English — RBI Grade B

Phase	Type	Marks	Time	Key Topics
Phase 1 (Prelims)	Objective MCQs	30	25 min	RC, Cloze, Error Spotting, Para Jumbles, Fill in Blanks, Vocabulary
Phase 2 (Mains)	Descriptive	100	90 min	Essay Writing, Precis Writing, Reading Comprehension

01

Tenses — All 12 Forms (Foundation of Grammar)

Critical ▼

📐 Complete Tense Chart

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect Continuous
Past	S + V2 He went.	S + was/were + V-ing He was going.	S + had + V3 He had gone.	S + had been + V-ing He had been going.
Present	S + V1/V1+s He goes.	S + is/am/are + V-ing He is going.	S + has/have + V3 He has gone.	S + has/have been + V-ing He has been going.
Future	S + will/shall + V1 He will go.	S + will be + V-ing He will be going.	S + will have + V3 He will have gone.	S + will have been + V-ing He will have been going.

📐 Key Signal Words

Tense	Signal Words / Clue Phrases
Simple Present	always, usually, often, every day, generally, sometimes, never
Present Continuous	now, right now, at the moment, currently, these days
Present Perfect	already, just, yet, ever, never, since, for, recently, so far
Present Perfect Continuous	since, for (with duration), all day, how long
Simple Past	yesterday, last (week/month/year), ago, in 2020, once, then
Past Continuous	while, when (with another past action), at that time
Past Perfect	before, after, by the time, already, until, as soon as
Past Perfect Continuous	for, since (+ past reference point), how long (past)
Simple Future	tomorrow, next (week/year), in the future, soon
Future Continuous	at this time tomorrow, this time next week
Future Perfect	by tomorrow, by next year, by then, before (future event)
Future Perfect Continuous	by (future time) + for (duration)

📐 Golden Rules

Since → Point in time (since 2020, since Monday) → Use Perfect tenses
For → Duration (for 5 years, for 3 hours) → Use Perfect / Perfect Continuous
When + Past Simple, use Past Continuous for the longer action
Two completed past actions → Earlier one = Past Perfect, Later = Simple Past
Stative verbs (know, believe, love, own, belong) → NEVER used in continuous tenses

02

Subject-Verb Agreement (SVA) — 25 Rules

Critical ▼

Rule 1: Singular subject → Singular verb; Plural subject → Plural verb
✓ He goes. ✗ He go.
Rule 2: Two subjects joined by "and" → Plural verb
✓ Ram and Shyam are friends.
Rule 3: Two subjects joined by "or / nor / either...or / neither...nor" → Verb agrees with the NEARER subject
✓ Neither the students nor the teacher was present.
Rule 4: "Along with / together with / as well as / with / besides / in addition to" → Verb agrees with the FIRST subject (ignore the phrase)
✓ The captain, along with his players, is ready.
Rule 5: "Each / Every / Everyone / Everybody / Everything / Either / Neither / No one / Nobody" → Always SINGULAR
✓ Each of the boys has a book.
Rule 6: "Many / Few / Several / Both" → Always PLURAL
✓ Many students have passed.
Rule 7: "Some / All / Most / Plenty / A lot of" → Depends on the noun
✓ Some of the water is dirty. (uncountable → singular)
✓ Some of the boys are absent. (countable → plural)
Rule 8: Collective nouns (team, committee, family, jury, crowd) → Usually SINGULAR (acting as one unit)
✓ The committee has decided.
Rule 9: "The number of" → Singular; "A number of" → Plural
✓ The number of students is increasing.
✓ A number of students are absent.
Rule 10: Uncountable nouns (news, mathematics, physics, politics, economics, measles, mumps) → SINGULAR
✓ Mathematics is my favorite subject.
✓ The news is shocking.
Rule 11: "One of the + plural noun" → Singular verb
✓ One of the students is absent.
Rule 12: Titles of books, movies, countries → SINGULAR
✓ "The United States is a large country."
Rule 13: Amount/distance/time as one unit → SINGULAR
✓ Ten kilometres is a long distance.
✓ Five thousand rupees is a lot of money.
Rule 14: "Not only...but also" → Verb agrees with NEARER subject
Rule 15: Gerund (V-ing) as subject → SINGULAR
✓ Swimming is a good exercise.

03

Articles — A, An, The (Complete Rules)

Critical ▼

📐 A vs An

"A" before consonant SOUNDS → a boy, a cat, a university (yoo~), a European (yoo~), a one-rupee (wun~)
"An" before vowel SOUNDS → an apple, an hour (silent h), an MBA (em~), an honest (silent h), an FIR (ef~)
Based on SOUND, not spelling!

