Sentence Completion tips – CONTEXT 80/ VOCABULARY 20

1. Read the questions consciously without looking at the answer choices.

2, Hunt for the keywords (cause,effect VS contrast) and get the direction ( either joining or contrasting)

3. According to the "context", try to put in your own word (it’s okay even if you have just a vague idea of
what may come in the blank)

4. Using Elimination Process, try to kick out the irrelevant words ( For eg: if you are looking for a negative
word, kick out the positive words and vice versa)

Note: It’s all a matter of picking the right keywords and ignoring the insignificant words and there may be
more than one entry point to solve an SC.
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Most, if not all, SC questions on the GRE may belong to either JOINING or CONTRASTING.
+,+ -,+
-,- +,-
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Keywords -2 types: Joining and Contrasting

Joining words - Cause and effect or Karma;)

1. Sarah scored 333 in GRE.

2. She made her parents proud.

X and Y : Sarah scored 333 in GRE and made her parents proud.
Because X, Y: Because Sarah scored 333 in GRE, she made her parents proud.
Since X, Y: Since Sarah scored 333 in GRE, she made her parents proud.
So X..that Y: Sarah scored so high in gre (333) that her parents felt very proud.
So X as to Y: Sarah scored so high in GRE as to make her parents feel proud.
Not only X but also Y: Sarah not only scored 333 in GRE but also she made her parents proud.
By V+ing – cause : By scoring 333 in GRE, she made her parents proud.
, for = because – Sarah made her parents proud, for she scored 333 in GRE.

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Indeed – INTENSIFIER (Used to emphasize the previous part/sentence )
Maharashtra’s post-election events were very unpredictable and dramatic. Indeed, the political analysts
were left shocked.
I am smart. Indeed, I made Einstein look inferior in front of me. (more smart)
Rafael Nadal is unrelenting. Indeed, he had just won the match when he was 0-5 down.

X. Indeed, more X.
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V+ing rule – shows Cause and Effect.
V+ing(cause)………….. , ………………. Having won the match, England shut the door on Pak.
………… , V+ing(effect)……….England won the match vs NZ, shutting the door on Pak
Colon (:) – one of the most key indicators in SC.

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE POSITION OF COLON– usually reinstates the

previous sentence or in other words, summarizes/elaborates the previous sentence.

X:Y = X and Y are one and the same.

India is a secular country: Law dominates religion.
Sarah is a _______ girl: she donates blood every month.
MSD is an _______: He neither rejects nor accepts god.

Semicolon(;) ( almost as good as a fullstop)

Unless there is any contrasting keyword after semi-colon, it’s always taken as JOINING.
99% - Joining

Between two Commas (, ,) ( - -) ( ) – Extra information

Descriptor – some useful information about the previous word

Dhoni, a brilliant captain of his times, won big trophies all his career.
Dhoni, traditionally seen only as an ODI and T20 batsman, surprised everyone when he excelled at ______
level.

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Contrasting Words ( Unexpected or unusual things) - Used to connect two CONTRASTING/CONFLICTING

words/phrases/connotations ( +-/-+)

But: He was talented without doubt but his _______ undermined his talent.
Yet: Religions are to bring peace and order in human lives yet, ironically, it’s the same _______ that
brings ______.
Still: Roger is 38 yr old still he can outrun the ______ guys in Tennis.
Though/eventhough/although: Although demonetization created ______ ,it boosted the economy
Inspite of/ Despite: Despite a poor rating, Kabir singh is a ______.
While/whereas: While it is irrefutable that Gandhi was beyond criticism during his freedom, he was ____
posthumously.
Even as X, Y = Eventhough X, Y – Even as the mainstream media was critical about HYDERABAD
“encounter”, the public seemed to have _______ it.
Albeit: India defeated Afghanistan, albeit by a ______ margin.
Rather/instead: I would rather marry a poor yet hardworking man THAN a rich yet _____ man.
Nevertheless/nonetheless/notwithstanding : Notwithstanding the victory Modi got, South India still
appears ______ for Modi.
However/whatever/regardless/no matter what : Regardless of the admiration you have for Kohli’s
batting, his attitude off the field gives me the ________.
Even* the most dumb person would _________ your brilliantly concocted story.
In fact / as if
On the other hand/belies/contrasts/on the contrary
For all = Despite; For all his talents, Messi couldn’t _______ the world cup.

