Fill in the Blanks
🔒 Log in to trackOne sentence, one or two blanks, four options — decided almost always by a collocation, a phrasal unit, a tense anchor or a confusable pair, not by dictionary size. Every blank has a governor (a word beside it) that dictates the answer; finding that governor first is the whole technique.
One page per subtopic: detailed notes, every question type, formulas, tricks and practice sets.
Every formula on one printable page, grouped by subtopic.
3 exam-level questions worked step by step.
72 questions — untimed practice or a timed test with analysis.
Track record in the exam
Questions per shift in recent SSC CGL papers.
Test difficulty mix (72 questions)
Question patterns exams keep repeating
Taken from previous-year papers. If a pattern is marked "very common", expect to see it in your exam.
Collocation blank (verb + noun)
very commonThe blank is a verb before a noun such as attention, place, a mistake or a decision; the options are do / make / take / give / pay.
How to solve: Read the noun first and recall the fixed chunk: pay attention, take place, make a mistake, do harm, commit a crime. Say the whole chunk silently — only one option sounds natural with that noun.
Example: The annual sports meet will ___ place in the second week of December.
take place — the fixed chunk for an event happening; give, make and hold place are not idiomatic.
Collocation blank (adjective + noun / idiom)
commonThe blank is an adjective before rain, escape, traffic or asleep, or it completes a frozen idiom (part and parcel, hold water); the options are near-synonyms.
How to solve: Fetch the fixed partner (heavy rain, narrow escape, fast asleep). Near-synonyms such as strong, thin or quick are planted because they mean almost the same thing but never partner the noun.
Example: The bus driver had a ___ escape when the truck swerved into his lane.
narrow escape — thin, slim and tight mean small but are not the partner of escape.
Confusable word (shape pair/triple)
very commonThe options are look-alikes: advice/advise, affect/effect, stationary/stationery, principal/principle, allusion/illusion.
How to solve: First work out which part of speech the slot needs (after a/the -> noun; after a subject, can or will -> verb), then the meaning (still vs paper, head vs rule). One clue word in the sentence always decides it.
Example: Lack of sleep can seriously ___ a student's concentration.
affect — a verb is needed after 'can', meaning influence; effect is usually the noun.
Phrasal verb blank
very commonOne verb (call, look, put, turn, give) is shown with the particle missing, or the options are four verb + particle combinations.
How to solve: Say the meaning the sentence needs in plain words (cancel, investigate, tolerate, postpone, emit), then choose the particle that gives that meaning. Watch for 'look forward to', where to is a preposition and takes V-ing.
Example: Because of the cyclone warning, the fair was put ___ till next month.
off — put off = postpone; 'till next month' confirms the delay.
Tense / verb-form blank
very commonTime anchors (since, for, by the time, when, if, had) surround the blank; the options are one verb in different tenses or forms.
How to solve: Circle the anchor. since/for -> perfect; earlier of two past events -> had + V3; if (type 1) -> simple present; Had + subject + V3 -> would have + V3; enjoy/deny -> V-ing; decide/refuse -> to + V1. Check agreement last (neither of / the number of -> singular).
Example: Had she left home earlier, she ___ the flight.
would have caught — the inverted type-3 condition needs would have + V3.
Connective / relative pronoun blank
very commonThe blank joins two clauses (although, because, yet) or a noun to a clause (who, whom, whose, which), or completes a hardly/no sooner frame.
How to solve: Name the relationship between the two sides (contrast, cause, result, time) and choose the connector with that meaning. Then check what follows: despite/because of take a noun, although/because take a clause. For pronouns: who = subject, whom = object or after a preposition, whose = possession.
Example: The scientist to ___ the award was given belongs to Kerala.
whom — a preposition needs the object form; 'to who' is ungrammatical.
Double blank (pair options)
commonTwo blanks, and every option is a comma-joined pair: correlatives (neither, nor), fixed idioms (safe, sound) or range pairs (from, to).
How to solve: Test each whole pair in place. Remove pairs with mismatched partners first (neither ... or, hardly ... than). Then use the visible verb: both ... and takes a plural verb, while neither/either ... nor/or agree with the nearer subject. Read to the full stop before choosing.
Example: ___ the teachers ___ the principal was informed about the inspection.
Neither, nor — the singular 'was' agrees with the nearer 'principal'; 'Both ... and' would need 'were'.
Correlative time frame (hardly / no sooner)
commonThe sentence opens with Hardly had, Scarcely had or No sooner had, and the blank is the second partner (or the auxiliary 'had').
How to solve: No sooner -> than; hardly / scarcely -> when. The first clause is in the past perfect (had + V3) and the second in the simple past. 'Then' is always a decoy.
Example: No sooner had the rain stopped ___ the children ran out to play.
than — the only partner of no sooner; 'when' belongs to hardly and scarcely.