CDS English · Sentence Rearrangement
This, these, such: find what the pointing word picks up
This, these, that, such and there point back to something just said. Find what they pick up, and put that sentence just before.
Why this matters
Pointing words are the clue examiners use most in these passages, and they are easy to miss because they look like ordinary words. The hard items reword the noun ('decided to charge for water' becomes 'This decision') or use a bare 'This' for a whole sentence, so a word-for-word search fails.
Concept 1 of 2: 'This X' repeats or rewords a noun just used
'This staircase', 'these aspirations', 'such meters': each one points at something the last sentence named. Sometimes the noun is the same word; sometimes it is the same idea in a new word. Either way, the sentence it points at sits just before.
Definition
The terms:
- Demonstrative: a pointing word: this, that, these, those, such.
- Reworded reference: 'this X' where X is a new word for an idea already given ('every five years' becomes 'this five-yearly census').
The method:
- Find every 'this X', 'these X', 'that X' and 'such X' at the start of P, Q, R and S.
- Look for the sentence that names X, or describes it in other words. Put it just before.
- Match number: this and that need one thing; these, those and such + plural need more than one.
- If three sentences each point back to the one before, they form a chain. Start the chain with the sentence that points at nothing, and follow the pointers.
Worked example
S1: Every summer, the cantonment's water supply ran short.
P: This decision meant fitting a meter on every pipe.
Q: In 2015, the board decided to charge each house for the water it used.
R: The board held meetings in every ward to explain how the meters worked.
S: Such meters had never been used in the area, and many people distrusted them.
S6: Within two years, water use had fallen by a third.
(a) QPSR (b) QSPR (c) PQSR (d) QPRS
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2025 · CDS (I) 2025 — English · Q67Moderate
Example 1 · Sentence Rearrangement · This, These and Such
Directions: In this section each item consists of six sentences extracted from a passage. The first and sixth sentence are given in the beginning as S1 and S6. The sequence of the middle four sentences in each has been jumbled up and labelled as P, Q, R and S. You are required to find the proper sequence of the four sentences and mark your response accordingly on the Answer Sheet.
S1: Resources are essential for sustenance as well as for development.
S6: Conservation does not prohibit the use of resources but emphasises judicious and planned use of natural resources.
P: Over-exploitation and unplanned consumption of resources for development, however, are leading to their depletion.
Q: These consequences can be tackled by adopting resource conservation as a means to manage and save resources for a better future.
R: Such depletion has socio-economic and environmental consequences.
S: Conservation of resources means efficiently using resources that are needed now, without harming future prospects.
Searching for the exact word
'This decision' may point at a sentence that never uses the word 'decision' ('the board decided to charge...'). Match the meaning, not the spelling.
Singular and plural
'This' and 'such a' need one thing; 'these' and 'such' + plural need more than one. A plural pointer cannot pick up a single item, so use number to strike a candidate.
Starting a chain in the middle
When three sentences each point back to the one before, it is tempting to begin with the most important-sounding one. Begin instead with the sentence that points at nothing; every other link then falls into place.
Concept 2 of 2: Bare 'this', 'that', 'these', 'there' sum up the sentence before
Sometimes the pointing word stands alone: 'This is sensible', 'That will take a week', 'From there you can see...'. It does not pick up one noun. It sums up the whole action, fact or place in the sentence just before.
Definition
The terms:
- Summary pointer: this, that or these used alone, standing for a whole idea.
- Place pointer: there or here standing for a place just named.
The method:
- When a middle sentence starts with a bare This, That, These or There, ask: what idea or place does it stand for?
- Put the sentence that gives that idea or place just before it.
- Test it by replacing the pointer with the idea: 'That (the exam) will end on the 13th'. If the sentence then makes sense, the link holds.
- 'There is' and 'There are' are not pointers. Only 'there' meaning 'in that place' needs a place before it.
Worked example
S1: Our unit was ordered to move to a new post in the hills.
P: This left us only four days to pack three years of equipment.
Q: The order came on a Monday, and the trucks were due on Friday.
R: That was hard, but the men worked through the nights.
S: When we reached the post, the cold was the first thing everyone noticed.
S6: Within a week, though, the new post felt like home.
(a) QPRS (b) PQRS (c) QRPS (d) PRQS
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (I) 2017 — English · Q64Easy
Example 2 · Sentence Rearrangement · This, These and Such
Directions: order middle sentences P,Q,R,S between fixed S1 and S6
S1: The teaching work for the term is over.
S6: For this, weekend trips do not suffice, and a longer stay is necessary.
P: That will end on October 13 and the Diwali vacation will begin from October 14.
Q: After I complete the assessment of examination papers, I plan to go and stay at our house in Lonavla for at least a week.
R: Next week the terminal examination begins.
S: There is a lot of repair work that needs to be carried out in the house.
Pointing at the last noun instead of the whole idea
In 'The road was washed away. That will take a week to fix', 'That' stands for the damage, not for 'the road'. Read a bare pointer as the whole sentence before it.
Treating 'There is' as a pointer
'There is a lot of work' points at nothing; it can sit almost anywhere. Only 'there' meaning 'in that place' ('Sitting there', 'From there') needs a place just before it.
Reaching too far back
A bare pointer normally picks up the sentence just before. If you have to skip a sentence to find what 'that' means, the order is probably wrong.
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.
Watch out for (6)
- Searching for the exact word→ 'This X' repeats or rewords a noun just used
- Singular and plural→ 'This X' repeats or rewords a noun just used
- Starting a chain in the middle→ 'This X' repeats or rewords a noun just used
- Pointing at the last noun instead of the whole idea→ Bare 'this', 'that', 'these', 'there' sum up the sentence before
- Treating 'There is' as a pointer→ Bare 'this', 'that', 'these', 'there' sum up the sentence before
- Reaching too far back→ Bare 'this', 'that', 'these', 'there' sum up the sentence before
Test yourself on Sentence Rearrangement
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.