Reading Comprehension Tips and Tricks for Government Exams

Introduction

• The unseen passage or the comprehension questions cover the maximum part of the verbal ability section. Each passage asked in the exam comprises a subpart, based on the information given in the passage.
• Reading Comprehension (RC) is the ability to actively read the information (mostly passages) provided and assimilate the information to answer a given set of questions.
  

Types

• Current Events: Mostly, the passage is picked from a recent development across the world, which may be hype and is in the news.
• Economy Related: Passage related to economic growth or the development of a country may also be put up in the comprehension part.
• Social Sciences: This is another sector from which the passage may be put forth in the Verbal Ability section.
• Philosophy & Psychology: The comprehension may deal with philosophy and psychology topics, making the topic moderately complicated for the candidate.
• Imaginary Events: It is also possible that the passage may be based on fictitious information which may not be realistic and just be imaginary.

Rules

• One should understand the author’s main point.
• Identify the key arguments being put forward to prove that point.
• Identify the author’s tone, which can be mocking, curious, respectful, condescending, etc.
• Check for negative conjunctions, and these words will definitely reveal a change in the tone of the author. So, the implication of the author may not be what the initial statement suggests. 
• See if there are negative qualifiers words which create doubt about the fact being stated. 

Tips

• Read Questions First: It is recommended that the candidate first read the questions and then move towards reading the passage. This will help the candidate to spot the answer within a shorter time span.
• Do Not Assume anything: For reading comprehensions, a crucial point to be kept in mind is that assumptions should not be formed. The data given in the passage is the only information that needs to be used to answer the questions.
• Solve the vocabulary-based questions first: There may be questions like antonyms and synonyms or other vocabulary-based questions. The candidate may not have to read the entire passage to answer, so answer them first. This would save precious time.
• Use the elimination method: One of the major reasons why candidates tend to make errors in the English section is because of the confusing options given. If a candidate cannot answer the question, he/she must start eliminating the options, which may not be the correct answer until they reach one which they are most confident of.
• Improvise your reading skills: Try reading the important words and phrases from the passage rather than reading each word in the comprehension. This will help you save some time.
• Focus on the first and last passage: The introduction and conclusion of the passage are the most important and may help you with questions like giving a suitable topic for the passage, stating the passage’s tone or summarising the passage. 

Solved Examples

Direction: Read the Following Passage 

Speech is great blessings but it can also be great curse, for while it helps us to make our intentions and desires known to our fellows, it can also if we use it carelessly, make our attitude completely misunderstood. A slip of the tongue, the use of unusual word, or of an ambiguous word, and so on, may create an enemy where we had hoped to win a friend. Again, different classes of people use different vocabularies, and the ordinary speech of an educated may strike an uneducated listener as pompous. Unwittingly, we may use a word which bears a different meaning to our listener from what it does to men of our own class. Thus speech is not a gift to use lightly without thought, but one which demands careful handling. Only a fool will express himself alike to all kinds and conditions to men.