SSC CHSL Tier I 2023 – 4 Aug, Shift 2 Question Paper with Answers

In the passive, the object ‘a large number of trees’ becomes the subject. ‘A large number of’ takes a plural verb, and the simple past ‘uprooted’ becomes ‘were uprooted’, followed by ‘by the storm’.

Answer: A large number of trees were uprooted by the storm yesterday.

‘was killed by him’ is simple past passive. In the active, the doer ‘he’ becomes the subject and the verb stays in the simple past: ‘He killed his wife.’

Answer: He killed his wife.

When two qualities of the same person are compared, the -er form is not used; we use ‘more’ + positive degree: ‘more brave than intelligent’.

Answer: more brave than intelligent

‘Kin’ means one’s family and relations. A kilt is a Scottish skirt, ‘kine’ is an old word for cows and ‘kindle’ means to set alight.

Answer: Kin

The ‘as … as’ comparison takes the positive degree of the adjective, not the superlative: ‘as clever as’.

Answer: as clever as

‘Defunct’ means no longer existing or functioning. ‘Obsolete’ (out of use, no longer in existence) is the closest synonym.

Answer: obsolete

‘Conspicuous’ means clearly visible or easily noticed, i.e. ‘obvious’. ‘Unnoticeable’ is its opposite.

Answer: Obvious

‘Brazen’ means bold and without shame. ‘Unashamed’ matches; ‘shy’, ‘ashamed’ and ‘modest’ are opposite in sense.

Answer: Unashamed

The fixed expression is ‘in record time’ (very quickly). ‘On/to/at record time’ are not idiomatic.

Answer: finish the marathon in record time

‘Fierce’ means violent or aggressive; its opposite is ‘gentle’.

Answer: Gentle

The correct spelling is ‘Jewellery’ (British) or ‘Jewelry’ (American). ‘Professional’, ‘Revolutionise’ and ‘Conscientiousness’ are spelt correctly.

Answer: Jewelerry

The pronoun refers to ‘many of the European languages’, which is plural, so the possessive must be ‘their’: ‘with their dialectical varieties’.

Answer: with their dialectical varieties

‘Out of the blue’ means unexpectedly, without warning, which fits a son arriving suddenly after 20 years.

Answer: out of the blue

‘Camouflage’ means hiding or disguising something so that it blends with its surroundings; ‘disguise’ is the synonym.

Answer: Disguise

‘Diminutive’ means extremely small, i.e. ‘miniature’. ‘Enormous’ is its opposite.

Answer: Miniature

‘Hit the sack’ is an informal idiom meaning to go to bed / go to sleep, which fits boys returning at midnight.

Answer: went to sleep

‘Entaire’ is misspelt; the correct word is ‘entire’ (whole). ‘Preview’, ‘glimpse’ and ‘version’ are spelt correctly in the sentence.

Answer: entire

The subject comes first: S ‘everything available in our environment’, then Q ‘which can be used to satisfy our needs’, then the condition P ‘provided it is technologically accessible, economically feasible’, and finally R ‘and culturally acceptable can be termed as ‘Resource’’.

Order: SQPR.

Answer: SQPR

A ‘cacographer’ is a person who spells or writes badly. A cartographer makes maps, a calligrapher does fine handwriting and a chauffeur drives a car.

Answer: Cacographer

A ‘pessimist’ always expects the worst. An optimist expects the best.

Answer: Pessimist

The fixed phrase is ‘part and parcel’ (an essential part): guests are treated as part and parcel of the family.

Answer: parcel

‘Look after’ means take care of. Guests are ‘always looked after’ by the family members.

Answer: looked

A ‘driving force’ is the main power behind something: elders are the driving force of the family.

Answer: driving

The love and respect comes ‘from within’ (from the heart) and is not artificial — the contrast with ‘artificial’ fixes the answer.

Answer: within

Elders ‘pass on’ (hand down) the culture to the young as they grow. ‘Grow on’, ‘put on’ and ‘hold on’ do not fit.

Answer: pass on

The completed series is D F H J L N P R T V X — each letter is 2 places after the previous one.

Blanks: H, J, N, R, T, X = HJNRTX.

Answer: HJNRTX

The rule alternates ×2 and +3: 8 × 2 = 16, 16 + 3 = 19, 19 × 2 = 38, 38 + 3 = 41, 41 × 2 = 82.

Answer: 19

Two alternate series: 84, 91, ?, 105 (+7 each) and 90, 99, 108 (+9 each).

The missing term is 91 + 7 = 98.

Answer: 98

‘you’ is the only word common to both sentences, and ‘sq’ is the only code common to both. So ‘you’ = sq.

Answer: sq

Each letter moves 7 places forward: B→I, F→M, G→N, D→K and P→W, T→A, U→B, R→Y.