📐 When to Use "The" (Definite Article)

Unique things: the sun, the moon, the earth, the sky
Superlatives: the best, the tallest, the most beautiful
Ordinals: the first, the second, the last
Rivers, oceans, seas, mountain ranges: the Ganges, the Pacific, the Himalayas
Holy books: the Quran, the Bible, the Gita
Newspapers: the Hindu, the Times of India
Musical instruments: plays the guitar, the piano
Specific/already mentioned: "I saw a dog. The dog was brown."
Directions: the north, the east

📐 When NOT to Use Articles

No article before: proper nouns, languages, sports, meals, abstract nouns (general), subjects
✗ The honesty is the best policy. → ✓ Honesty is the best policy.
✗ He plays the cricket. → ✓ He plays cricket.
✗ The Mount Everest is tall. → ✓ Mount Everest is tall. (single peaks = no article)
No article before: single mountains, lakes, continents, countries (mostly)
Exception: the USA, the UK, the Netherlands (countries with "united/plural")

04

Prepositions — Complete Rules & Tricky Uses

Critical ▼

📐 Time Prepositions

Preposition	Used For	Examples
At	Specific time, festivals without "day"	at 5 PM, at noon, at night, at dawn, at Diwali
On	Days, dates, specific days	on Monday, on 15th August, on my birthday, on Diwali day
In	Months, years, seasons, long periods, parts of day	in January, in 2026, in summer, in the morning, in the 21st century
Since	Point in time (with perfect tenses)	since 2020, since Monday, since childhood
For	Duration	for 5 years, for 3 hours, for a long time
By	Deadline / no later than	by 5 PM, by next week
During	Throughout a period	during the meeting, during summer

📐 Place Prepositions

Preposition	Used For	Examples
At	Specific point / address	at the bus stop, at 221B Baker Street, at home
On	Surface / line	on the table, on the wall, on the road, on the 3rd floor
In	Enclosed space / area	in the room, in India, in the box, in the city
Between	Two things	between you and me
Among	Three or more things	among the students

📐 Commonly Tested Preposition Pairs

Agree with (a person) / Agree to (a proposal) / Agree on (a point)
Angry with (a person) / Angry at (a thing/action)
Consist of (comprise) — Never "consist in"
Differ from (be different) / Differ with (disagree)
Die of (disease/hunger) / Die from (injury/wound)
Good at (skill) — NOT "good in"
Interested in — NOT "interested for"
Listen to — NOT "listen at"
Prefer A to B — NOT "prefer than"
Provide with / Provide for
Superior to / Inferior to / Senior to / Junior to — NEVER use "than"

05

Conjunctions & Connectors

Medium ▼

Type	Conjunctions	Function
Coordinating (FANBOYS)	For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So	Join equal clauses
Correlative (Pairs)	either…or, neither…nor, not only…but also, both…and, whether…or	Always used in pairs
Subordinating	because, since, although, though, while, when, if, unless, until, before, after, as	Join dependent + independent clause
Contrast	however, nevertheless, on the other hand, whereas, despite, in spite of	Show opposition
Addition	moreover, furthermore, in addition, besides, also	Add information
Cause/Effect	therefore, hence, consequently, as a result, thus	Show result

📐 Critical Rules

Although / Though → NEVER followed by "but"
✓ Although he was tired, he continued. ✗ Although he was tired, but he continued.
Because → NEVER followed by "so / therefore"
Unless = If not → NEVER use "not" with unless
✓ Unless you work hard, you won't pass. ✗ Unless you don't work hard...
Neither...nor → Both parts must be grammatically parallel
Hardly / Scarcely...when and No sooner...than → Fixed pairs
NOT "hardly...than" or "no sooner...when"

06

Active & Passive Voice

Medium ▼

Tense	Active	Passive
Simple Present	S + V1 + O	O + is/am/are + V3 + by S
Simple Past	S + V2 + O	O + was/were + V3 + by S
Simple Future	S + will + V1 + O	O + will be + V3 + by S
Present Continuous	S + is/am/are + V-ing + O	O + is/am/are + being + V3 + by S
Past Continuous	S + was/were + V-ing + O	O + was/were + being + V3 + by S
Present Perfect	S + has/have + V3 + O	O + has/have + been + V3 + by S
Past Perfect	S + had + V3 + O	O + had + been + V3 + by S
Future Perfect	S + will have + V3 + O	O + will have + been + V3 + by S
Modal	S + modal + V1 + O	O + modal + be + V3 + by S

