Directions:(1-5) Choose the most appropriate option to fill in the blanks:

1.On the morning of the tenth day after _(1)_ Athens, Miltiades drew up his army in order of battle. He was obliged to perilously weaken his center in order to _(2)_ the whole of the Persian army, so as to avoid the danger of being outflanked and surrounded. The Greeks began the battle by a _(3)_ attack along the whole line, endeavoring to close in a hand-to-hand conflict as soon as possible, so as to avoid the deadly arrows of the Persians, and to take the advantage of their heavier arms. The Persians were greatly _(4)_ when they saw this little band rushing against them with such a headlong dash, and thought that the Greeks must have been seized with madness. The Persian general had _(5)_ his forces at the center, and at this part of the battle-field the fiery onset of Greeks was checked by mere weight of numbers. But at length the mighty Persian force moved irresistibly forward, forcing the Greeks slowly backward, fighting, dying, but never yielding. Soon the Greek army was cut in two, and the Persians marched proudly onward to assured victory.

Ans:3
Among the given choices, option c fits the blank in the best possible manner. Options a, b, d and e does make the sentence grammatically incorrect.

2.On the morning of the tenth day after _(1)_ Athens, Miltiades drew up his army in order of battle. He was obliged to perilously weaken his center in order to _(2)_ the whole of the Persian army, so as to avoid the danger of being outflanked and surrounded. The Greeks began the battle by a _(3)_ attack along the whole line, endeavoring to close in a hand-to-hand conflict as soon as possible, so as to avoid the deadly arrows of the Persians, and to take the advantage of their heavier arms. The Persians were greatly _(4)_ when they saw this little band rushing against them with such a headlong dash, and thought that the Greeks must have been seized with madness. The Persian general had _(5)_ his forces at the center, and at this part of the battle-field the fiery onset of Greeks was checked by mere weight of numbers. But at length the mighty Persian force moved irresistibly forward, forcing the Greeks slowly backward, fighting, dying, but never yielding. Soon the Greek army was cut in two, and the Persians marched proudly onward to assured victory.

Ans:4
From the context of the sentence, it can be inferred that Miltiades was not concerned with conquering or defeating Persian army but he was concerned about how to face their strong army. Only option c manages to convey this meaning.

3.On the morning of the tenth day after _(1)_ Athens, Miltiades drew up his army in order of battle. He was obliged to perilously weaken his center in order to _(2)_ the whole of the Persian army, so as to avoid the danger of being outflanked and surrounded. The Greeks began the battle by a _(3)_ attack along the whole line, endeavoring to close in a hand-to-hand conflict as soon as possible, so as to avoid the deadly arrows of the Persians, and to take the advantage of their heavier arms. The Persians were greatly _(4)_ when they saw this little band rushing against them with such a headlong dash, and thought that the Greeks must have been seized with madness. The Persian general had _(5)_ his forces at the center, and at this part of the battle-field the fiery onset of Greeks was checked by mere weight of numbers. But at length the mighty Persian force moved irresistibly forward, forcing the Greeks slowly backward, fighting, dying, but never yielding. Soon the Greek army was cut in two, and the Persians marched proudly onward to assured victory.

Ans:5
Only furious fits the context of the sentence. Hence option e is correct.

4.On the morning of the tenth day after _(1)_ Athens, Miltiades drew up his army in order of battle. He was obliged to perilously weaken his center in order to _(2)_ the whole of the Persian army, so as to avoid the danger of being outflanked and surrounded. The Greeks began the battle by a _(3)_ attack along the whole line, endeavoring to close in a hand-to-hand conflict as soon as possible, so as to avoid the deadly arrows of the Persians, and to take the advantage of their heavier arms. The Persians were greatly _(4)_ when they saw this little band rushing against them with such a headlong dash, and thought that the Greeks must have been seized with madness. The Persian general had _(5)_ his forces at the center, and at this part of the battle-field the fiery onset of Greeks was checked by mere weight of numbers. But at length the mighty Persian force moved irresistibly forward, forcing the Greeks slowly backward, fighting, dying, but never yielding. Soon the Greek army was cut in two, and the Persians marched proudly onward to assured victory.

Ans:1
From the tone of the sentence, we can infer that the Persians were surprised that Greeks had the courage to take such an action. Astonished means same as surprised. Hence option a is correct.

5.On the morning of the tenth day after _(6)_ Athens, Miltiades drew up his army in order of battle. He was obliged to perilously weaken his center in order to _(7)_ the whole of the Persian army, so as to avoid the danger of being outflanked and surrounded. The Greeks began the battle by a _(8)_ attack along the whole line, endeavoring to close in a hand-to-hand conflict as soon as possible, so as to avoid the deadly arrows of the Persians, and to take the advantage of their heavier arms. The Persians were greatly _(9)_ when they saw this little band rushing against them with such a headlong dash, and thought that the Greeks must have been seized with madness. The Persian general had _(10)_ his forces at the center, and at this part of the battle-field the fiery onset of Greeks was checked by mere weight of numbers. But at length the mighty Persian force moved irresistibly forward, forcing the Greeks slowly backward, fighting, dying, but never yielding. Soon the Greek army was cut in two, and the Persians marched proudly onward to assured victory.

Ans:2
Among the given choices, only ‘concentrated’ fits the context of the sentence. Hence option B is correct.