GKLI → G+7 = N, K+7 = R, L+7 = S, I+7 = P = NRSP.

Answer: NRSP

Code = sum of the letters’ positions + number of letters. TARNISH: 20+1+18+14+9+19+8 = 89, + 7 = 96. CORRECT: 3+15+18+18+5+3+20 = 82, + 7 = 89.

GENERAL: 7+5+14+5+18+1+12 = 62, + 7 = 69.

Answer: 69

Some Dances are Groups and all Dances are Art, so those Dances that are Groups are Art: some Groups are Art — II follows.

Walls and Dances share only the class Art; no definite overlap between Walls and Dances is given, so I does not follow.

Answer: Only conclusion (II) follows.

First letters: O, U, A, G (+6) → M. Second letters: C, G, K, O (+4) → S. Third letters: J, L, N, P (+2) → R.

Next term: MSR.

Answer: MSR

Each cluster is four consecutive letters in reverse order: YXWV, TSRQ, ONML, JIHG, EDCB.

Blanks: Y, R, L, I, C = YRLIC.

Answer: YRLIC

VXA: V+2 = X, X+3 = A. MOR: M+2 = O, O+3 = R. CEH: C+2 = E, E+3 = H.

JLN goes +2, +2, so it is the odd one.

Answer: JLN

169 = 13², and 13 − 2 = 11. 625 = 25², and 25 − 2 = 23.

961 = 31², so 31 − 2 = 29.

Answer: 29

Second number = (first number)³ + 11: 7³ + 11 = 354, 5³ + 11 = 136, 8³ + 11 = 523.

But 9³ + 11 = 740, not 742, so 9 : 742 is different.

Answer: 9 : 742

352 + 179 = 531 and 271 + 179 = 450.

So 725 + 179 = 904.

Answer: 904

Second number = 2 × first − 3: 2 × 39 − 3 = 75, 2 × 55 − 3 = 107, 2 × 64 − 3 = 125.

But 2 × 43 − 3 = 83, not 82, so pair (2) 43 – 82 is the odd one.

Answer: 2

14 May 1953 to 14 May 1963 is 10 years with 2 leap years (1956, 1960): 10 + 2 = 12 odd days = 5 odd days, so 14 May 1963 is Thursday + 5 = Tuesday.

From 14 May to 27 July: 17 (May) + 30 (June) + 27 (July) = 74 days = 4 odd days. Tuesday + 4 = Saturday.

Answer: Saturday

The rule alternates ×3 and ÷2: 36 × 3 = 108, 108 ÷ 2 = 54, 54 × 3 = 162, 162 ÷ 2 = 81, 81 × 3 = 243.

Answer: 162

To cancel and to drop (a plan) mean the same — they are synonyms.

Similarly, cackle and giggle are both kinds of laughing, so they are near-synonyms.

Answer: Cackle : Giggle

STRANGE in alphabetical order: A E G N R S T.

Fourth from the left is N and second from the right is S. Between N and S come O, P, Q, R — four letters.

Answer: Four

V ÷ W: V is the brother of W. W + X: W is the wife of X. X − Y: X is the father of Y. Y × Z: Y is the sister of Z.

So X is Z’s father and W is Z’s mother; V, W’s brother, is Z’s mother’s brother.

Answer: Mother’s brother

Bags and keys are both inside Pots, but they need not overlap, so I does not follow.

Lamps lie wholly outside Pots and all keys are inside Pots, so no key is a lamp: II follows.

Answer: Only conclusion (II) follows

Replace the letters: 67 + 429 ÷ 11 × 5 − 85.

429 ÷ 11 = 39; 39 × 5 = 195; 67 + 195 − 85 = 177.

Answer: 177

1 km on the ground = 0.2 cm on the map, so 1 km² = 0.2 × 0.2 = 0.04 cm².

Area on the map = 22500 × 0.04 = 900 — in cm², although SSC’s options print the unit as km².

Answer: 900km²

Totals over the three cities (thousands): Car 4.5 + 3.0 + 3.0 = 10.5; Bus 2.5 + 3.0 + 4.5 = 10.0; Truck 3.4 + 3.5 + 3.5 = 10.4; Bike 3.2 + 3.3 + 3.4 = 9.9.

Cars are the most numerous.

Answer: Car

Total bill = 560 + 90 + 45 = ₹695.

Discount = 10% of 695 = ₹69.50.

Answer: ₹69.50

Discount = 850 − 700 = ₹150.

Rate = 150/850 × 100 ≈ 17.65%, i.e. about 17.64%.

Answer: 17.64%

Anam’s share = 3/5 of the profit = ₹3,840.

Total profit = 3840 × 5/3 = ₹6,400.

Answer: ₹6,400

(a + b)² = a² + 2ab + b² holds for all a and b, so it is an identity.

