes sense in the blank

 Scan the choices

 Reread the word in the blank

 Compare if the word expected by you matches

what you arrived at
Important Note:

Do NOT start by substituting the

choices in the given statement
Types of Sentences
 These are similar to types of paragraphs
and also fewer in number
 Cause and effect

 Reiteration or Restatement/Parallelism

 Similarity or support

 Contrast
 Cause and Effect
 Sentences are of
type:

A B therefore A
because B
 B, Hence A  B causes A

 A as a result of B  A due to B

 B thus A  B, consequently A

 B leading to A  Because of B,A

Cause and Effect
 A is the result of the action B

 Humans have destroyed the forest cover and

hence ensued global warming

 A -> Global Warming was caused due to

 B -> Destruction of forest cover
Example
 Because of the power and recognition that
go with public office, incumbent politicians
have enormous____________ when waging
election campaigns against outside
challengers.
(1) difficulties
(2) expenses
(3) advantages
(4) budgets
(5) concerns
Solution
 Because of the power and recognition that
go with public office, incumbent politicians
have enormous_advantages_ when waging
election campaigns against outside
challengers.
(1) difficulties
(2) expenses
(3) advantages
(4) budgets
(5) concerns
Reiteration or Restatement/Parallelism

These sentences have 2 ideas.

One idea restates or clarifies the other.

 A in fact B  A namely B
 A in other words B  A surely B
 A and B  A that is B
 A likewise B

Here A and B are similar in meaning,

sometimes even synonyms.
Example
 He was the most ______ person we had
ever met, in fact his magnanimity knew
no limits.

 Magnanimous means being generous or

noble.
 So, the blank can be filled with words like
generous, noble, charitable, benevolent
etc…
Example
 Biologists have often gained special insights
by examining the life forms that develop in
_________ regions, as illustrated by Darwin’s
studies of evolution among the finches on
certain __________ Pacific islands.
(1) arid … lush
(2) harsh … tropical
(3) typical … unusual
(4) crowded …deserted
(5) isolated … remote
Solution
 The words “as illustrated by” indicates that Darwin’s
study supports that of the biologists .

 So, the words need to support each other.

(1) arid … lush  Antonyms
(2) harsh … tropical  this might be possible
(3) typical … unusual  Not in context
(4) crowded …deserted  Antonyms
(5) isolated … remote  isolated must imply remote-
ness

 Answer is (5)
Similarity or Support
 The sentences are similar to parallelism type.

 It is alright to not be able to distinguish

between the previous type and this type as
the logic remains the same.

 CAT does not ask you which type of sentence

a particular sentence is 
Similarity or Support
 Sentences of this type have the words:

A likewise B
 Just as A, similarly B
 A like B
 For instance
 Furthermore
 As , same, such as, also
 Resemblance
Example
 Just as television surpassed radio, it
seems internet will eventually
________ television.

1. Invigorate
2. Alter
3. Eliminate
4. Supplant
Solution
 “Just as” implies similarity
 Look for synonym of/similar word to the word
“surpass”
 Here,
 Invigorate -> Antonym
 Alter -> Similar but not quite
 Eliminate -> possible answer – eliminate means to remove
 Supplant -> possible answer – supplant means to replace

 As eliminate is a very drastic word, supplant

is the more appropriate answer.
 Answer is (4)
Contrast
 Opposite of the previous type
 Sentences show differences/contrast between two
ideas
 Sentences have the
words:

 Although  On the other hand

 Despite  Surprisingly
 In spite of  Unlike
 However  In contrast
 Against  Rather
 As opposed to  Even though
Example
 In a large group of people consisting of strangers,
Aish often seemed ____ and aloof, although among
her friends. She was quite ____.

 Reticent – Convival
 Gregarious - Outgoing
 Detrimental - Multifarous
 Unattainable - Taciturn
Solution
 The words need to indicate opposite
behaviour
 Reticent = silent convivial = friendly
 Gregarious = talkative Outgoing =
extrovert
 Detrimental = causing downfall of
Multifarious = diverse
 Unattainable = unreachable Taciturn =
silent

 Clearly, only option 1 is right.

How do you solve this?
 Despite the supposedly primitive lifestyle, Australian
aborigines developed the boomerang, a ________
and _________ hunting tool that maximizes gain with
minimum effort.

(1) ponderous…expensive
(2) clean….dynamic
(3) dangerous….formidable
(4) sophisticated….efficient
(5) useful….attractive
How do you solve this?
 Despite implies opposite or contrast . So, one word needs to be
opposite of “primitive”.
 “that maximizes gain with minimum effort” implies the other
word must be the word meaning the same.

 Primitive X Modern

 That maximizes gain with minimum effort = efficient

 Looking for similar words to modern and efficient.

(1) ponderous…expensive
(2) clean….dynamic
(3) dangerous….formidable
(4) sophisticated….efficient
(5) useful….attractive
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