Start here · the first lesson of Usage (redundancy, confusable words, fixed expressions)
Usage (redundancy, confusable words, fixed expressions)
Grammar: Voice, Narration, Tenses + Rule Bank · for IPMAT Indore, IPMAT Rohtak and JIPMAT
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The idea
Usage items are not about a grammar pattern but about word choice: saying a thing once (no redundancy, no double negative, no roundabout phrasing), choosing between look-alike words, and keeping fixed expressions exactly as they are. Indore tests these heavily in underlined-part correction (2019 Q27, Q31, Q32; 2020 Q16; 2021 Q16; 2022 Q26, Q27; 2023 Q31) and Rohtak 2019 Q27 asked for the natural word ("room").
Textbook vs exam method
Textbook method
Redundancy, double negatives, wordiness (redundancy, double-negative, wordy-construction)
| Right | Wrong |
|---|---|
| The file reverted to its old version. | …reverted back to… |
| Please repeat the address. | …repeat the address again. |
| The reason we moved is that the rent went up. | The reason we moved is because… |
| I can hardly see. | I can't hardly see. |
| a team studying the effects of low pay on morale | a team studying low pay as to its effects on morale |
Confusable words (confusable-words, between-among)
| Pair | Use |
|---|---|
| affect / effect | The setting affects the plot (verb); a good effect (noun) |
| its / it's | its = belonging to it; it's = it is |
| than / then | comparison / time |
| lie / lay | lie (rest): lie – lay – lain; lay (put): lay – laid – laid |
| principal / principle | main or head of a school / a rule or belief |
| lose / loose; rise / raise; farther / further | lose a game, a loose shirt; prices rise, raise a question |
| between / among | two people or things / more than two (but a treaty between three nations, each with each) |
Fixed expressions and word choice (idiom-fixed-phrase, word-choice-meaning)
wash one's hands of, avail oneself of, take part in, in spite of / despite (no "of"), raise a question, arouse interest, make a decision, pay attention.
Exam method
- Look for doubled meaning. back, again, together, both… as well as, reason… because.
- Count the negatives. in each clause.
- Check look-alike words. against their meaning in the sentence.
- Fixed phrase?. Recall it exactly, especially its preposition.
- Among the correct options, prefer the shortest direct one. (Indore keys are often the concise version).