07

Direct & Indirect Speech (Narration)

Medium ▼

📐 Tense Changes (Reporting verb in Past)

Direct (Quoted)	Indirect (Reported)
Simple Present →	Simple Past
Present Continuous →	Past Continuous
Present Perfect →	Past Perfect
Simple Past →	Past Perfect
Past Perfect →	Past Perfect (no change)
will →	would
can →	could
may →	might
shall →	should / would

📐 Word Changes

Direct	Indirect	Direct	Indirect
this	that	here	there
these	those	now	then
today	that day	tomorrow	the next day
yesterday	the previous day	ago	before
tonight	that night	last week	the previous week

08

Modals & Conditional Sentences

Medium ▼

📐 Modals — Meaning & Usage

Modal	Usage	Example
Can	Ability, permission (informal)	I can swim.
Could	Past ability, polite request, possibility	Could you help me?
May	Permission (formal), possibility	It may rain today.
Might	Weaker possibility	He might come.
Shall	Suggestion, future (I/We), legal	Shall we go?
Should	Advice, obligation, expectation	You should study.
Will	Future, willingness, promise	I will help you.
Would	Polite request, past habit, conditional	Would you mind?
Must	Strong obligation, certainty	You must obey the law.
Need	Necessity	You need not worry.
Ought to	Moral obligation, expectation	You ought to respect elders.
Used to	Past habit (discontinued)	I used to play cricket.

📐 Conditional Sentences (If Clauses)

Type	If Clause	Main Clause	Example
Zero (General truth)	If + Present Simple	Present Simple	If you heat water, it boils.
First (Real/Likely)	If + Present Simple	will + V1	If it rains, I will stay home.
Second (Unreal present)	If + Past Simple	would + V1	If I were rich, I would travel.
Third (Unreal past)	If + Past Perfect	would have + V3	If I had studied, I would have passed.

09

Error Spotting — 30 Most Common Exam Rules

Highest ▼

1. Each boys → Each boy (Each/Every + singular noun)
2. One of the best student → One of the best students (One of the + plural noun)
3. He is more taller → He is taller (Never more + -er)
4. Most unique → Unique (Unique, perfect, complete = no degrees)
5. Superior than → Superior to (Latin comparatives use "to")
6. Beside the point → Besides the point (beside = next to; besides = in addition to)
7. He gave me an advice → He gave me advice (Uncountable: advice, information, furniture, luggage, equipment)
8. I am having a car → I have a car (Stative verbs: no continuous)
9. He is knowing the answer → He knows the answer
10. Unless you don't try → Unless you try (Unless = if not, so no "not")
11. Although…but → Although… (no but)
12. Hardly…than → Hardly…when
13. No sooner…when → No sooner…than
14. Scarcely…than → Scarcely…when
15. Prefer tea than coffee → Prefer tea to coffee
16. Between you and I → Between you and me (After preposition → objective case)
17. He insisted to go → He insisted on going
18. Comprised of → Comprises OR Composed of
19. He denied to go → He refused to go (Deny = deny a fact; Refuse = decline to do)
20. The sceneries are beautiful → The scenery is beautiful (No plural: scenery, poetry, machinery, jewellery)
21. If I was you → If I were you (Subjunctive mood)
22. Lest he should not fail → Lest he should fail (Lest = negative already; don't add "not")
23. The committee have decided → The committee has decided (Collective noun = singular)
24. He is elder than me → He is older than me (Elder = within family; Older = age comparison)
25. I and Ram went → Ram and I went ("I" comes last in compound subjects)
26. Many a students → Many a student (Many a + singular)
27. Parallel structure: I like reading, writing and to swim → I like reading, writing and swimming
28. Fewer pollution → Less pollution (Fewer = countable; Less = uncountable)
29. Much students → Many students (Much = uncountable; Many = countable)
30. Discuss about → Discuss (No preposition after: discuss, enter, reach, order, request, emphasize, stress, accompany)

10

Reading Comprehension (RC) — Strategy & Tricks

Highest Weightage ▼

📐 Types of RC Questions

Question Type	What They Ask	Strategy
Main Idea / Title	What is the passage about?	Read first & last para carefully
Detail / Factual	Specific info from passage	Scan for keywords from question
Inference	What can be logically concluded?	Look for implied meaning, not stated
Tone / Attitude	Author's feeling about the topic	Look for adjectives, adverbs, word choice
Vocabulary (in context)	Meaning of a word as used in passage	Re-read the sentence; replace with options
True / False / Not Given	Which statement matches passage?	Eliminate clearly wrong options first

