CAT 2012 Verbal Ability: Strategies to strengthen Grammar & English Usage

July 5, 2012 - PRLog -- As per the analysis of CAT, grammar or English Usage consists of almost 35 per cent of the CAT questions of the Verbal Ability section.  As said by S K Agarwal, Author & Verbal Ability Expert - MBAUniverse.com, it is not just about English language. For any language, having a strong base in grammar is a must. “No language can survive without a strong grammar base. Attraction to and sophistication of the English language- written or spoken, would have been lost, had there not been the pillars of strong and firmly grounded grammar. We just cannot imagine the use of any language without grammar,” he says.

“You must not only know the rules of the grammar and usage of it but also must be well aware – how to use it in standard written English, so that a concise, appropriate and relevant message can be conveyed,” suggests Agarwal.

What & How to prepare

Following are some of the rules of grammar which you must follow while preparing for grammar for CAT 2012 Verbal Ability.

Rules of Tenses: If you do not know, how and where to use which tense and the order in which it should appear, you have more probability to lose marks while attempting the correction of grammatical errors in sentences.  Please remember this is use of correct form of verb which describes the correct use of tense. We cannot use Past Perfect or Past continuous where simple past is to be used.  You cannot write- ‘I had gone to see my friend yesterday’, since only Simple Past is used with yesterday, so the correct sentence would be- ‘I went to see my friend yesterday’. Besides ability to use Perfect or continuous tenses in their correct perspective should be always with you all the time. So have the clear concept in regard to usage of all the tense forms.

2. Concept and usage of Articles, Nouns, Pronouns- Especially relative pronouns, Adjectives, Adverbs, syntax of a sentence, conditional forms of sentences, parallel forms of sentences, Reported speech, usage of various Passive forms, agreement of Subject-verb, Use of Infinites, gerund, participles are very much necessary to form a strong base of grammar. Errors for correction, related to captioned parts of speech or formation of sentences have figured number of times in CAT.    

3. Usage of singular & plural number, Objective & possessive cases, Prepositions, various types of phrases, Idioms- You must also well understand these facets while preparing for CAT 2012.

How to prepare

According to Agarwal, this is an easy as well as very tricky problem to solve. To start the journey of preparation, let us assume that we are going to learn the language, the grammar of which is not known to us. Either study on our own or approach someone who knows more than us. First part seems better but the problem is how and where to start from, who will clarify the doubts and confusions, if I am stuck somewhere (which is inevitable as I am in a learning phase)? So, go for the second option- it has many advantages. Hence, going topic wise and grasping the usage with some expert guidance always bring better results. But start the journey in whatever way you like.
Right Application of Grammar – While reading and practicing the various usages in grammar module, we have to remember to put the correct word and its form at the right place. If the concept is fully understood and ample practice is done on it, there is no point that you will miss it. Lack of logical thought process, hurry to use the half- understood concept make the things worse and compound the confusion more.

Books & guides

Following are the suggested readings to improve your abilities in English Grammar:

1.    High School English Grammar & Composition by Wren & Martin
2.    Practical English Grammar-by Thomson & Martinet
3.    Practical English Grammar Exercises by Thomson & Martinet ( Vol.1 & 2)
4.    A Practical English grammar structure Drills (1 & 2)
5.    Living English Structure
6.    Exercise & Practice books on English Language/ General English for Sr. Secondary/12th  standard-CBSE/ICSE/State Boards  
7.    The Oxford English Grammar (Oxford University Press)

To know about the common mistakes made in grammar and ways to tackle it, click on the following link:

Verbal Ability for CAT 2012: Know the common errors in the Grammar questions & the ways to tackle