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Steps to Confusion-Free English
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© Copyright, 2018, TKB Sinha
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Steps to
Confusion-Free
English
TKB Sinha
EDUCREATION PUBLISHING (Since 2011)
www.educreation.in
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v
INDEX
Other works by the author:
1
Essentials of Spoken English
2 Enrich Your English
(International edition by
McGraw Hill)
3 Better English Pronunciation
(International edition by
McGraw Hill)
4 Vocabulary for Juniors (Re-
published by McGraw Hill)
5 Rapidex Eng Grammar Course
(inHindi,Marathi,Punjabi,Telu
Telugu and Tamil also)
6 Rapidex Book of Common
Errors in English
7 Rapidex Improve Your English
8 Rapidex English Speaking
Course (Bhojpuri)
9 A Descriptive Dictionary of
Gram. & Lit. Terms in English
10 A Treasury of Phrases,
Proverbs & Idiomatic
expressions
11 Vocabulary for Schools
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vi
Non-Academic Works
12
Mahabharata-an epic full of
bizarre,weird & interesting
episodes.
13 Lansdowne Road (fiction)
14 Yes, Mr Monster (fiction)
15 A Slice from the Past (fiction)
16 Devyani (fiction)
17 Draupadi (fiction)
18 My Indulgent Father ( a
collection of poems)
19 SST: The Initial Years (a
memoir)
20 blesa xyr D;k gS \& dgkuh
laxzg
22 gegwa ns[kyha ;wjksi&;k=k o`Rrkar %
Hkkstiqjh Hkk’kkesa
23 fofp=k &&vaxzsth ,oa fgUnh
jpukvksa dk vusk[kk ladyu
&&&&&&
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vii
Why this book?
By the word `confusion` is meant a state wherein
someone is unable to decide what is right and what
is wrong. He is unable to focus on a point because
to him all the given data / information look
plausible. But if he has the right information and the
right data, it grants him strength and lets him decide
correctly. This applies also to the users of English
language. The ignorance of the rules of grammar,
spellings, distinction between the words of similar
sounds and meaning and the peculiar usage of the
language, create the problem.
This work tries to look into the reasons of confusion
on several counts one by one, and explain to the
learner why `X` is right and `Y` is wrong. This
work is NOT a book on grammar but talks about
some grammatical items while talking about the
confusion. As has already been pointed out, the sole
purpose of this work is to do away with the
confusing situations by explaining an item / point.
I have also added a section on Revision called
“Looking Back” where detailed revision of all the
points dealt with, in the previous pages, have been
covered. There are Tests too to reinforcethe
learning.
Another Unique feature of this work is ``And
Finally: Some Don`ts & Nevers.`` which further
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viii
caution the learner to be mindful while using similar
expressions.
It is sincerely hoped that this work will prove to be
of `real help` to the learners/users of English and
succeed in its aim.
The author would welcome suggestions for
improvement in the future edition of the work.
***********
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ix
List of Contents.
STEP---1 Page
VOCABULARY
a. Synonyms 1
Exercise –1 27
Exercise –1 30
Answers to Exercise-1 & 2 30,33
b. Homonyms 35
(words having similar sounds)
Exercise – 1 57
Exercise – 2 61
Answers to 1 & 2 59,64
STEP---2
FROM THE WORLD OF GRAMMAR
(A) The Noun—
a. Different Meanings of nouns in
Plural forms.
65
b. Singular & Plural forms of some
Nouns
68
(i) Nouns used BOTH as Singular
& plural
68
(ii) Nouns used ONLY as Plurals 68
(iii) Nouns used ONLY as
Singulars
68
Exercises on Noun---
Exercise—1 69
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Exercise---2 69
Answers to Ex. no.—1 71
Answers to Ex. no.----2 71
(B) The Adjective---
Something about the Articles of Adjective 72
(i) Indefinite & Definite Adjectives 72
(ii) The use of `A` 73
(iii) A` used in typical expressions 73
(iv) The use of `An` 74
(v) The use of `The` 74
Exercise on the Articles---no 1 & 2 77,78
Answer to Ex. no. 1 & 2 78,79
(C) The Verb—
(1)
(i) No Change in different Conjugations 80 (ii) Different meanings in their conjugations 81
(2)
a) Subject-Verb Agreement 84
b) Error of Proximity 84
c) Verb for different subjects / Persons 83
d) Verbs in sentences with `either---or---` 84
e) Verb as per antecedent 84
f) Verb for Adjective used in Plural Noun. 84
g) Verb for 2nd subject in `Not only---but
also--`
84
Exercise on the Agreement no. 1 & 2 85
Answer to Ex no. 1 87
Answer to Ex no. 2. 87
(3)
The Sequence of Tenses 88
(a) Past follows Past 88
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(b) Present & future followed by ANY
tense
89
(c) Any tense in case of conjunction
`than`.
89
Exercise on the Sequence no 1 & 2. 90-
91
Answer to Ex no. 1 92
Answer to Ex no. 2 93
(D) Some confusing Pronouns /
Adjectives / Adverbs / Prepositions.