📐 Step-by-Step RC Solving Method

Step 1: Read the questions FIRST (just the questions, not options)
Step 2: Read the passage actively — underline key points
Step 3: Answer factual/detail questions first (quick marks)
Step 4: Then attempt inference and tone questions
Step 5: For vocab questions → Re-read the sentence, try substitution
Step 6: Eliminate extreme options (always, never, only, all)

📐 Common Tone Words to Know

Positive Tones	Negative Tones	Neutral Tones
Optimistic, Appreciative, Supportive, Enthusiastic, Laudatory	Critical, Pessimistic, Cynical, Sarcastic, Derisive, Contemptuous	Objective, Analytical, Descriptive, Informative, Impartial, Didactic

💡 Speed Tip

In RBI Grade B, RC passages are usually on economy, banking, social issues, or governance. Reading editorials from The Hindu daily will make you faster at comprehending such passages.

11

Cloze Test — Strategy

Medium ▼

Step 1: Read the ENTIRE passage first without filling blanks → understand the theme & tone
Step 2: For each blank, read the sentence before and after → context is king
Step 3: Guess the word BEFORE looking at options
Step 4: Match your guess with the closest option
Step 5: Eliminate grammatically wrong options (wrong tense, wrong form)
Step 6: Check if the option fits the tone (positive passage → positive word)
Most blanks test: Vocabulary, Prepositions, Conjunctions, Verb forms, Collocations

12

Para Jumbles — Strategy & Tricks

Medium ▼

Step 1: Identify the OPENING sentence — introduces the topic, no pronoun references (he/she/it/this/that)
Step 2: Identify the CLOSING sentence — conclusion, summary, future outlook
Step 3: Find MANDATORY PAIRS — two sentences that MUST be together
Step 4: Look for CONNECTOR CLUES:
→ However, But, Yet, Nevertheless = Contrast with previous sentence
→ Moreover, Furthermore, Additionally, Also = Continuation
→ Therefore, Hence, Consequently, Thus = Result of previous sentence
→ For example, For instance, Such as = Follows a general statement
Step 5: Look for PRONOUN REFERENCES — "This", "He", "They", "It" → must refer to something in the PREVIOUS sentence
Step 6: Look for TIME/CHRONOLOGICAL order — dates, events, sequences
Step 7: Eliminate options that violate the logical flow

13

Vocabulary — Word Power & Idioms

Medium ▼

📐 50 Most Important Words for Banking Exams

Word	Meaning	Word	Meaning
Abate	Reduce, lessen	Mitigate	Make less severe
Augment	Increase, enlarge	Mundane	Ordinary, dull
Benevolent	Kind, charitable	Nefarious	Wicked, criminal
Bolster	Support, strengthen	Obscure	Unclear, unknown
Candid	Honest, frank	Plausible	Seemingly reasonable
Complacent	Self-satisfied, smug	Pragmatic	Practical, realistic
Concur	Agree	Prudent	Wise, cautious
Deter	Discourage, prevent	Resilient	Able to recover quickly
Diligent	Hardworking, careful	Robust	Strong, healthy
Elicit	Draw out, extract	Scrutinize	Examine closely
Eloquent	Fluent, persuasive	Stringent	Strict, severe
Exacerbate	Make worse	Substantial	Large, significant
Fiscal	Related to finance	Sustainable	Maintainable long-term
Hamper	Hinder, obstruct	Tenacious	Persistent, determined
Impede	Block, delay	Unprecedented	Never done before
Inevitable	Unavoidable	Volatile	Unstable, changeable
Lucrative	Profitable	Vulnerable	Exposed to risk

📐 20 Important Idioms

Idiom	Meaning
A dime a dozen	Very common, not special
Beat around the bush	Avoid the main topic
Bite the bullet	Face a difficult situation bravely
Burn the midnight oil	Work late into the night
By the skin of your teeth	Barely, just narrowly
Cut corners	Do something in an easy/cheap way
Hit the nail on the head	Say something exactly right
In the red	In debt / losing money
Keep at bay	Keep at a distance
Leave no stone unturned	Try every possible method
Nip in the bud	Stop something at an early stage
On the fence	Undecided
Pull strings	Use influence to get something
Read between the lines	Understand the hidden meaning
See eye to eye	Agree with someone
Spill the beans	Reveal a secret
The ball is in your court	It's your turn to decide/act
Turn a blind eye	Ignore something deliberately
Under the weather	Feeling ill
With flying colours	With great success

