How to prepare English for SSC CGL 2018 Exam:

SSC has planned to conduct Tier 1 exam in the month of July/August. With less than three months remaining, it is time for aspirants to start their SSC English preparation. Aspirants can prepare for SSC CGL online to save time and enhance their performance.

Quantitative aptitude and English language dominate the SSC CGL exam. In tier 1 exam, English section contains 25 questions of 2 marks each. In the Tier 2 exam, the English language paper contains 200 questions of 1 mark each. Together, the English language accounts for about 250 marks of the total 600 marks- approximately 42%.

Candidates must start taking SSC CGL mock tests along with their preparation. A good mock will highlight the areas you are wanting and help you improve. Practising previous year papers of SSC CGL will also help candidates to have a decent understanding of the exam. SSC even repeats some questions from its previous year papers.

SSC CGL Free Study Material – 18000 Questions

100 SSC CGL (latest pattern mocks) – Rs. 399

How to start SSC English preparation?

One of the common doubts that aspirants face is how to start their SSC English preparation. As is the case with all other sections, some aspirants will be strong in this section already while some have to start from the scratch. Hence, aspirants must tailor their preparation to suit their needs.

Since the expected cutoff for SSC CGL is high this year, candidates must try to score as high as possible in this section.

One of the advantages of the English section is that it takes less time to answer as compared to other sections. Candidates with a good reading habit and a decent grasp on vocabulary can easily score well in this section.

Unlike other sections, English language proficiency of an aspirant takes some time to improve. Candidates will have to spend a significant amount of time before they can see any considerable improvement.

Once mastered, candidates can see an exponential increase in their scores in this section. Hence, it is important to hang in there during preparation.

SSC CGL Previous Solved Papers

SSC usually asks 3 major types of questions in this section.
(i) Vocabulary based questions
(ii) Comprehension based questions
(iii) Grammar based questions

How to prepare Vocabulary for SSC CGL:

SSC asks questions such as synonyms, antonyms, one-word substitution, idioms and phrases under this topic. These questions can be as random as they can get. There is little to no guarantee that you will get questions from the topics you prepare. Hence, it is essential to have realistic expectations with these type of questions.

Read as much as you can. This will help you build your repository of words and their meanings. Try to figure out the contextual meaning of the words used. Have a decent vocabulary.

Also, learn root words. Learning a root word will help you remember ten different words. Go through commonly used idioms and phrases. Your SSC English preparation must include reading newspapers since you get to learn a lot of new words from them.

Make a note of words that you don’t know. Revise them a week or two before the exam. Revising repeatedly will help to etch the meaning of a word in your mind.

Don’t make blind guesses in these questions. Proceed with a question if you can eliminate at least 2 of the options. Remember, negatives hurt.

This is a topic where you can maximise your scores. The answers are right in front of you in the form of passage. You just have to infer the answers from them. Most aspirants are paranoid of attempting RCs. This topic will reward you for the time invested.

Try SSC CGL Free Mock

How to prepare Reading Comprehension for SSC CGL:

Again, reading newspapers help. As most of the paragraphs will be opinion based, reading editorials will help you acquire the thought process.
Cloze test and para jumbles are just an extension of RCs since they heavily depend on the comprehending ability of the candidate.

How to prepare Grammar for SSC CGL:

Again, this topic can be one of the most scoring sections. This section requires you to be thorough with the rules and applications of grammar. SSC asks questions such as sentence correction, spotting errors and sentence improvement ( Combination of vocabulary and grammar) from these topics.

Candidates must start with high school grammar books. Wren and Martin can be of significant help here. Once you are thorough with the rules and conventions, try to apply them. Over the course of time, you will start spotting errors just because the sentence does not sound right. Try to achieve that level of mastery over the rules.

Candidates can score well just by knowing the rules since there is little to no uncertainty.

Candidates must read anything they can get their hands on. A good reading habit goes a long way in helping you score high in this section. Beyond a certain point, the English language will become as natural to you as any other habit.

Candidates must not neglect English section during preparation as it contributes a significant chunk of the exam. Equal importance must be given to both quantitative aptitude and English language during preparation.

Download SSC CGL Preparation Free App

General Knowledge PDFs for SSC CGL

Candidates can read about quantitative aptitude for SSC CGL to know about how to prepare for that section. Also read about Reasoning tips for SSC CGL.