English Language and Hindi Language: Structure and Context
What the language section tests
The Mains paper offers English Language or Hindi Language, each with 40 questions for 40 marks. Both versions test reading comprehension, cloze test, error detection, sentence rearrangement, fillers and vocabulary. The Hindi paper uses गद्यांश, रिक्त स्थान, वाक्य त्रुटि and वाक्य पुनर्व्यवस्था; the English paper uses RC, cloze, para jumbles, error spotting and word usage. The skill is the same: identify structure and context, not isolated words.
Core rules
- For reading comprehension, locate the line that answers each question. Distinguish stated fact from inference and from the author's tone.
- In cloze tests, read the whole sentence for connectors and collocations. 'Although' signals contrast; 'therefore' signals result.
- Error detection: check subject-verb agreement, tense consistency, parallelism, articles, prepositions and pronouns.
- Para jumbles: find the opening sentence with no unexplained pronoun, then follow pronouns and connectors.
- Fillers: a grammatically correct option can still be wrong if it breaks the paragraph's logic.
Worked example
Find the error: 'The number of candidates appearing for the examination have increased.' The subject is 'the number', which is singular, so the verb must be 'has increased'. 'A number of candidates' would take a plural verb. This subject-verb trap is common.
Traps that cost marks
Choosing a synonym that ignores context; treating a true statement as the main idea; missing negative or contrast words; and in Hindi, ignoring लिंग, वचन and कारक agreement. Do not let one long RC passage consume the section.