English Language and Verbal Reasoning
The English Language and Verbal Reasoning paper tests accurate reading, precise word choice and control of standard written English under time pressure. Expect comprehension passages, synonyms and antonyms, sentence completion, grammar and usage, and verbal analogies or odd-one-out items.
Core rules
- Concord: a singular subject takes a singular verb; ignore phrases between subject and verb.
- Proximity rule: with either/or and neither/nor, the verb agrees with the nearer subject.
- Vocabulary in context: predict the meaning before looking at options, then eliminate.
- Analogies: express the link as a sentence (for example, "a captain is a rank of officer") before choosing.
- Comprehension: every answer must be supported by the passage, not by outside knowledge.
Worked example
Neither the platoon commander nor his soldiers ___ at the gate. Options: was, were, is, be. The nearer subject is "soldiers", plural, so the answer is were. "Was" would fit only if both subjects were singular.
Traps that cost marks
- Collective nouns such as army and committee normally take singular verbs in formal writing, but plural when members act individually.
- Hardly had he arrived pairs with when, not than.
- Do not pick a synonym by sound; check collocation and register.
- In comprehension, reject extreme options ("always", "never") unless the passage states them.
- In odd-one-out items, identify the shared category first; one option usually belongs to a different class.