Indian Overseas Bank Clerk Exam (English Language) Paper (Held on 3-10-2010)

Indian Overseas Bank

Clerk Exam (English Language) Paper
(Held on 2-3-2008)

Directions—(Q. 1–15) Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions. There was a famous temple on a high hill in Assam. The priest of this temple was widely respected and was known to be a great scholar. When he grew old, he started searching for a younger priest who could take charge of the temple after his death. But, much to his dismay, he could not find any suitable person. As the priest lay on his deathbed, he called the trustee of the temple and told him, “After my death, make sure that only a ‘human being’ replaces me as the priest of this temple”. As soon as he said these words, he died. Information travelled far and wide that the head priest of the famous temple had died and now there was an urgent need for a replacement. A day was set for the selection of the successor. That day, starting at dawn, aspirants started trekking the steep and torturous climb to the temple. The route to the temple was indeed difficult; it was full of thorns, and stones. By the time most people managed to reach the temple, they had received minor cuts and bruises on their feet and hands.

After breakfast, the selection process started. The trustee asked all the aspirants to recite difficult shlokas, or verses from the sacred texts, and explain various procedures of priesthood. By afternoon, as the selection process was about to end, one young man walked slowly into the temple. The trustee noticed him and said, “Young man, you are very late. What took you so long ? And what happened to your clothes, why are they torn ? Your feet and hands are bleeding so badly.” The man replied, “I know sir, I am late, so I will not participate in the competition. If I have your permission, I will just get my wounds treated, rest for a while and then go back to my village.” But the trustee was curious to know about this man. He asked again, “But how did you manage to hurt yourself so badly, did you not follow the same route as the others ?” “Yes sir, I did,” replied the man, “But I thought I must remove the thorns and other sharp, stones from the path so that when people come to pray in this temple they must not get hurt. That is why I got late and that is how I hurt myself. I apologize for the delay, but as I said, I know I am late and hence I don’t wish to participate in the competition. It will not be fair to the others if I participated.” Hearing this, the trustee smiled and said, “Congratulations, you have been chosen. I am sure that when our noble priest was dying and he said that he wanted a “human being” to be his successor, he meant that he wanted someone like you. “This statement infuriated the other participants. “What do you mean ?” they demanded.

“Are we not humans ? This man just said that he did not wish to participate. How can you choose him as he has not gone through any of the tests ?” The trustee replied, “Our old priest used to say that even animals know how to watch for their self interest; they know how to avoid danger, search food and so on. Only a ‘human being’ knows how to watch for other people’s interests and well being. All of you climbed the same torturous path. But only this man thought about the others and cleared the path so that no one would get hurt. By this definition, only he qualifies as a ‘human being’ and hence only he should be the successor of the great old priest.” 

1. What happened immediately after the old priest died ?(A) The trustee shut the temple and started mourning for the old priest
(B) The trustee took the old priest’s position and appointed a younger trustee
(C) Word spread that there was an urgent need for the old priest’s successor
(D) Everyone started searching for younger priests
(E) Everyone refused to become the old priest’s successor
Ans : (C)

2. Why was the old priest looking for a younger priest ?(A) So that the younger priest became his successor
(B) So that the old priest had a student
(C) So that the younger priest searched for a successor
(D) Because in those days younger priests were more educated than older priests
(E) Because the trustee wanted a younger priest to take care of the temple
Ans : (E)

3. Why was the young man late for the competition ?(A) He had forgotten his way and thus had taken a longer route to the temple
(B) He was removing all the stones and thorns from the path which led to the temple
(C) He was giving water to the other participants when they were on their way to the temple
(D) He had some household chores to complete
(E) He had forgotten all about the competition in the morning
Ans : (B)

4. What was the trustee’s decision when the young man gave his explanation for being late ?(A) He immediately selected the young man as the successor to the old priest
(B) He scolded him and said that he should have been careful
(C) He asked the young man to go and get his wounds treated
(D) He asked the other participants to leave the temple premises
(E) He gave a huge sum of money to the young man
Ans : (A)

5. What was the old priest’s definition of a ‘human being’ ?(A) Those who succeed in life and earn a lot of money are human beings
(B) Those who watch for other people’s interests and well being are human beings
(C) Those who put stones and thorns in other people’s path are human beings
(D) Those who know how to make other people laugh are human beings
(E) Those who know how to recite shlokas are human beings
Ans : (B)
6. How did the other participants react to the trustee’s decision ?(A) They took it sportingly and learnt a lesson from the incident
(B) They congratulated the trustee for being so wise and fair
(C) They got angry and objected to the trustee's decision
(D) They decided to get even with the trustee and the young man
(E) They cursed the trustee and stomped out of the temple premises
Ans : (C)
7. What did the trustee ask during the selection process ?(A) He asked the aspirants to recite shlokas and verses from sacred texts
(B) He asked the aspirants to explain the various procedures of priesthood
(C) He asked the aspirants to give an introduction of themselves
(D) He asked the aspirants to tell him the qualities of an ideal priest
(E) Both (A) and (B)
Ans : (E)
8. What would be an appropriate title for this passage ?(A) The famous temple
(B) The old priest
(C) The torturous path
(D) The true successor
(E) The unjust trustee
Ans : (D)
9. Why did the young man say that he didn't wish to participate in the competition ?(A) He was scared of losing the competition
(B) He was not sure about the duties of priesthood
(C) His parents forbade him from becoming a priest
(D) He wanted to become the priest of some other temple
(E) He was late and did not want to be unfair to others
Ans : (E)
10. When did the aspirants get cuts and bruises on their hands and feet ?(A) While they were reciting difficult shlokas and verses
(B) While they were going through the selection process
(C) While they were talking about the old priest
(D) While they were climbing the torturous path that led to the temple
(E) While the trustee was torturing them during the selection process
Ans : (D)

Directions —(Q. 11–13) Choose the word / group of words which is most similar in the meaning to the word / group of words printed in bold as used in the passage.

