How to Solve 'Fill in the Blank' Questions
STEP 1: Read the statement carefully and
first, try to fill the missing word without looking at the options
STEP 2: Choose the word from the options that
best replaces the word that you had thought of initially
STEP 3: Read the sentence again by replacing
the blank with the option that you have chosen
NOTE: You must ensure that
the word you have inserted in the blank, enables you to read the sentence
smoothly and correctly
STEP 4: Read the sentence one last time to
ensure that there are no grammatical errors in the sentence. Also check whether
the sentence actually makes sense or not, once you have placed the option you
think is correct in place of the blank.
Points to Remember
1. Questions
on 'fill in the blank' are frequently asked in all banking exams. To be able
to solve such questions correctly, you must have a very good vocabulary.
2. It is very important that you read the sentence in the
question very carefully. In most of the cases, clues about the type of
information needed to fill the gap -- a person’s name, a date or a fact -- can
be derived by a good understanding of the meaning of the sentence itself.
3. You
should keep a close watch at grammar clues, for instance, if the
article, “an” comes before the blank, then it implies that the answer must
begin with a vowel. Such grammatical clues can be of great help in deciding the
answers.
4. You must recognise the logical structure of a sentence and pay attention
to what the question requires.
5.
It is necessary that you understand the context of the
sentence. While closely reading the sentence and the options given in the
question, you must try to determine the tone of the missing word -- whether the
required word is positive or negative in the meaning it implies
6.
In certain fill in the blank questions, you are required to fill more than one
blank. In such cases you should use the method of elimination by
simultaneously checking which of the options best satisfies both the entries.
7.
In certain questions your knowledge and understanding of common idioms and
phrases in English Language may be tested. Hence, be sure to have a good
skill set of such phrases.
8.
Ensure that the meaning of the sentence is intact. Once you have
placed the likely option, do check that the sentence gives out a plausible
meaning.
9.
In case you are confused between two or more options, you can also apply the hit
& trial method - one by one place each of the likely options in
place of the missing word in the sentence. The option which credits maximum
meaning to the sentence should be the correct answer.
10. Do not spend a lot of time on one question. If you are unable to spot the
correct answer, despite repeated efforts, leave the question and move forward.
