CDS English · Grammar
Choosing the right word for the blank
Some blanks need a word of the right form (noun, adjective or adverb); others need the word that English speakers habitually pair with the noun nearby: substantial progress, excruciating pain.
Why this matters
These items mix grammar and vocabulary. First the position of the blank rules out the wrong forms; then the pairing decides between words of similar meaning. Distractors are often look-alike words (evade and invade, instil and install), so read each option letter by letter.
Concept 1 of 3: Word form: noun, adjective or adverb
The options are often one word in four forms: scene, scenery, scenic, scenically. You do not need the meaning to choose. You need the job of the blank: before a noun, it describes the noun; before an adjective, it describes the adjective; after 'the' or 'and the', it is a noun.
Definition
The terms:
- Adjective: describes a noun (a scenic place, a devastating flood). Common endings: -ic, -ing, -ous, -ful, -al.
- Adverb: describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb (extremely dense, visibly old). Most end in -ly.
- Noun: names a thing or an idea (proscription, beauty). Common endings: -tion, -ment, -ness, -ity.
The method:
- Look at the word right after the blank.
- A noun after the blank → an adjective is needed.
- An adjective after the blank → an adverb is needed.
- After a/the, or joined by and to another noun → a noun is needed, of the same type as its partner.
- Then choose by meaning among the options of the right form.
Words tested this way:
- a place of remarkably scenic beauty (2024 I); a devastating flood (2023 II)
- the prosecution and eventual proscription of the play (2023 II): proscription = official ban; prescription = a doctor's order
- an area of extremely dense population (2024 I); visibly dilapidated (2024 I)
- he was broke = he had no money (2021 I); broken is for things that are damaged
Worked example
The exam was ______ difficult this year. (a) surprise (b) surprising (c) surprisingly (d) surprised
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2024 · CDS (I) 2024 — English · Q13Easy
Example 1 · Grammar · Connector Blanks: Word Choice and Collocation
Directions: pick the option to fill the blank
Ranikhet is a place of remarkably _______ beauty.
Two words before a noun can have two jobs
In 'remarkably ___ beauty', remarkably is an adverb. It needs an adjective to describe, and the adjective describes beauty. So the blank is an adjective, even though an adverb sits before it.
Keep a list parallel
'the prosecution and eventual ___' joins the blank to a noun with and. The blank must be a noun too (proscription), not a gerund like proscribing.
Prescription and proscription
prescription = a doctor's written order, or a rule laid down. proscription = an official ban. One letter apart, opposite in spirit. A play banned by the government suffers proscription.
Broke and broken
A person who has lost all his money is broke (informal). A thing that is damaged is broken. 'He was broken' means his spirit was crushed, not that his wallet was empty.
Concept 2 of 3: Words for progress, difficulty, law and crime
Newspaper English has its own pairs: we make substantial progress, face an insurmountable difficulty, and an act has a purview. When four adjectives all mean 'big', the noun beside the blank picks the one that belongs with it.
Definition
The method:
- Look at the noun next to the blank (progress, difficulty, capture, evidence).
- Ask which option English pairs with that noun.
- Strike look-alikes that mean something else (invade for evade, review for purview).
- Strike words that only repeat the sentence (rash and reckless mean the same).
| Word | Meaning | Tested as | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| substantial | large and real | make substantial progress | 2017 (II) |
| insurmountable | too great to overcome | faced almost insurmountable difficulty | 2024 (I) |
| potential | possible, likely in future | Every rash driver becomes a potential killer. | 2018 (I) |
| offences | crimes | offences against women | 2023 (II) |
| purview | scope, range of authority | come under the purview of this act | 2023 (II) |
| evade | escape, avoid | evade capture by the police | 2024 (I) |
| evidence | proof | seen as evidence of their literary interest | 2023 (II) |
The noun next to the blank chooses its partner.
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2023 · CDS (II) 2023 — English · Q17Moderate
Example 2 · Grammar · Connector Blanks: Word Choice and Collocation
Directions: select the most appropriate option for the blank
A person purchasing goods and services for commercial purposes will also not come under the _______ of this act.
Evade or invade?
evade = escape from, avoid (evade capture, evade tax). invade = enter by force (invade a country). One letter apart; the meaning is the reverse.