14

Phase 2 — Essay Writing (Descriptive)

100 Marks Paper ▼

📐 Essay Structure Template (~500–600 words)

Para 1 — Introduction (3–4 lines): Define the topic, give context, state your thesis/stand
Para 2 — Background/Current Scenario (5–6 lines): Data, stats, recent developments
Para 3 — Arguments FOR / Advantages (6–7 lines): Key points with examples
Para 4 — Arguments AGAINST / Challenges (6–7 lines): Limitations, counterpoints
Para 5 — Government Initiatives / Way Forward (4–5 lines): Schemes, policies, recommendations
Para 6 — Conclusion (3–4 lines): Balanced summary, optimistic ending, quote (optional)

📐 Scoring Checklist

✅ Clear structure with paragraphs
✅ Strong opening line (quote/statistic/definition)
✅ Relevant data and examples
✅ Balanced view (both sides)
✅ No grammatical errors
✅ Good vocabulary (not overused)
✅ Conclusion ties back to the introduction
❌ Avoid: repetition, slang, very long sentences, personal bias

📐 Hot Topics for RBI Grade B Essay 2026

Digital Rupee (CBDC) and its impact on India's financial system
Financial Inclusion through FinTech
India's path to $5 trillion economy
Climate Finance and Green Banking
Role of RBI in managing inflation
Privatization of Public Sector Banks — Pros and Cons
Cryptocurrency regulation in India
AI and its impact on Banking Sector
NPA crisis and resolution mechanisms
Gig Economy and Labour reforms

15

Phase 2 — Precis Writing (Descriptive)

Phase 2 ▼

📐 What is Precis?

A precis is a concise summary of a given passage — typically 1/3rd of the original length
It must capture the main ideas in your OWN words
It should be in third person, past tense (usually), and indirect speech

📐 Step-by-Step Method

Step 1: Read the passage 2–3 times → understand the central theme
Step 2: Underline key sentences and main arguments
Step 3: Remove examples, repetitions, illustrations, and quotations
Step 4: Write the summary in YOUR words (don't copy from passage)
Step 5: Check word count → should be about 1/3 of original
Step 6: Give a suitable TITLE (short, relevant, captures the essence)
Step 7: Re-read to remove any unnecessary words

📐 DOs and DON'Ts

✅ DOs	❌ DON'Ts
Use your own words	Don't copy sentences from passage
Write in third person	Don't write in first person (I, We)
Include all main ideas	Don't add your own opinion
Keep it concise (~1/3 length)	Don't include examples or illustrations
Give a title	Don't use direct speech
Maintain logical flow	Don't start with "The passage says…"

English Language

English Section — Exam Pattern

Table of Contents (Click to Jump)

Tenses — All 12 Forms (Foundation of Grammar)

📐 Complete Tense Chart

📐 Key Signal Words

📐 Golden Rules

Subject-Verb Agreement (SVA) — 25 Rules

Articles — A, An, The (Complete Rules)

📐 A vs An

📐 When to Use "The" (Definite Article)

📐 When NOT to Use Articles

Prepositions — Complete Rules & Tricky Uses

📐 Time Prepositions

📐 Place Prepositions

📐 Commonly Tested Preposition Pairs

Conjunctions & Connectors

📐 Critical Rules

Active & Passive Voice

Direct & Indirect Speech (Narration)

📐 Tense Changes (Reporting verb in Past)

📐 Word Changes

Modals & Conditional Sentences

📐 Modals — Meaning & Usage

📐 Conditional Sentences (If Clauses)

Error Spotting — 30 Most Common Exam Rules

Reading Comprehension (RC) — Strategy & Tricks

📐 Types of RC Questions

📐 Step-by-Step RC Solving Method

📐 Common Tone Words to Know

Cloze Test — Strategy

Para Jumbles — Strategy & Tricks

Vocabulary — Word Power & Idioms

📐 50 Most Important Words for Banking Exams

📐 20 Important Idioms

Phase 2 — Essay Writing (Descriptive)

📐 Essay Structure Template (~500–600 words)

📐 Scoring Checklist

📐 Hot Topics for RBI Grade B Essay 2026

Phase 2 — Precis Writing (Descriptive)

📐 What is Precis?

📐 Step-by-Step Method

📐 DOs and DON'Ts