Prepositions And Conjunctions MCQs
High-yield multiple choice questions asked in previous years (UPSC, SSC CGL, JKSSB, RRB & State PSCs).
High-Yield Concept Capsule & Key Facts
📌 Standard grammar and error spotting component in SSC CGL, CHSL, CDS, NDA, Bank PO/Clerk, and State PSCs.
Fixed Prepositions & Case Governance
- • Abide by, Abstain from, Accused of, Acquitted of, Adhere to, Adjacent to, Afraid of, Agree with (person) / Agree to (proposal).
- • Congratulate on (never 'for'), Cope with (never 'cope up with'), Deprive of, Eligible for, Insist on, Prevent from, Superior to (Latin adjectives ending in -ior take 'to', not 'than').
- • Preposition of Time: 'At' for exact clock time, 'On' for days and dates, 'In' for months, years, and long durations.
- • 'Since' denotes a specific point in time (Since 2010, Since morning); 'For' denotes a period/duration of time (For 5 years, For 2 hours).
Correlative Conjunctions & Parallelism Rules
- • Neither... nor, Either... or, Not only... but also: Connect identical grammatical structures (noun with noun, verb with verb).
- • Proximity Rule: When subjects are joined by 'neither... nor', 'either... or', or 'not only... but also', the verb agrees with the closer subject.
- • Scarcely / Hardly are followed by 'when' or 'before' (never 'than').
- • No sooner is followed by 'than' (never 'when' or 'then') and triggers subject-auxiliary inversion (e.g. 'No sooner had he arrived than...').
- • Lest is followed by 'should' or bare subjunctive (never 'not', as 'lest' is inherently negative).
| Conjunction / Phrase | Mandatory Paired Word | Common Grammatical Trap |
|---|---|---|
| Hardly / Scarcely | ...when / before | Do NOT use 'than' |
| No sooner | ...than | Do NOT use 'when' or 'then' |
| Not only | ...but also | Must maintain parallel structural placement |
| Lest | ...should | Do NOT use negative 'not' with lest |
| Between | ...and | Do NOT pair with 'to' (use 'from... to' instead) |
| Both | ...and | Do NOT pair with 'as well as' |
Fill in the blank: The officer congratulated him ______ his spectacular achievement in the national tournament.
Choose the correct sentence:
Identify the correct conjunction to fill the blank: Hardly had the train stopped ______ the passengers rushed to board it.
Fill in the blank: This novel is superior ______ the previous edition published last year.
Fill in the blank: Walk carefully lest you ______ stumble in the dark.
Fill in the blank: He has been working in this government department ______ 2018.
Fill in the blank: The committee members agreed ______ the chairperson's new proposal unanimously.
Identify the segment containing an error: 'Neither the manager (A) / nor his assistants (B) / was present (C) / at the meeting (D).'
Fill in the blank: The shopkeeper was accused ______ selling adulterated spices.
Choose the correct sentence:
Fill in the blank: She was completely absorbed ______ her research project.
Fill in the blank: No sooner had the bell rung ______ the students rushed out of the classrooms.
Fill in the blank: He abstained ______ casting his vote during the parliamentary division.
Fill in the blank: Both Ravi ______ his brother were invited to the convocation.
Fill in the blank: The defendant was acquitted ______ all charges due to lack of evidence.
Frequently Asked Questions (Prepositions And Conjunctions)
Q: What is the difference between 'Since' and 'For' in English grammar?
'Since' is used with a specific starting point in time in the past (e.g., since Monday, since 1995, since 8:00 AM) and is typically used with perfect tenses. 'For' is used to measure a duration or period of time (e.g., for three days, for six months, for two hours).
Q: Why is 'Senior than me' grammatically incorrect?
Comparative Latin adjectives ending in '-ior' (senior, junior, superior, inferior, prior, anterior, posterior) take the preposition 'to' instead of the conjunction 'than'. The correct sentence is 'He is senior to me'.
Q: What inversion rule applies to 'No sooner' at the beginning of a sentence?
When 'No sooner' starts a sentence, it requires auxiliary inversion: 'No sooner did he arrive than...' or 'No sooner had he seen the police than he fled'. The connecting correlative word must always be 'than', never 'when'.
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