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INFOSYS PLACEMENT PAPER
Exercise 1:
The passage given below is followed by questions based on its content. Read the passage & choose the best answer 4 the questions
The Death Car
It was cold night in September. The rain was drumming on the car roof as George & Marie Winstion drove through the empty country roads towards the house of their friends, the Harrissons, where they were going to attend a party to celebrate the engagement of the Harrisons daughter, Lisa. As they drove, they listened to the local radio station, which was playing classical music. They were about 5 miles from the destination when the music on the radio was interrupted by a news announcement: “The Cheshire police have issued a serious warning after a man escaped from Colford Mental Hospital earlier this evening. The man, John Downey, is murderer who killed 6 people before he was captured 2 years ago. He is described as large, very strong & extremely dangerous. People in the Cheshire area are warned to keep their doors & windows locked, & to call the police immediately if they se anyone acting strangely.” Marie shivered, “A crazy killer. And he’s out there somewhere. That’s scary.”“Don’t worry about it,” said her husband. “We’re nearly there now. Anyway, we have more important things to worry about. This car is losing power for some reason—it must be that old problem with the carburetor, If it gets any worse, we’ll have to stay at the Harrisons’ tonight & get it fixed before we travel back tomorrow,” As he spoke, the car began to slow down, George pressed the accelerator, but the engine only coughed. Finally they rolled to a halt, as the engine died completely, Just as they stopped, George pulled the car off the road, & it came to rest under a large tree. “Blast!” said George angrily. “Now we’ll have to walk in the rain.” “But that’ll take us an hour at least,” said Marie. “And I have my high-held shoes & my nice clothes on. They’ll be ruined!” “Well, you’ll have to wait while I run to the nearest house & call the Harissons. Someone can come out & picks us up,” said George. “But George! Have you forgotten what the radio said? There’s a homicidal maniac out there! You can’t leave me alone here!” “You’ll have to hide in the back of the car. Lock all the doors & lie on the floor in the back, under this blanket. No-one will see you, when I come back, I’ll knock 3 times on the door. Then you can get up & open it. Don’t open it unless you here 3 knocks.” George opened the door & slipped out into the rain. He quickly disappeared into the blackness. Marie quickly locked the doors & settled down under the blanket in the back for a long wait. She was frightened & worried, but she was a strong-minded woman. She had not been waiting long, however, when she heard a strange scratching noise. It seemed to be coming from the roof of the car. Marie was terrified. She listened, holding her breath. Then she heard 3 slow knocks, one after the other, also on the roof of the car. Was it her husband? Should she open the door? Then she heard another knock, and another. This was not her husband. It was somebody--or something--else. She was shaking with fear. But she forced herself to lie still. The knocking continued-- bump, bump, bump, bump Many hours later, as the sun rose, she was still lying there. She had not slept for a moment. The knocking had never stopped, all night long. She did not know what to do. Where was George? Why had he not come for her?
Suddenly, she heard the sound of 3 or 4 vehicles, racing quickly down the road. All of them pulled up around her, their tires screeching on the road. At last! Some one had come! Marie sat up quickly & looked out the window.
The 3 vehicles were all police cars, & 2 still had their lights flashing. Several policemen leap out. One of them rushed towards the car as Marie opened the door. He took her by the hand.
“Get out of the car & walk with me to the police vehicle. miss. You’re safe now. Look straight ahead. Keep looking at police car. Don’t look back. Just don’t look back.”
Something in the way he spoke filled Marie with cold horror. She could not help herself. After 10 yards from the police car, she stopped, turned & looked back at the empty vehicle.