Do not choose a word that repeats the sentence
'Every rash driver becomes a ___ killer.' Reckless means the same as rash, so it adds nothing. The sentence needs a word about what he may become: potential.
Sound-alike nouns ending in -ence
evidence (proof), insistence (demanding firmly), subsistence (bare survival), dependence (relying on). Only evidence fits 'seen as ___ of their interest'.
Concept 3 of 3: Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle
These words describe people: how they feel, how they live, how they act. Many pairs are fixed: a debt of gratitude, an opulent lifestyle, to instil a feeling. Learn the word with its partner.
Definition
The method:
- Find the clue in the sentence (very angry, several sports cars, a maestro, freedom fighters).
- Choose the word whose meaning matches the clue and which pairs with the noun.
- Check its charge: praise for a maestro (silken), not blame (grating).
| Word | Meaning | Tested as | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| mollify | calm an angry person | no one can mollify him when he is angry | 2017 (II) |
| gratitude | thankfulness | a deep debt of gratitude to the freedom fighters | 2018 (I) |
| silken | smooth and refined | the silken touch of a maestro | 2022 (II) |
| opulent | rich and luxurious | owns several sports cars and has an opulent lifestyle | 2024 (II) |
| excruciating | extremely painful | suffered excruciating pain from a leg injury | 2024 (II) |
| instil | slowly build a feeling or idea in someone | continues to instil a sense of patriotism | 2023 (II) |
Learn each word with the noun it travels with.
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2024 · CDS (II) 2024 — English · Q10Easy
Example 3 · Grammar · Connector Blanks: Word Choice and Collocation
Directions: fill the blank with the right grammar word
She suffered _______ pain because of the leg injury.
Instil or install?
instil a value, a habit, a sense of pride (slowly put it into a mind). install a machine, an app, an officer in a post. And after 'continues to', the base form is needed: instil, not installs.
Look-alike words that start the same way
opulent (rich), occult (magical, hidden), ocular (of the eye), obscure (unknown). The options share the first letters on purpose. Match the meaning to the clue (several sports cars).
Check the charge of the word
A maestro is praised, so the touch is silken, not grating (harsh) or heavy. If the sentence praises, a negative word cannot fit.
Humour is not mollify
humour someone = go along with their wishes to keep them happy. mollify = calm someone who is already angry. 'When he gets very angry, no one can ___ him' needs mollify.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (2)
Words for progress, difficulty, law and crime7 rows
| Word | Meaning | Tested as | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| substantial | large and real | make substantial progress | 2017 (II) |
| insurmountable | too great to overcome | faced almost insurmountable difficulty | 2024 (I) |
| potential | possible, likely in future | Every rash driver becomes a potential killer. | 2018 (I) |
| offences | crimes | offences against women | 2023 (II) |
| purview | scope, range of authority | come under the purview of this act | 2023 (II) |
| evade | escape, avoid | evade capture by the police | 2024 (I) |
| evidence | proof | seen as evidence of their literary interest | 2023 (II) |
The noun next to the blank chooses its partner.
Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle6 rows
| Word | Meaning | Tested as | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| mollify | calm an angry person | no one can mollify him when he is angry | 2017 (II) |
| gratitude | thankfulness | a deep debt of gratitude to the freedom fighters | 2018 (I) |
| silken | smooth and refined | the silken touch of a maestro | 2022 (II) |
| opulent | rich and luxurious | owns several sports cars and has an opulent lifestyle | 2024 (II) |
| excruciating | extremely painful | suffered excruciating pain from a leg injury | 2024 (II) |
| instil | slowly build a feeling or idea in someone | continues to instil a sense of patriotism | 2023 (II) |
Learn each word with the noun it travels with.
Watch out for (11)
- Two words before a noun can have two jobs→ Word form: noun, adjective or adverb
- Keep a list parallel→ Word form: noun, adjective or adverb
- Prescription and proscription→ Word form: noun, adjective or adverb
- Broke and broken→ Word form: noun, adjective or adverb
- Evade or invade?→ Words for progress, difficulty, law and crime
- Do not choose a word that repeats the sentence→ Words for progress, difficulty, law and crime
- Sound-alike nouns ending in -ence→ Words for progress, difficulty, law and crime
- Instil or install?→ Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle
- Look-alike words that start the same way→ Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle
- Check the charge of the word→ Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle
- Humour is not mollify→ Words for feeling, manner and lifestyle
Test yourself on Grammar
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.