Grammar - English Aptitude MCQ Questions and Answers

We use 'by' to show how something is done.
For example: We sent a postcard by post.
Same is the case with the above sentence in question.

'He devotes much of his time planning for the future' is correct. No other option makes a meaningful sentence.

The reflexive pronoun of 'he' is 'himself'. Hence, the correct answer is 'himself'.

'by the time' use the future perfect to describe something that will have happened up to that point in time.

We use 'a little' with singular uncountable nouns. We use 'a few' with plural countable nouns. Hence the correct option is A.

'Who' functions as a subject, while 'whom' functions as an object. Use 'who' when the word is performing the action. Use 'whom' when it is receiving the action.

'talks about' means to say words in order to express one's thoughts, feelings, opinions, etc. about (something).
For example - She still talks about your wedding and how perfect it was.

'at the moment' clearly indicates the sentence is in present continuous and therefore 'is writing' will be the correct answer.

Reporting speech is when you tell someone what someone else said. It involves changing the original words (direct speech) into indirect speech.

The question asks about the verb in the reporting speech. Let's define some terms first.

Reporting verb: This is the verb used to introduce the reported speech. Examples include "said," "told," "asked," "explained," etc. It indicates the action of speaking or communicating.

Reported verb: This is the verb in the reported speech itself. It is the verb from the original statement that gets changed when you shift from direct to indirect speech. For example, in the sentence "He said, 'I am happy'," "am" is the verb in direct speech and "was" would be the reported verb in the indirect speech ("He said he was happy").

Option A: Verb: While this is a correct grammatical term, it's too general. The question specifically asks about the verb *within the context of reported speech*.

Option B: Reporting verb: This is the correct answer. The reporting verb is the verb that introduces the reported statement. It's the action of reporting what was said.

Option C: Reported verb: This is the verb in the reported clause, not the verb that introduces the reported speech.

Option D: Reporting speech: This refers to the entire indirect statement, not just the verb within it.

When deciding whether to use 'is' or 'are', look at whether the noun is plural or singular. If the noun is singular, use 'is'. If it is plural or there is more than one noun, use 'are'.