Ironically/Paradoxically/Unfortunately/Surprisingly/Remarkably, oddly,
Strangely/peculiarly/interestingly, the ambulance took my best friend’s life.
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Dhoni who is predominantly a cool person SURPRISED everyone by yelling at sehwag in public.
Meera was poor yet happy
Meera was rich still unhappy
Saina Nehwal won the finals even with the injured hand.
Inspite of being rich, she lead an unhappy life
Despite the fact he was very handsome, girls hardly gave him second looks.
Sachin is the best batsman in the world. On the other hand, he succumbs under pressure.
India worships cows. Ironically, Indians are one of the biggest producers of cow meat.
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Transition words (past vs present) – CONTRASTING -II

Now / at first / later

Till recently / formerly
At last / initially
Finally/Earlier
Before/after
Originally
Supposed to be/Actually
Once/Long
Previously /
Unlike
No longer
Was /were /had vs is/are/have/has been/have been ( transition in tense may also at times indicate
contrast)

Mirrors of NOT – blank changes but context remains same ( VERY VERY VERY IMPORTANT)
Little/Few/Anything but/Hardly/Rarely/Barely/Scant/Scarcely/Lack/Absence/Seldom
Least/Less/Never/Reluctant/hesitant/Hard/difficult/Wary/ Seemingly.

You may be too naïve to believe whatever he says but I would be a bit wary to ______ everything at face
value.
He was very gullible in the past when he first came to USA but now he is anything but ____________

Sarcasm: Kohli is a “calm” person.

The supposed/socalled/purported/perceived distinction between south Indians and North Indians has
been _____ by critics.

Although X, hardly Y ( X and Y are the same)

X: seldom Y ( X and Y are different)

Little surprise when the history books in Pakistan stated that India was once part of Pakistan.
Egyptian women hardly choose to work after marriage.
Scant attention was given to Vinod Kambli by Sachin during his farewell speech at Wankede.
Few road accidents in Pune were reported.
Lack of common sense lead to his downfall.
Seldom do I drink and drive.
Beware of EVEN ( can rub both ways)

Contrasting: Even the most _______ person would not believe that story you are manufacturing out of
thin air

Intensifier (Joining): The rain was harsh on Chennai last dec 2014; This dec the rain was even ________

Thumb Rule: You see a blank followed by some words/sometimes no words, then you see a
comma and whatever that comes after
the comma says something about the given blank
- 100 percent joining.

Not so much X as Y – More of X than Y. When Dhoni retired, his fans didn’t feel so much disappointed as
sad.

If you say that something is not so much one thing as something else, you mean it is more the second
thing.
Examples : They are not so much lovers as friends.
I do not feel angry so much as sad.

X, not Y
He is X, if not Y – The session was informative, if not fascinating.
He is nothing if not persistent. ( very)

Between the commas - Descriptor

MS DHONI, long known to tackle any tough situation with finesse and ease, has recently ________ many
situations which hardly require _________

In the above sentence, the phrase between the two commas is very crucial to solving this.
However, it is not important in the following sentence.

The brief review on Harry potter, a book written by Stephen Hawkins who had also written Chronicles of
Narnia, is oddly _______ .

Here, it’s not that important. You can easily grade it out and read it as

The brief review on Harry Potter is oddly _________

Sarcasm = Contrast
Socalled/ Supposed/ Perceived/ Purported/ Seemingly + Manmohan Singh was a “vocal” PM.

PLEASE INCULCATE THE HABIT OF READING ATLEAST 1 HOUR RELIGIOUSLY.

NO READING = YOU WONT SCORE MORE THAN 145 or READING WILL HELP YOU
SCORE MORE THAN 150 WITH EASE.