ERA Cadre Civil Servant Exam key terms

The total market value of all final goods and services produced within a country's borders in a given period, used as the main measure of national economic size and growth.

A sustained rise in the general price level of goods and services, which reduces the purchasing power of money and affects wages, budgets, and interest rates.

The shortfall that occurs when a government's total expenditure exceeds its total revenue in a financial year, usually financed through borrowing.

Two sentence patterns: in active voice the subject performs the action, while in passive voice the subject receives it, formed with a form of 'be' plus past participle.

The grammar rule that a verb must match its subject in number and person, so a singular subject takes a singular verb and a plural subject takes a plural verb.

Two ways of reporting speech: direct speech quotes the speaker's exact words in quotation marks, while indirect speech reports the meaning and shifts tense and pronouns.

The skill of reading a passage and answering questions about its main idea, supporting details, inferences, vocabulary in context, and the author's tone or purpose.

A fixed expression whose meaning cannot be understood from its individual words, such as 'break the ice', commonly tested in vocabulary and usage sections.

An instruction entered in a spreadsheet cell, beginning with an equals sign, that calculates a value from numbers, cell references, or built-in functions such as SUM.

The address of a spreadsheet cell, such as A1, made of its column letter and row number; references can be relative, absolute with dollar signs, or mixed.

Application software for creating and editing text documents, offering formatting, tables, spell check, headers, footers, and mail merge features.

A malicious program that attaches itself to files or programs and spreads when they are run, potentially damaging data or disrupting system operation.

Hardware or software that monitors and filters incoming and outgoing network traffic according to security rules, blocking unauthorized access to a computer or network.

A written set of rules and standards that guides the behaviour of public servants, covering integrity, impartiality, confidentiality, and avoidance of conflicts of interest.

A situation where a public official's private interests could improperly influence official decisions, requiring disclosure, recusal, or divestment to protect public trust.

The quality of being honest, consistent, and morally upright in public dealings, so that officials act on merit and resist corruption, bribery, and improper influence.

The obligation of public officials to answer for their decisions and use of resources, and to accept responsibility or sanctions for failures and misconduct.

Openness in government decision-making and spending, so that citizens can access information about policies, budgets, and procedures and hold officials to account.

The administrative structure of government, organized by hierarchy, written rules, defined duties, and formal records, which enables consistent implementation but can also slow action.

The number of subordinates who report directly to one supervisor; a wide span means less close supervision, while a narrow span creates taller hierarchies.

The assignment of authority and responsibility by a superior to a subordinate for specific tasks, while the superior remains accountable for results.

A management approach in which supervisors and subordinates jointly set measurable goals, then review performance against those agreed targets.

A periodic, structured assessment of an employee's work against set standards, used for feedback, training needs, promotion, and other personnel decisions.

The layered construction of a road above the subgrade, typically including surface course, base course, and sub-base, designed to spread traffic loads.

The natural or compacted soil layer beneath a road pavement that supports the overlying layers and must have adequate strength and drainage.

A pavement whose layers deform under load and transmit it gradually downward, typically built with bituminous surface courses over granular base layers.

A pavement made of cement concrete slabs that carry load mainly by their own bending strength, requiring joints to control cracking and thermal movement.

A penetration test value comparing a soil's resistance to that of crushed stone, used to assess subgrade strength and design pavement thickness.

A dark, sticky binder derived from petroleum refining, used in asphalt mixes and surface treatments to bind aggregates and provide waterproofing.

The process of selecting and proportioning aggregate, bitumen, and filler to produce a mix with adequate stability, durability, workability, and void content.

The mechanical densification of soil or asphalt by removing air voids, increasing strength and reducing settlement and permeability.

A numerical rating from 0 to 100 that expresses pavement surface condition based on the type, severity, and extent of observed distresses.

Planned, low-cost treatments applied to a road in good condition to slow deterioration and extend service life, such as crack sealing and surface sealing.

A document listing work items with descriptions, units, and estimated quantities, used to obtain priced bids and to measure and certify work done.

A formal invitation for suppliers or contractors to submit priced offers for specified goods, works, or services, evaluated against stated criteria.

A bank guarantee or bond furnished by a contractor to secure proper performance of the contract, callable if the contractor defaults.

Gear such as helmets, boots, gloves, and high-visibility vests worn to protect workers from hazards; it is the last line of defence after elimination and engineering controls.

A systematic process of identifying hazards, evaluating the likelihood and severity of harm, and deciding controls to reduce risk to acceptable levels.

A study that predicts the likely environmental effects of a proposed project and identifies mitigation measures before approval is granted.