George was hanging from the tree above the car, a rope tied around his neck. As the wind blew his body back & forth, his feet were bumping gently on the roof of the car-- bump, bump, bump, bump
1) What was the reason for the news announcement on the radio?
a) 6 people. Including John Downey, had been murdered?
b) A dangerous prisoner had escaped
c) The police were warning of accidents on the roads in the bad weather
d) Some people had bens en acting strangely in the Cheshire area
2) What did George think was causing trouble with the car?
a) The carburetor
b) The rain drumming on the roof
c) The accelerator
d) He had no idea
3) Why did he pull the car off the road?
a) To have a rest
b) To go for a walk
c) To walk to the nearest house
d) It broke down
4) Why did Marie stay in the car when George left?
a) She was afraid to go out in the dark
b) So no one could steel the car
c) Her clothes weren’t suitable for the rain
d) She wanted to get some sleep
5) Where did George set off to walk?
a) The mental hospital
b) The nearest house
c) The Harrison’s house
d) The police station
6) What made Marie so frightened as she waited in the car?
a) There was a strange sound coming from the roof
b) She could see a man strangely outside the car
c) Some police cars came racing down the road
d) She was afraid of the rain and the dark
Exercise 2:
Each sentence below has 1 or 2 blanks – each blank indicating that something has been omitted. Beneath the sentence are some words. Choose the word for each blank that best fits the meaning of the sentence as a whole
7) Athletes have so perfected their techniques in track and field events that the___ becomes _________ before record books
a) Announcement …………public
b) Meet…………………….official
c) Time…………………….authentic
d) Fantastic………………...common place
8) A________ child, she was soon bored in class; she already knew more mathematics than her junior school teachers
a) Obdurate
b) Precocious
c) Recalcitrant
d) Contemporary
9) The subtle shades of meaning, & still subtler echoes of association, make language an instrument which scarcely anything short of genius can wield with ____________ & ________________
a) Confidence----------aloofness
b) Definiteness---------certainty
c) Sincerity--------------hope
d) Eloquence------------ruthlessness
10) Unwilling to admit that they had been in error, the researchers tried to_______ tried case with more data obtained from dubious sources
a) Ascertain
b) Buttress
c) Refute
d) Dispute
11) His one vice was gluttony & so it is not surprising that as he aged he became increasingly_______________
a) Despondent
b) Corpulent
c) Carping
d) Lithe
Exercise 3:
Please read all the questions in the table below (12-21) as one continuous passage. Tick the varb with right tense or the correct word to fill in the gaps in each of the sentences.
Statement
12) A famous singer had been contracted to sign at a Paris opera house & ticket sales_______________ booming.
a) is
b) are
c) were
d) have been
13) In fact, the night of the concert, the house was packed; every ticket ________________
a) is selling
b) was selling
c) sold
d) had been sold
14) The feeling of anticipation & excitement was in the air as the house manager__________ the stage & said, “Ladies & gentlemen, thank you for your enthusiastic support!
a) took
b) takes
c) had taken
d) was taking
15) I am afraid that due to illness, the man whom you’ve all come to hear________________ performing tonight
a) will not be
b) has not been
c) had not been
d) was not
16) However, we _________ a suitable substitute who, we hope, will provide you with comparable entertainment.”
a) are finding
b) were finding
c) had found
d) have found
17) The crowd____________ in disappointment & failed to hear the announcer mention the stand-in’s name
a) groans
b) groaned
c) had groaned
d) were groaning
18) The environment turned from excitement to frustration The stand-in performer__________ the performance everything he had.
a) will give
b) had given
c) gave
d) gives
19) When he had finished, there was nothing but an uncomfortable silence. No one _____________
a) Applauded
b) Applauds
c) Was applauding
d) Has applauded
20) Suddenly, from the balcony, a little boy stood up and____________, “Daddy, I think you’re wonderful!”
a)shouts
b) was shouting
c) had shouted
d) shouted
21) The crowd_________________ into thunderous applause
a) breaks
b) broke
c) had broken
d) was breaking
a) Driving long distances causes sleepiness, & sleepiness causes serious accidents.
