Synonyms and Antonyms
Synonyms and Antonyms
Vocabulary accounts for around 15 of the 80 questions in the Part-III English paper, and synonyms and antonyms are the largest part of it. At graduate level the words tested are not everyday ones, so learning by root and by contrast beats learning by list.
Learn in Pairs, Not in Lists
A word learnt with its opposite is retained roughly twice as long as one learnt alone, because the two are stored as a contrast rather than as an isolated item.
| Word | Synonym | Antonym |
|---|---|---|
| Abate | subside, lessen | intensify |
| Candid | frank, straightforward | evasive |
| Frugal | thrifty, economical | extravagant |
| Obstinate | stubborn, headstrong | compliant |
| Placid | calm, tranquil | turbulent |
| Prudent | judicious, wise | reckless |
| Transient | fleeting, momentary | permanent |
| Verbose | wordy, long-winded | concise |
Shades of Meaning
The paper rarely offers one obviously correct synonym. It offers three near-misses, and the mark goes to whoever can separate degrees.
- Anger runs: annoyance → irritation → indignation → fury → wrath.
- Fear runs: apprehension → anxiety → dread → terror.
- Praise runs: commend → applaud → extol → eulogise.
- Stingy runs: thrifty (positive) → frugal (neutral) → miserly (negative).
That last line shows why context matters: thrifty, frugal and miserly describe the same behaviour with different approval. A question giving a sentence rather than a bare word is testing exactly this.
✗ Frugal and miserly are interchangeable | ✓ Frugal approves of the economy; miserly condemns it
Reading the Question Correctly
Three formats appear, and each needs a different move.
- A bare word with four options — use the root or a remembered contrast.
- A word in a sentence — substitute each option into the sentence and read it whole.
- An opposite in meaning instruction — the commonest careless error is answering with the synonym, which is always among the options.
Under time pressure candidates read the word, find the meaning, and pick it — without noticing that the instruction asked for the antonym. Circling the words synonym or antonym in the question stem costs two seconds and saves a mark.
A Working Method
- Keep one notebook page per week, not per day — fifteen words with synonym, antonym and one sentence each.
- Write the sentence yourself; a word met only in a list is not retained.
- Revise the same page weekly rather than adding new pages daily.
- Read one editorial a day and mark unfamiliar words rather than looking up every one.
Sixty words a month, revised, is worth more than four hundred words met once. That is the honest arithmetic of vocabulary preparation, and it is the reason last-minute lists rarely help.
frugal = मितव्ययी (तारीफ), miserly = कंजूस (निंदा) — अर्थ एक सा, भाव अलग।
TRE pointer: Because the post requires Honours or Subsidiary English, the words set are graduate-level rather than school-level, and near-synonyms are used as distractors deliberately. The most expensive error is not vocabulary at all — it is answering a synonym when the question asked for the antonym. With five options and −1/3 for a wrong answer, a word you cannot place within one shade is a better candidate for option E than a guess.
60-Second Recap
- Learn every word with its opposite; contrast aids retention.
- Distractors are near-synonyms, so degrees of meaning decide the answer.
- Thrifty approves, frugal is neutral, miserly condemns — same behaviour, different judgement.
- Substitute each option into the sentence when one is given.
- Check whether the instruction asks for synonym or antonym before answering.
- Sixty revised words a month beats four hundred met once.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many vocabulary questions come in the BPSC TRE English paper?
Vocabulary accounts for roughly fifteen of the eighty Part-III English questions, covering synonyms, antonyms, one-word substitution, idioms and confusable words. Since the eligibility is Honours or Subsidiary English, the words tested are graduate-level rather than school-level.
What is the difference between frugal and miserly?
Both describe someone who spends little, but frugal is neutral or approving while miserly is condemning. Thrifty is positive. The behaviour is the same and only the speaker's judgement differs, which is exactly what near-synonym distractors are built on.
How should I prepare vocabulary for a graduate-level paper?
Learn fewer words but revise them. Fifteen words a week, each with a synonym, an antonym and a sentence you wrote yourself, revised weekly, will hold. Four hundred words read once in the final month will not, however impressive the list looks.
What is the most common careless error in this topic?
Answering with the synonym when the question asked for the antonym. The synonym is always placed among the options for exactly this reason. Marking the word synonym or antonym in the question stem before looking at the choices prevents it.