English Grammar & Vocabulary Short Tricks (Zero Level → SSC CGL

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Complete Notes + Memory Tricks + Examples

English in SSC CGL is based on:

• Grammar (50–60%)
• Vocabulary (20–25%)
• Reading Comprehension (15–20%)
• Error Detection & Sentence Improvement

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PART 1: Parts of Speech (8 Parts)

Trick

“PNVAAPIC”

“Please Never Visit A Angry Police Inspector Constantly.”

Letter	Part of Speech	Example
P	Pronoun	He, She
N	Noun	Boy, Delhi
V	Verb	Go, Eat
A	Adjective	Beautiful
A	Adverb	Quickly
P	Preposition	In, On
I	Interjection	Wow!
C	Conjunction	And, But

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PART 2: Tenses

Trick

There are 12 Tenses

3 + 4 = 12

Time	Types
Present	4
Past	4
Future	4

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Present Tense Formula

Present Simple

Subject + V1 + s/es

Example

He plays cricket.

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Present Continuous

Subject + is/am/are + V1+ing

Example

She is reading.

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Present Perfect

Subject + has/have + V3

Example

I have completed my work.

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Present Perfect Continuous

has/have been + V1+ing

Example

He has been studying for two hours.

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PART 3: Subject–Verb Agreement Trick

Trick

Singular → Singular Verb

Plural → Plural Verb

Example

He plays.

They play.

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Important SSC Rule

Each

Every

Everyone

Everybody

Someone

Anybody

Nobody

All take a singular verb.

Example

Everybody is happy.

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PART 4: Articles

Trick

AEIOU = An

Use an before vowel sounds.

Example

an apple

an orange

an honest man (silent “h”)

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Use a before consonant sounds.

Example

a university (starts with “yu”)

a European country (starts with “yu”)

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PART 5: Preposition Trick

At

Specific Time

at 5 PM

at night

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On

Days

Dates

on Monday

on 15 August

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In

Months

Years

Seasons

Cities

Countries

in July

in 2026

in India

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SSC Trick

At → Point

On → Surface/Day

In → Inside/Longer Period

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PART 6: Active–Passive Voice Trick

Formula

Object becomes Subject

Example

Ram writes a letter.

↓

A letter is written by Ram.

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PART 7: Direct–Indirect Speech

Trick

Today → That day

Tomorrow → The next day

Yesterday → The previous day

Now → Then

Here → There

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PART 8: Modals

Modal	Use
Can	Ability
Could	Past Ability
May	Permission
Might	Possibility
Must	Necessity
Should	Advice
Would	Polite Request

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PART 9: Vocabulary Tricks

Prefix Trick

Prefix	Meaning
Un	Not
Dis	Opposite
Mis	Wrong
Re	Again
Pre	Before
Post	After

Examples

Happy

Unhappy

Agree

Disagree

Write

Rewrite

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Suffix Trick

Suffix	Example
ful	Helpful
less	Careless
able	Readable
ness	Happiness
tion	Education

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PART 10: Common Confusing Words

Word	Meaning
Accept	Receive
Except	Leave Out
Affect	Influence
Effect	Result
Advice	Noun
Advise	Verb
Loose	Not Tight
Lose	Misplace

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PART 11: One-Word Substitution

Meaning	Word
One who cannot read	Illiterate
One who knows many languages	Polyglot
One who loves mankind	Philanthropist
One who loves books	Bibliophile
One who studies stars	Astronomer

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PART 12: Idioms

Idiom	Meaning
A piece of cake	Very Easy
Break the ice	Start Conversation
Once in a blue moon	Very Rare
Hit the nail on the head	Exactly Right
Burn the midnight oil	Study Late

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PART 13: Synonyms

Word	Synonym
Happy	Glad
Brave	Courageous
Big	Large
Rich	Wealthy
Honest	Truthful

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PART 14: Antonyms

Word	Opposite
Ancient	Modern
Victory	Defeat
Expand	Contract
Accept	Reject
Maximum	Minimum

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PART 15: SSC Error Detection Tricks

Trick 1

After

One of the

Use Plural Noun

Example

One of the students

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Trick 2

After

Each

Every

Use Singular Noun

Example

Every student

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Trick 3

Many

Several

Few

Use Plural Noun

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Trick 4

Much

Little

Use Uncountable Noun

Example

Much water

Little milk

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Trick 5

Since → Point of Time

For → Period of Time

Examples

Since 2020

For five years

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30 SSC Practice Questions

Fill in the Blanks

1. He ___ to school every day. (go/goes)
2. She has ___ the work. (complete/completed)
3. I met him ___ Monday. (in/on)
4. He is one of the best ___. (student/students)
5. Everybody ___ ready. (is/are)

Error Detection

6. Each boys is present.
7. She don’t like tea.
8. He have completed the work.
9. One of the student is absent.
10. She is senior than me.

Vocabulary

11. Synonym of Honest
12. Antonym of Ancient
13. Meaning of Philanthropist
14. One-word substitution for “One who knows many languages”
15. Meaning of “Break the ice”

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Answers

1. goes
2. completed
3. on
4. students
5. is
6. boys → boy
7. don’t → doesn’t
8. have → has
9. student → students
10. than → to (“senior to”)
11. Truthful
12. Modern
13. A person who loves and helps humanity
14. Polyglot
15. To start a conversation

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30-Day English Study Plan

Days	Topic
1–3	Parts of Speech
4–6	Tenses
7–9	Subject–Verb Agreement
10–12	Articles & Determiners
13–15	Prepositions
16–18	Active–Passive Voice
19–21	Direct–Indirect Speech
22–24	Vocabulary (Synonyms, Antonyms, One-Word Substitutions)
25–27	Idioms & Phrases
28–30	Mixed SSC CGL Previous Year Questions

Golden SSC CGL Strategy

• 📖 Learn 10 new vocabulary words daily.
• ✍️ Practice 20 grammar questions every day.
• 📰 Read an English newspaper editorial or article for 15–20 minutes to improve vocabulary and comprehension.
• 🔁 Revise grammar rules every weekend.
• 📝 Solve SSC CGL Previous Year English papers regularly to identify recurring patterns.

Following this routine consistently will help you build a strong grammar foundation and improve both accuracy and speed for SSC CGL English.