93
Exercise no. 1 99 Answer to Ex no. 1 100
(E) The Preposition 101
Something about Prepositions
(a) Nouns followed by Prepositions 102
(b) Verbs followed by prepositions 103 (c) Adjectives followed by prepositions. 105
Exercise no 1, 2 & 3. 108-
10
Answer to Ex no. 1. 111
Answer to Ex no 2 112 Answer to Ex no 3 113
(F) The Conjunction
Correlative Conjunctions: -- 113
(i) Hardly had ---------when----
(ii) Scarcely head------when-----
(iii) No sooner did--------than----
(iv) Not only--------but also------
(v) (Al)though------but------------
(vi) (N)either--------(n)or---------
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Some TYPICAL sentences denoting
condition;
For example, `Had I…. ` If He were ---
Should he be----`etc.
116
STEP---3
SPELLINGS
a) The problem of `ei ` & `ie` 119
b) Doubling the Consonant 120
c) Changing `Y` into `ie` 122
d) Silent `e` with exceptions 122
e) Dropping of `L` 124 f) The Silent consonants--B,K,P,T,H,L,G,
GH,N,U & W.
124
g) Words NOT sounded as spelt 127
h) `ch` sounded as `k`, `sh`, `ch` : `gh` as
`f` :
i) `sh` sound in words with different
spellings.128
128
Spelling test no.1 to 5 128-
33 Answers to Tests 1 to 5. 133-
37 STEP---4
Idiomatic Expressions. 138-
46
LOOKING BACK : REVISION
STEP-1
(A) Synonyms 147
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Short Test with answers 151
(B) Homonyms 153 Short Test with Answers 156
STEP-2
GRAMMAR
(A) Different meanings of Noun as Plural 158
Test on Nouns with answers 160
(B) The Use of Articles 162
Test on the Articles with answers 164
(C) Conjugation of verbs with NO change
in form
Test on the Verb with Answers 167
(D) Agreement of subject with verb 168
Test on Agreement with Answers 170
(E) The Sequence of Tenses 171
Test on the Sequence with Answers
(F) Spellings:
(i) Problem of `ei` & `ie`. 175
(ii) Dropping `L` 176
(iii) Doubling the Consonants 176
(iv) The silent Consonants 177 (v) Words sounding different 182
(G) Some confusing
Pronouns/Adjectives/Advbs/Prepositions.
182
(H) A Quick look at common
Prepositions
183
A Test on Prepositions 187
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xiv
AND FINALLY
SOME DON`TS & NEVERS.
NEVER say--`discuss about`, `describe abou`t
etc..
192
(i) DON`T use double
Comparatives/superlat..
193
(ii) e.g. ‘more better`, `more shorter`.
‘most fastest’ , ‘most strongest’ etc.
(iii) The 0rder of Pronouns; 194
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TKB Sinha
1
STEP -1
Cause of confusion.
Many words in English have similar meaning
but actually they ARE DIFFERENT from each
other. So they must be examined and used with due
diligence. We are going to examine such
similar-meaning words below for a clear
understanding.
(A) SYNONYMS (words of similar meaning: in
Alphabetical 0rder)
Ability-(having necessary skill & intelligence)--
.The Boss lacked the ability to handle the
situation and make it normal.
Capacity-(ability to hold/accommodate) ---This
container has the capacity to hold 10 litrs.
Able-(having necessary skill & intelligence)—He
was able to solve the problem.
Capable-(having the strength to handle)-Not every
one is capable of lifting this huge box.
Abstain-(keep oneself away from evil)-My
grandmother abstains from non-vegetarian food.
Refrain-(to hold back)-He refrained from smoking
and drinking as per doctor`s advice.
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Steps to Confusion-Free English
2
Air-(a mixture of gases)—The air we breathe must
be pure.
Wind-(air in motion)—A strong wind blew last
night & uprooted the trees.
Accident-(unpleasant, sudden happening)- Twenty
passengers were killed in the train accident.
Incident-(a happening)—Such minor incidents
should not discourage you.
Acquaintance-(someone one knows)—I have no
acquaintance with him.
Friend-(someone who is very close to you)—His
friends helped him in his difficult days.
Act-( an activity, a govt law)-This act of yours will
not be liked by anyone.
The new Act of Parliament will be welcomed by the
people.
Action-(doing something)-No action was taken
against the culprits, so they are bold now.
Acute-(extreme situation)-The pain in his throat
was acute.
Chronic –(since long past)-My father is a patient of
chronic bronchitis.
Addicted-(used to vices)-Ramesh is addicted to
gambling.
Habituated-(in the habit of)-Your brother is
habituated of telling lies.
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TKB Sinha
3
Admit-(to make a confession)-The boy admitted
that he was one of the students who had broken the
window.
Confess-(accept one`s participation in crime)-The
police asked the burglar to confess his crime.
Adverse-(not favourable)-The Manager made
adverse entry into the Service Book of the erring
employee.
Averse-( not liking something)-He is averse to hard
work.
Ago-(long time in the past)-Mr Rajan left his city
twenty years ago.
Before-(happening before an act)-I reached the
station much before you.
Alternate-(leaving a gap in a series)-The doctor
advised me to take the medicine on alternate
days.
Alternative-(an option)-There is no alternative to
hard work.
Amateur-(not an expert in sport)-I soon joined the
Amateur club in my town.
Novice-(just a beginner)- Suresh was a novice to
this kind of job.
Among-(in a group)-Someone among us has to pick
up the stick.
Between-(two persons/objects)-The property was
divided between two brothers.
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