11. Qualifies(A) Is trained in
(B) Meets the criteria
(C) Excels in
(D) Is impressive
(E) Is dynamic
Ans : (B)

12. Noticed(A) Recognised
(B) Liked
(C) Saw
(D) Informed
(E) Accepted
Ans : (C)

13. Demanded(A) Claimed
(B) Questioned
(C) Stated
(D) Requested
(E) Inquired
Ans : (B)

Directions —(Q. 14–15) Choose the word / group of words which is most similar in the meaning to the word / group of words printed in bold as used in the passage.

14. Minor(A) Chief
(B) Main
(C) Complete
(D) Distinct
(E) Severe
Ans : (E)

15. Torturous(A) Trouble-free
(B) Liberating
(C) Exciting
(D) Demanding
(E) Boring
Ans : (A)

Directions (Q. 16–25)—Read each sentence to find out whether there is any grammatical error or idiomatic 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). (Ignore errors of punctuation if any.)

16. They did not follow the (A) / directions properly so (B) / they had difficult (C) / in reaching my house. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (C)

17. The group members (A) / had to suffer a (B) / lot of problems as (C) / their leader were biased. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (D)

18. He was supposed (A) / to pick them (B) / up from the airport (C) / but he reaches late. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (D)

19. He gained admission (A) / to one of the (B) / best commerce colleges (C) / in the city. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (B)

20. His friends tried (A) / to convince him to (B) / participate in the competition (C) / but he refused. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (E)

21. The judges were so (A) / impressed by her perform (B) / that they gave her (C) / a standing ovation. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (B)

22. They win the (A) / match but they (B) / did not play (C) / a fair game. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (A)

23. The servant not only (A) / robbed them house (B) / but also betrayed (C) / their trust. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (B)

24. He have to (A) / leave on a very (B) / short notice as (C) / it was an emergency. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (A)

25. No one is allowed to go (A) / out of the hostel after 9 p.m. (B) / but still some students (C) / sneaks out last night. (D) No Error (E)
Ans : (D)

Directions —(Q. 26–30) In each question below, four words print 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.

26. All the officers(A) were asked
(B) to report to duty
(C) at sharp
(D) 7 a.m. All
Correct (E)
Ans : (E)

27. She fell ill due(A) to anxiety just
(B) one week
(C) before the ecsam.
(D) All  Correct (E)
Ans : (D)

28. They requested(A) everyone to take their
(B) seats
(C) and maintain silence.
(D) All Correct (E)
Ans : (C)

29. They spoke(A) in such a laud
(B) voice that even their neighbours
(C) could hear them.
(D) All Correct (E)
Ans : (B)

30. Manish accused(A) his rival
(B) of steeling
(C) his designs.
(D) All Correct (E)
Ans : (C)

Directions —(Q. 31–35) Rearrange the following 6 sentences (a), (b), (c), (d), (e) and (f) in proper sequence to form a meaningful paragraph then answer the questions given below them. (a) “I can’t bear it !” he screamed, “I’II pay the fine.”
(b) After he had received a few strokes he began to turn and twist to avoid the whip.
(c) So he paid the fine and was let off, but he became the laughing-stock of the city for having taken three punishments for one crime.
(d) A man was caught stealing a bag of onions and was taken to the court where the judge gave him a choice of three punishments : eat the stolen onions in one sitting; submit to a hundred lashes of the whip or pay a fine.
(e) “I can’t eat the onions so give me the lashes instead,” he said.
(f) The man said he would eat the onions and began confidently, but after eating a few, his eyes began to burn, his nose started running and his mouth felt as if it was on fire.

31. Which of the following should be the FIFTH sentence in the rearrangement ?(A) d
(B) b
(C) a
(D) f
(E) e
Ans : (C)

32. Which of the following should be the FIRST sentence in the rearrangement ?(A) d
(B) b
(C) c
(D) a
(E) f
Ans : (A)

33. Which of the following should be the LAST (SIXTH) sentence in the rearrangement? (A) b
(B) e
(C) d
(D) a
(E) c
Ans : (E)

34. Which of the following should be the FOURTH sentence in the rearrangement? (A) a
(B) c
(C) b
(D) f
(E) d
Ans : (B)

35. Which of the following should be the SECOND sentence in the rearrangement?(A) b
(B) f
(C) d
(D) e
(E) a
Ans : (B)

Directions —(Q. 36–40) Each sentence below has a blank/s, each blank indicating that something has been omitted. Choose the word/s that best fit/s the meaning of the sentence as a whole.

36. We......decided......buy a new car.(A) have, to
(B) has, is
(C) are, in
(D) is, to
(E) can, are
Ans : (A)

37. Rohan......asleep while watching the film.(A) is
(B) found
(C) fall
(D) fell
(E) find
Ans : (D)

38. Priti passed her exams with .........colours.(A) falling
(B) seeing
(C) different
(D) flying
(E) single
Ans : (D)

39. She translated an English ......... passage to Hindi without using a.........(A) meaning
(B) dictionary
(C) symbols
(D) language
(E) adjective
Ans : (B)

40. Tina finds it difficult to talk to people as she............introvert.(A) was a
(B) can the
(C) is an
(D) being a
(E) thought an
Ans : (C)