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  • IBPS Clerk exam English section preparation tips

    Updated : 11-Jul-2017

    English section of IBPS Clerk exam can be easily prepared if you follow this article. With not enough time left for the exam you cannot just surf on the internet or books looking for the syllabus and the preparation tips. If you follow the tips of preparation, you can easily clear the exam as well as the cut off list. So, there is no need to be scared as you should follow this article and do well in the exam.

    IBPS Clerk - English Section Types of topics

    There are a total of 30 questions in IBPS clerk exam. The English section of this exam is divided into 4 different topics. The following topics are given below:

    1. Reading Comprehension for IBPS CLerk Exam
    2. Grammar for IBPS CLerk Exam
    3. Vocabulary for IBPS CLerk Exam
    4. Verbal ability for IBPS CLerk Exam

    These topics are included in prelims and mains IBPS clerk exam. So, if you prepare these topics well, you can hopefully score well in the both the exams. And as everyone knows, the difficulty level is very higher of the mains exam as comparatively to prelims exam of IBPS clerk.

    How to Prepare Reading Comprehension for IBPS Clerk exam :

    The passage will likely be based on topics like moral stories, banking and economy, Social Issues, etc. Since the length of the passages will be small to medium, you can quickly prepare the habit of reading fast.

    The questions will aim to test your grasping power and vocabulary. It is very important to note down all the tricky and difficult words in a notebook which you should keep handy and find their actual meaning and synonyms.

    Practice 10 sets of questions on the first day when you begin your preparation. Make sure at least 2 of them are based on social issues and the remaining on banking and least 6 of them are based on moral stories and economy.

    After that, practice at least 4-5 sets of questions daily including the ones that you find in the daily mock tests.

    How to Prepare Grammar for IBPS Clerk Exam 

    There are 3 main topics in Grammar on which questions are asked:

    1. Error Spotting
    2. Phrase Replacement
    3. Fill in the Blanks

    Around 5-10 questions in the paper will be based on Grammar.  In Grammar, you will need to learn basic Grammar concepts like Tenses, Articles, Prepositions, Degrees of Comparison, Subject-Verb Agreement, Conjunctions, Parts of Speech, Standard Construction, Adverbs, Number in Nouns, etc.

    What you need now is, short but solid preparation of basic grammar rules. Make sure to go through lessons on spotting the error. 

    Practice at least 30 questions from each section.

    How to Prepare Vocabulary for IBPS Clerk Exam 

    You will find direct questions on the following topics in both Prelims and Mains exams.

    1. Cloze Test
    2. Fill in the Blanks
    3. Error Spotting
    4. Phrase replacement

    Building a strong vocabulary isn’t a single day’s task. So, to prepare English section for this exam, keep looking for meaning, synonyms and antonyms of different words and try to induct these words in your everyday conversations.

    Practice 5 cloze tests, 15 fill in the blanks, 15 phrase replacements and 15 error spotting questions when you begin studying for the vocabulary section.

    Solve the Vocabulary sections from previous years’ papers and time yourself to understand where you stand with your current level of preparation.

    Practice sectional tests of English every day. Chart your growth through mock tests analysis. It helps to see more words and see an improvement in your performance as you start understanding contextual usage and figuring out meanings you didn’t even know.

    How to Prepare for Verbal Ability

    This section consists of 5 questions based on 6 Para jumble sentences. There might be questions where you need to complete a sentence understanding the context of the sentence.

    Follow the logic of the passage while answering these questions. Read the story and keep in mind, as the passage will always tell you a story with a definite beginning to the end. Look for connecting words like conjunctions that will help you link the story well.

    General Strategy to Prepare English for IBPS Clerk 

    Now that you know how to prepare English for IBPS Clerk exam, you should also know how to execute your preparation in practice tests as wells as the exam:

    Do not spend more than 15 minutes on the English Section of the paper in Prelims Mock Tests and the actual exam by attempting mock test you can increase the speed and accuracy of your writing and management of time.

    Spend time studying basic rules of Grammar. These rules will help you crack many topics in the paper. Unlike Vocabulary, the rules and concepts are often repeated. So, if you practice enough, you are very likely to score 20-25 marks.

    Pick the questions you faced difficulty with, from past papers and solve them by timing yourself.

    It is advisable if you start with the Vocabulary section first as you can get several marks in one go. Also it is the fastest to get through. Get to the Reading Comprehension section next. After a quick reading make sure to attempt the fact and vocabulary based questions in the RC before you attempt the theme/main idea based questions. At last, you should always attempt the topic or that section, question of the exam that seems tricky or difficult to you.