The others fail, e.g. for a = 1, b = 1: (a − b)² = 0 but a² − b² − 2ab = −2.

Answer: (a + b)² = a² + b² + 2ab

sec²θ = 1 + tan²θ = 1 + 16/25 = 41/25.

sec θ = √41/5.

Answer: √41/5

Opposite angles of a rhombus are equal, so ∠SVU = ∠STU = 92°.

The diagonal SU bisects the angles, so ∠TSU = (180° − 92°)/2 = 44° (= ∠SUV).

4 × 92° − 3 × 44° = 368° − 132° = 236°.

Answer: 236°

27% + 4% = 31% of the salary = ₹3,038.

Salary = 3038 × 100/31 = ₹9,800.

Answer: ₹9,800

Amount = 25000 × (1.1)³ = 25000 × 1.331 = ₹33,275.

CI = 33275 − 25000 = ₹8,275.

Answer: ₹8,275

PQR is equilateral with side a; the altitude PM = (√3/2)a.

So PM² = 3a²/4, i.e. 4PM² = 3PQ².

Answer: 3PQ² = 4PM²

Retailer’s margin 22.5% = ₹3,55,500, so the total = 3,55,500/0.225 = ₹15,80,000 and 1% = ₹15,800.

Royalty (10%) + Editing (7.5%) = 17.5% = ₹2,76,500 ✔. Check the others: printing + editing = 20% = ₹3,16,000; promotion − editing = 5% = ₹79,000; margin − editing = 15% = ₹2,37,000 — all wrong.

Answer: The sum of the cost incurred towards payment of royalty and the cost of editing is ₹2,76,500.

2 tan A/(1 − tan² A) = tan 2A = tan 60° = √3.

Among the options, 3/√3 = √3.

Answer: 3/√3

Let the marked price of a pen be ₹1. CP of 50 pens = ₹44.

SP of 50 pens at 1% discount = 50 × 0.99 = ₹49.50. Profit = 5.50/44 × 100 = 12.5%.

Answer: 12.5%

Volume of the new cube = 15³ + 18³ + 25³ = 3375 + 5832 + 15625 = 24832 cm³.

24832 = 64 × 388, so the side = ∛(64 × 388) = 4∛388 cm.

Answer: 4∛388

Square both sides: tan²θ + cot²θ − 2 tanθ cotθ = 16, and tanθ cotθ = 1.

So tan²θ + cot²θ = 16 + 2 = 18.

Answer: 18

(2² + 4)² = 8² = 64; 64 × (3 − 5) = −128; 20% of 400 = 80; 30% of 30 = 9.

−128 + 80 + 0.3x = 9 ⇒ 0.3x = 57 ⇒ x = 190.

Answer: 190

Total sale = 600 + 700 + 700 + 500 + 450 + 800 = 3750. The highest sale is 800 in September.

800/3750 × 100 ≈ 21.3%.

Answer: September 21.3% nearly

The two radii and the two tangents form a quadrilateral with two right angles (radius ⟂ tangent).

Angle between the tangents = 360° − 90° − 90° − 100° = 80°.

Answer: 80°

Total work = 7 × 4 × 14 = 392 person-hours.

12 people × 8 hours = 96 person-hours a day, so days = 392/96 = 49/12 = 4 1/12 days.

Answer: 4 1/12 days

x + 2/x = 1 ⇒ x² + 2 = x.

Numerator = (x² + 2) + 7x = 8x; denominator = (x² + 2) + 13x = 14x. Value = 8x/14x = 4/7.

Answer: 4/7

Relative speed = 130/6.5 = 20 m/s = 20 × 18/5 = 72 km/h.

Same direction, so train speed = 72 + 12 = 84 km/h.

Answer: 84

He charges for 600 g: SP = 0.6 × 42 = ₹25.20. He actually gives 550 g: CP = 0.55 × 40 = ₹22.

Profit % = 3.20/22 × 100 = 14.5454…%, which SSC’s option gives as 14.54%.

Answer: 14.54%

OS ⟂ PS and OT ⟂ PT, so in quadrilateral OSPT, ∠SOT = 360° − 90° − 90° − 130° = 50°.

OS = OT (radii), so ∠OST = (180° − 50°)/2 = 65°.

Answer: 65°

Square both sides of √(a/b) + √(b/a) = 8/3: a/b + b/a + 2 = 64/9, so (a² + b²)/ab = 46/9.

a² + b² = (a − b)² + 2ab = 100 + 2ab. Then 9(100 + 2ab) = 46ab ⇒ 28ab = 900 ⇒ ab = 225/7 = 32 1/7.

Answer: 32 1/7

The Kalidas Samman, given by the Madhya Pradesh government, honours excellence in classical music, classical dance, theatre and plastic arts.

