Active and passive voice: rules for every tense
How the verb changes in each tense, pronoun changes, modals and imperative sentences, with SSC examples.
Study notes
Antonyms: strategy and 40 high-frequency word pairs
How to find opposites quickly, avoid synonym traps and use prefixes, with a list of 40 common SSC antonym pairs.
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What the question asks
You are given a word, alone or in a sentence, and must choose the word most nearly opposite in meaning. The biggest trap is that SSC often places a synonym among the options. Students who know the word’s meaning but read the question carelessly pick the synonym.
Strategy
- Underline “opposite” in your mind before looking at the options.
- Define the word in your own words first. “Frugal” means careful with money. Now look for “careless with money”: extravagant.
- Check the tone. If the word is positive, the answer is negative, and the other way round. Cross out options with the same tone.
- Match the part of speech. The antonym of an adjective is an adjective. “Bravery” (noun) cannot be the answer for “cowardly” (adjective) if “brave” is offered.
- Use the sentence. In sentence-based questions, the antonym should make the sentence mean the reverse.
Prefix clues
Prefixes such as un-, in-, im-, il-, ir-, dis-, mal- and non- often make opposites: legal → illegal, regular → irregular, honest → dishonest, benevolent → malevolent. But be careful: “inflammable” means the same as “flammable” (easily set on fire), and “invaluable” means extremely valuable.
40 high-frequency pairs
| Word | Antonym | Word | Antonym |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abundant | Scarce | Accept | Reject |
| Admire | Despise | Affluent | Impoverished |
| Amateur | Professional | Ancient | Modern |
| Arrogant | Humble | Artificial | Natural |
| Barren | Fertile | Benevolent | Malevolent |
| Brave | Cowardly | Compulsory | Optional |
| Conceal | Reveal | Condemn | Praise |
| Diligent | Lazy | Enmity | Friendship |
| Ephemeral | Lasting | Expand | Contract |
| Exterior | Interior | Feeble | Strong |
| Frugal | Extravagant | Generous | Miserly |
| Genuine | Fake | Gregarious | Unsociable |
| Hostile | Friendly | Inferior | Superior |
| Lenient | Strict | Lucid | Obscure |
| Meagre | Ample | Modest | Boastful |
| Optimist | Pessimist | Permanent | Temporary |
| Prosperity | Adversity | Prudent | Rash |
| Rigid | Flexible | Timid | Bold |
| Transparent | Opaque | Verbose | Concise |
| Victory | Defeat | Zenith | Nadir |
Tip: Learn words in pairs, not alone. When you meet a new word, write its synonym and its antonym next to it. This doubles the value of every word you learn, because the same list serves both question types.
When no option looks perfect
SSC asks for the word “most nearly” opposite. If none matches exactly, pick the option that is closest in the opposite direction and has the same part of speech. Avoid options that are merely different (unrelated) rather than opposite.
Solved examples
- Choose the antonym of ABUNDANT: (a) plentiful (b) scarce (c) huge (d) rich
Answer: (b) scarce. “Plentiful” is a synonym trap. - Choose the antonym of LENIENT: (a) strict (b) kind (c) mild (d) gentle
Answer: (a) strict. The other three are close in meaning to lenient. - The speaker’s lucid explanation helped everyone. Antonym of “lucid”: (a) clear (b) obscure (c) brief (d) loud
Answer: (b) obscure. Lucid means clear and easy to understand.
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