English Language and Verbal Reasoning
What to master
Build accuracy in four areas: grammar and usage (subject–verb agreement, tense consistency, pronoun case, prepositions, concord with collective nouns), vocabulary (synonyms, antonyms, word-in-context, idioms), sentence structure (identifying the odd word, spotting errors, completing sentences), and comprehension (main idea, inference, tone, reference words).
Traps to expect
- Concord traps: "The police are" (plural in Nigerian/British usage) versus "the news is" (singular). Distance and intervening phrases do not change the number of the subject: "The list of items is long."
- Near-synonym traps: options that are close in meaning but wrong in register or collocation ("make a mistake", not "do a mistake").
- Double negatives and misplaced modifiers: "He hardly has no money" is wrong.
- Antonym questions with negatives: read whether the stem asks for the opposite or the same meaning.
- Comprehension over-reach: the right answer is supported by the passage, not by your general knowledge.
Rule of thumb for odd-word/error questions
First find the subject and its verb, then check number, tense, and preposition. If those are sound, check word choice. Eliminate options that are grammatically possible but change the intended meaning.
Worked example
"Neither the sergeant nor the constables ___ at the post."
- The verb agrees with the nearer subject ("constables", plural) → were. If the order were reversed ("Neither the constables nor the sergeant ___"), the answer would be was.
For antonym items, cover the options and supply your own opposite first, then match.