Saraswati Samman and Jnanpith are literary awards; the Kabir Puraskar rewards communal harmony.

Answer: Kalidas Samman

Article 44 (a Directive Principle) says the State shall endeavour to secure a Uniform Civil Code for citizens throughout India.

Answer: Article 44

The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR, 1972) is an autonomous body under the Ministry of Education (earlier the Ministry of Human Resource Development).

Answer: Ministry of Education

After the Third Plan, annual plans replaced five-year plans (the ‘plan holiday’, 1966–69) because of the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, two successive droughts (1965–66) and the 1966 devaluation of the rupee.

The Gulf War (1990–91) came much later and is linked to the 1990–92 break instead.

Answer: Gulf war

India’s climate is shaped by the Himalayas (blocking cold winds, trapping the monsoon), the Indian Ocean (source of monsoon moisture) and the Western Ghats (orographic rain).

The Sahara Desert is not counted among the factors controlling India’s climate.

Answer: Sahara Desert

The Michelson–Morley experiment (1887) used an interferometer to detect Earth’s motion through the ‘luminiferous aether’. Its null result helped lead to Einstein’s special relativity.

Answer: Michelson and Morley experiment

The Shimsha river rises at Devarayanadurga hill in Tumakuru district, Karnataka, and joins the Kaveri after about 221 km; the Shimsha falls are on it.

Ghataprabha is a Krishna tributary; Waghur and Girna are in the Tapi basin.

Answer: Shimsha river

In 2023 the Indian Deaf Cricket Association announced that India would host the first World Deaf T20 Cricket Championship (held in Kerala in December 2023).

Answer: India

Gair (Ger) is a folk dance of Rajasthan, performed by Bhil men around Holi.

Bihu is from Assam, Dhimsa from Odisha/Andhra Pradesh and Tapu from Arunachal Pradesh.

Answer: Gair

NNP at market price = NDP at factor cost + net factor income from abroad + net indirect taxes.

= 1,25,250 − 581 + 18,120 = ₹1,42,789 crore.

Answer: 1,42,789

The Smart Cities Mission was launched by the Government of India on 25 June 2015 to develop 100 smart cities.

Answer: 2015

Dadabhai Naoroji founded the East India Association in London in 1866 to present Indian views to the British public.

Answer: Dadabhai Naoroji

White light is a mixture of many wavelengths (colours), as a prism shows, so it is polychromatic. Monochromatic light, such as laser light, has a single wavelength.

Answer: polychromatic light

Gross investment includes replacement of worn-out capital; subtracting depreciation gives net investment: Net investment = Gross investment − Depreciation.

Answer: Net investment = Gross investment – Depreciation

Chronic cadmium poisoning causes itai-itai disease (painful bone softening and kidney damage), first seen in Japan. Minamata disease is caused by mercury.

Answer: itai-itai

A is true: the fiscal deficit equals the government’s total borrowing requirement. B is false: recovery of loans reduces assets, so it is a capital receipt, not a revenue receipt.

Answer: Only A

This 2022 Bill amended the SC and ST Orders for Uttar Pradesh: it moved the Gond community in four districts (Sant Kabir Nagar, Kushinagar, Chandauli and Sant Ravidas Nagar) from the SC list to the ST list.

Answer: Uttar Pradesh

Balban stressed the king’s divine dignity and made sijda (prostration) and paibos (kissing the king’s feet) compulsory forms of salutation in his court etiquette.

Answer: Court

A FIDE Grandmaster needs three GM norms and a rating of at least 2500 Elo. Rahul Srivatshav P of Telangana became India’s 74th GM in 2022 on crossing 2500.

Answer: 2500

Public goods are non-rival (one person’s use does not reduce another’s) and non-excludable, so fees are hard to collect and the government usually provides them.

Hence the statement that their consumption is rivalrous is incorrect.

Answer: Consumption of public goods by people is rivalrous in nature.

The theme of India’s 75th Independence Day celebration (15 August 2021, during Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav) was ‘Nation First, Always First’.

Answer: Nation First, Always First

Census 2011 counted about 37.7 crore urban people out of 121 crore, i.e. about 31.16% of India’s population (often rounded to 31.1–31.2%).

Answer: 31.16%

M. M. Keeravani won the 2023 Oscar for Best Original Song for ‘Naatu Naatu’ from the film RRR (lyrics by Chandrabose).

Answer: MM Keeravani

Former India captain Kapil Dev was the special guest at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) in August 2022, where the film ‘83’ on India’s 1983 World Cup win was celebrated.

Answer: Kapil Dev

The Constitution is sensitive to minorities and to historically disadvantaged groups and is open to community values, while committing itself to building a common national identity.

Being ‘non-committal’ to a common national identity is therefore not one of its philosophies.

Answer: Non-committal to building a common national identity