Q. Fill in the blank from given options. By next July, I ________ in this office for ten years.
a) will work b) will have been working c) worked d) will be worked Correct Answer: b) will have been working
Question from UPPSC Prelims CSAT 2025
Explanation:
The clause “By next July” sets a future reference point, and “for ten years” indicates duration up to that point. To express an action that started in the past and will continue up to a specified future time, we use the Future Perfect Continuous tense: will have been + V-ing. Correct: “By next July, I will have been working in this office for ten years.”
Why others are wrong: – Option 1: will work — Simple future does not fit with “by” + future time expressing culmination; it lacks the perfect aspect needed for duration up to a future point. – Option 3: worked — Simple past cannot be used with a future time marker (“by next July”). – Option 4: will be worked — Passive voice is incorrect here; “work” in the sense of employment is intransitive and not passivized in this context.
Note: Future perfect simple (“will have worked”) could also be acceptable to emphasize completion, but it is not among the options.
Q. Complete the sentence with proper preposition. We usually finish work early ________ Fridays.
a) at b) during c) on d) in Correct Answer: c) on
Question from UPPSC Prelims CSAT 2025
Explanation:
Use ‘on’ before days and dates. ‘On Fridays’ means every Friday (a habitual action). The other options are incorrect here: ‘at’ is for specific times or set phrases (at 5 pm, at night), ‘in’ is for longer periods (in June, in 2025, in the morning), and ‘during’ is used for events/periods (during the meeting), not specific days of the week.
Q. Fill the correct form of verb in the given sentence. Many a man ________ died for his country.
a) has b) was c) is d) have Correct Answer: a) has
Question from UPPSC Prelims CSAT 2025
Explanation:
Rule: The expression ‘many a/an + singular noun’ takes a singular verb. Hence, the correct form is ‘has’ with the past participle ‘died’ (present perfect): Many a man has died for his country. Why others are wrong: – was → ‘was died’ is ungrammatical; ‘die’ is intransitive and cannot take a passive form. (‘was dead’ would change the meaning.) – is → ‘is died’ is incorrect; ‘is dead’ would be different in meaning and tense. – have → plural verb; disagrees with the singular subject after ‘many a’.
Q. Identify the correct spelling from the options given below.
a) Enterprenure b) Enterpranore c) Entrepreneur d) Entraprenure Correct Answer: c) Entrepreneur
Question from UPPSC Prelims CSAT 2025
Explanation:
The correct spelling is “Entrepreneur”.
Why option 3 is correct: – It matches the standard English spelling recognized by major dictionaries (Oxford, Merriam-Webster, Cambridge). – Etymology: from French “entreprendre” (to undertake), with the noun “entrepreneur” formed from “entre-” (between) + “preneur” (taker). The correct ending is “-neur”. – Syllable structure: en-tre-pre-neur, preserving the sequence of vowels and consonants.
Why the others are incorrect: – Option 1: Enterprenure — wrong prefix (“enter” instead of “entre”) and wrong ending (“nure” instead of “neur”). – Option 2: Enterpranore — multiple deviations: “enter” vs “entre”, “pra” vs “pre”, and incorrect ending “nore” vs “neur”. – Option 4: Entraprenure — incorrect middle sequence (“tra” instead of “tre”) and wrong ending (“nure” instead of “neur”).
Q. Choose the indirect speech for the following direct sentence. He said, ‘I have been waiting for ages.’
a) He said that he had been waiting for ages. b) He says that he has been waiting for ages. c) He said that he has been waiting for ages. d) He said that he is being waiting for ages. Correct Answer: a) He said that he had been waiting for ages.
Question from UPPSC Prelims CSAT 2025
Explanation:
Because the reporting verb is in the past (“said”), the tense in the reported clause is backshifted. Present perfect continuous (“have been waiting”) changes to past perfect continuous (“had been waiting”). Pronoun “I” becomes “he” and the time expression “for ages” remains unchanged. Hence: “He said that he had been waiting for ages.” – Option 1: Correct backshift to past perfect continuous. – Option 2: Incorrect—changes the reporting verb to present (“says”), which doesn’t match the given sentence. – Option 3: Incorrect—no backshift; retains present perfect continuous after a past reporting verb. – Option 4: Incorrect—”is being waiting” is ungrammatical.