Directions:(6-10) Choose the most appropriate option to fill in the blanks:

6.The literary mind is strengthened and nurtured, is influenced and mastered, by the __(6)__ riches of literature. In the last century the strongest thinkers in our language were Englishmen, and not only the traditional but the __(7)__ influences on our thinkers and artists were British. This may account for one negative characteristic of American literature – its lack of American quality. True, our records must reflect our life. Our poets, __(8)__ of nightingales and Persian gardens, have not altogether forgotten the mocking-bird and the woods of Maine. Fiction, written by inhabitants of New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, does tell us something of the ways of life in those mighty commonwealths, just as English fiction written by Lancashire men about Lancashire people is __(9)__ with the dialect, the local habits and scenery of that county. But wherever an English-speaking man of imagination may dwell, in Dorset or Calcutta or Indianapolis, he is subject to the strong arm of the empire of English literature; he cannot escape it; it tears him out of his __(10)__ bed and makes a happy slave of him. He is assigned to the department of the service for which his gifts qualify him, and his special education is undertaken by drill-masters and captains who hail from provinces far from his birthplace.

Ans:4
From the context, we can infer that the missing word is an adjective. The adjective describes English literature that influences writers from different countries and backgrounds. The only adjective that can be used with “riches of literature” is accumulated. Hence, option D.

7.The literary mind is strengthened and nurtured, is influenced and mastered, by the __(6)__ riches of literature. In the last century the strongest thinkers in our language were Englishmen, and not only the traditional but the __(7)__ influences on our thinkers and artists were British. This may account for one negative characteristic of American literature – its lack of American quality. True, our records must reflect our life. Our poets, __(8)__ of nightingales and Persian gardens, have not altogether forgotten the mocking-bird and the woods of Maine. Fiction, written by inhabitants of New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, does tell us something of the ways of life in those mighty commonwealths, just as English fiction written by Lancashire men about Lancashire people is __(9)__ with the dialect, the local habits and scenery of that county. But wherever an English-speaking man of imagination may dwell, in Dorset or Calcutta or Indianapolis, he is subject to the strong arm of the empire of English literature; he cannot escape it; it tears him out of his __(10)__ bed and makes a happy slave of him. He is assigned to the department of the service for which his gifts qualify him, and his special education is undertaken by drill-masters and captains who hail from provinces far from his birthplace.

Ans:2
From the context, we can infer that the missing word is an antonym of “traditional”. Hence, option B.

8.The literary mind is strengthened and nurtured, is influenced and mastered, by the __(6)__ riches of literature. In the last century the strongest thinkers in our language were Englishmen, and not only the traditional but the __(7)__ influences on our thinkers and artists were British. This may account for one negative characteristic of American literature – its lack of American quality. True, our records must reflect our life. Our poets, __(8)__ of nightingales and Persian gardens, have not altogether forgotten the mocking-bird and the woods of Maine. Fiction, written by inhabitants of New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, does tell us something of the ways of life in those mighty commonwealths, just as English fiction written by Lancashire men about Lancashire people is __(9)__ with the dialect, the local habits and scenery of that county. But wherever an English-speaking man of imagination may dwell, in Dorset or Calcutta or Indianapolis, he is subject to the strong arm of the empire of English literature; he cannot escape it; it tears him out of his __(10)__ bed and makes a happy slave of him. He is assigned to the department of the service for which his gifts qualify him, and his special education is undertaken by drill-masters and captains who hail from provinces far from his birthplace.

Ans:1
From the context, we can infer that the missing word is a verb. Hence, we can eliminate options C and D. Between the remaining options, only enamored can be followed by the preposition “of”. Hence, option A.

9.The literary mind is strengthened and nurtured, is influenced and mastered, by the __(6)__ riches of literature. In the last century the strongest thinkers in our language were Englishmen, and not only the traditional but the __(7)__ influences on our thinkers and artists were British. This may account for one negative characteristic of American literature – its lack of American quality. True, our records must reflect our life. Our poets, __(8)__ of nightingales and Persian gardens, have not altogether forgotten the mocking-bird and the woods of Maine. Fiction, written by inhabitants of New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, does tell us something of the ways of life in those mighty commonwealths, just as English fiction written by Lancashire men about Lancashire people is __(9)__ with the dialect, the local habits and scenery of that county. But wherever an English-speaking man of imagination may dwell, in Dorset or Calcutta or Indianapolis, he is subject to the strong arm of the empire of English literature; he cannot escape it; it tears him out of his __(10)__ bed and makes a happy slave of him. He is assigned to the department of the service for which his gifts qualify him, and his special education is undertaken by drill-masters and captains who hail from provinces far from his birthplace.

Ans:1
From the context, we can infer that the missing word is a verb in the past tense. Hence, we can eliminate options D and E. The missing word means filled with. Hence, we can eliminate option C. Of the two remaining options, only option A goes with the preposition with. Hence, option A.

10.The literary mind is strengthened and nurtured, is influenced and mastered, by the __(6)__ riches of literature. In the last century the strongest thinkers in our language were Englishmen, and not only the traditional but the __(7)__ influences on our thinkers and artists were British. This may account for one negative characteristic of American literature – its lack of American quality. True, our records must reflect our life. Our poets, __(8)__ of nightingales and Persian gardens, have not altogether forgotten the mocking-bird and the woods of Maine. Fiction, written by inhabitants of New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, does tell us something of the ways of life in those mighty commonwealths, just as English fiction written by Lancashire men about Lancashire people is __(9)__ with the dialect, the local habits and scenery of that county. But wherever an English-speaking man of imagination may dwell, in Dorset or Calcutta or Indianapolis, he is subject to the strong arm of the empire of English literature; he cannot escape it; it tears him out of his __(10)__ bed and makes a happy slave of him. He is assigned to the department of the service for which his gifts qualify him, and his special education is undertaken by drill-masters and captains who hail from provinces far from his birthplace.

Ans:4
From the context, we can infer that the missing word is an adjective that describes the origins of different writers. From the paragraph, we can infer that the word means either remote or unknown. Hence, option D.

1 thought on “Cloze Test in English For Competitive Exams”

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