Exercise 4:
From each group of sentences given below, indicate the sentence that contains the error:
22) Group 1
b) On a table at the rear of the room was a notebook, a pair of scissors, & a biology textbook
c) Finally, there seems to be a growing interest in vegetarianism in this country
d) Either the local chief of police or his officers are guilty of violating the rights of prisoners
23) Group 2
a) Simple cookbooks for inexperienced cooks have become quite popular in recent years they are available at many bookstores
b) Some cookbooks, such as The Joy of cooking, have been classics for generations
c) One popular cookbook is The Art of French Cooking, by Julia Child, a colorful character who charmed television audiences for many years
d) The Art of French Cooking blends classic recipes with meticulous explanation; ordinary cooks find the recipes manageable
24) Group 3
a) Around 50% of the forest are destroyed every year
b) The bus leaves tomorrow morning
c) A tiger is a dangerous animal
d) Can you please the sugar?
25) Group 4
a) There must be some mistake. I should have scored more marks
b) The number of trainees are hundred
c) 50% of the houses need repairs
d) The Commissioner, along with his family members was seen the party
26) Group 5
a) The scissors is very sharp
b) Congratulations are in order
c) One of the cases is open
d) She plays tennis well but she’ll never be a Steffi Graf
Exercise 5:
Please mark the correct statement from the pairs given below:
27) Pair 1
a) Repeated occurrences cannot be ignored
b) Repeated occurences cannot be ignored
28) Pair 2
a) We need to get a consensus on the decision
b) We need to get a concensus on the decision
29) Pair 3
a) Only authority personnel are allowed in this area
b) Only authorized personnel are allowed in this area
30) Pair 4
a) The actress decided to sue the sleazy tabloid for deformation of her character
b) The actress decided to sue the sleazy tabloid for defamation of her character
31) Pair 5
a) Everyone knows that Hogwarts in the Harry Potter series is a mythical school
b) Everyone knows that Hogwarts in the Harry Potter series is a legendary school
32) Pair 6
a) Most people think caffeine is not good for health
b) Most people think caffiene is not good for health
Exercise 6:
Select the best word/phrase/line to complete each sentence in the most appropriate manner
33) ‘Reema’s bad-mouthing Peter only because she is jealous of him.’ Means______________
a) Peter really is a nice person
b) Peter really is a mean person
c) Peter really is a difficult person
d) Peter really is a tough person
34) If some one is “gung ho”, they are_______
a) stupid
b) Childish
c) Enthusiastic
d) Loud
35) Mr. Hughes has been asked to___________ this difficult project because of his experience working for many years in Iran
a) undergo
b) understand
c) undervalue
d) undertake
36) ‘Stop talking to those angry men, you are just adding fuel to the fire’ is the same as________
a) Stop talking to those angry men, you are just coming in the way
b) Stop talking to those angry men, you are just making it worse
c) Stop talking to those angry men, you are just adding to the noise
d) Stop talking to those angry men, you are just talking too much
37) ‘Sudhir’s work is behind schedule – I think he bit more than he could chew’ is the same as________
a) Sudhir has taken too much of work
b) Sudhir takes very long breaks
c) Sudhir does not know how to do the work
d) Sudhir is a lazy person
38) There are many__________ to our rules, and I do not think that’s fair.
a) examples
b) exceptions
c) instances
d) provisions
Exercise 7:
Choose the correct / most appropriate word/s to fill in the gap in the sentences given below.
39) I didn’t set _________ to do this but I’m pleased with the result.
a) in
b) out
c) on
d) down
40) This looks too heavy,______________ pick it up?
a) Can I
b) may I
c) need I
d) would I
41) I am glad so many people have passed the test. In fact, there were_________ who haven’t.
a) little
b) a little
c) few
d) a few
42) Pope John Paul II ___________ more than 90 countries.
a) has visited
b) was visited
c) visits
d) has been visiting
43) I _____________ Carl since I ______________ a little child.
a) have known, have been
b) have known, was
c) knew, have been
d) knew, was
44) I wonder if _____________ will show up at the meeting?
a) someone
b) anyone
c) one
d) everyone
45) Have you given up______________.
a) to smoke
b) smoke
c) some smoking
d) smoking
Regards Pratyusha
