Word and Structure Knowledge
FANBOYS — Coordinating conjunctions: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So. Use to join independent clauses or equal elements in sentences. Essential for punctuation and sentence structure questions.
A/AN article rule — Use 'an' before vowel *sounds* (an hour, an MBA), not just vowel letters. 'A' before consonant sounds (a university, a one-rupee coin). Sound matters, not spelling.
BISHAFC Prepositions — Place prepositions: Behind, In, Side, Here, Above, Front, Corner. Time: at specific times, on days/dates, in months/years/centuries. Direction: to, towards, into, through.
12 Tenses Formula — 4 aspects (Simple/Continuous/Perfect/Perfect Continuous) × 3 times (Past/Present/Future) = 12 tenses. Simple uses base verb forms; Continuous uses -ing; Perfect uses have/had/will have + past participle.
RAVEN parts of speech — Remembering adjectives: Red (color), Any (quantity), Very (intensity), Eight (number), New (quality/opinion). Adjectives answer: which one? what kind? how many? whose?
Reported Speech backshift — Direct to Indirect: Present Simple → Past Simple; Present Continuous → Past Continuous; Present Perfect → Past Perfect; Will → Would; Can → Could; Today → That day; Tomorrow → Next/Following day.
Common Homophone Pairs — Their/There/They're; Your/You're; Its/It's; To/Too/Two; Principle/Principal; Stationary/Stationery; Complement/Compliment; Affect (verb)/Effect (noun). Match spelling to meaning, not sound.
Order of Adjectives: OSASCOMP — Opinion, Size, Age, Shape, Color, Origin, Material, Purpose. Example: beautiful (opinion) small (size) old (age) round (shape) red (color) Italian (origin) leather (material) dancing (purpose) shoes.
Common Collocations Pattern — Strong tea (not powerful tea), heavy rain (not strong rain), make a decision (not do/take), do homework (not make), catch a cold, pay attention, take a chance/risk/break.
Phrasal Verb Separability — Transitive separable: turn off/on (can say "turn it off"). Transitive inseparable: look after (must say "look after him," not "look him after"). Intransitive: break down, grow up (no object).
Common One-Word Substitutions — Regicide (king killer), Matricide (mother killer), Omnipotent (all-powerful), Altruist (selfless person), Bibliophile (book lover), Gregarious (sociable), Misogynist (woman hater), Philanthropist (humanity lover). Link root words.
Punctuation COMMA Rules — Use commas: lists of 3+, after introductory phrases, before FANBOYS joining clauses, around non-essential clauses, after transitions (However, Therefore). No comma between subject-verb or verb-object.
Reading
PIE Author's Purpose — Persuade (convince/argue), Inform (explain/teach), Entertain (amuse/engage). Identify tone words: persuade uses "should/must"; inform uses facts/statistics; entertain uses humor/stories/descriptions.
Cloze Test: Read-First Strategy — Read entire passage once without filling blanks to grasp context. Then fill blanks considering grammar (part of speech needed), meaning (context clues), and collocation (natural word combinations).
5W1H Retrieval — Find information by scanning for Who, What, When, Where, Why, How. These question words guide where to look: dates/numbers for when, proper nouns for who, action verbs for what.
Poetry SIFT Analysis — Symbolism (deeper meanings), Imagery (sensory details), Figurative language (metaphors/similes), Tone/Theme. Helps comprehend poem's layers and answer interpretation questions systematically.
Spoken and Written Expression
Para Jumble: Opening-Closing Technique — Find the opening sentence (introduces topic, no pronouns referring back). Find closing (concludes/summarizes). Look for transition words: firstly/however/therefore/finally to arrange middle sentences.
Editing: CUPS Check — Capitalization (proper nouns, sentence starts), Usage (grammar/tense agreement), Punctuation (commas, periods, apostrophes), Spelling (homophones, common errors). Apply this sequence when spotting errors.
Dialogue Punctuation Rule — Comma before closing quotation if sentence continues: He said, "I'm ready," and left. Period inside if sentence ends: She replied, "Never." New speaker = new paragraph. Question/exclamation marks inside quotes.
Formal vs Informal Register — Formal: avoid contractions, use passive voice, no slang, complete sentences. Informal: contractions OK, active voice, colloquial expressions, sentence fragments acceptable. Match writing style to audience/purpose.
Achievers Section
Figures of Speech: MAPS — Metaphor (direct comparison: life is a journey), Alliteration (repeated consonants: Peter Piper), Personification (human traits to non-human), Simile (like/as comparison: brave as a lion). Plus oxymoron, hyperbole.
Context Clue Types — Definition (term defined in sentence), Synonym (similar word nearby), Antonym (opposite with but/however), Example (such as, for instance), Inference (use surrounding sentences). Identify type first, then deduce meaning.
Tone Word Categories — Positive: optimistic, enthusiastic, admiring, respectful. Negative: critical, pessimistic, sarcastic, indignant, cynical. Neutral: objective, informative, straightforward. Match vocabulary intensity to passage emotion level for accuracy.