WBSSC 2nd SLST Question Paper – 2025
- In Charles Lamb’s “Dream Children”, what is the name of the old house that figures prominently in the speaker’s memories?
(A) Blakesmoor
(B) Grandame Field’s House
(C) Islington
(D) The South-Sea House
- In “Ode to a Nightingale” by John Keats, to what form of art does the speaker compare the Nightingale’s song in terms of its immortality?
(A) Painting
(B) Sculpture
(C) Poetry
(D) Architecture
- In John Donne’s “The Good Morrow”, what according to the poet, were the lovers doing before they met?
(A) Studying
(B) Sleeping
(C) Travelling
(D) Working
- Supply the correct preposition to complete the following sentence:
The boy was trying to float ______ a bamboo stick in the river
(A) to
(B) by
(C) into
(D) with
- “He is _______ best student in the class”. Choose the correct article from the list given below:
(A) a
(B) the
(C) an
(D) No article
- What is the West Wind called in P. B. Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind”?
(A) Spirit of frost
(B) Wild West Wind
(C) Breeze of change
(D) Tempest’s child
- In “Of Studies”, what caution does Bacon provide about studies?
(A) Studies should not be excessive or lead to laziness
(B) Studies should be avoided in favour of practical experience
(C) Studies are only for the elites
(D) Studies have no real value in life
- What among the following is a perfect example of subject-verb agreement?
(A) The dogs bark at night
(B) The dogs barks at night
(C) The dogs barks in night
(D) The dog bark in night
- In William Wordsworth’s “Tintern Abbey”, the poet-speaker revisits the site after
(A) seven years
(B) five years
(C) eleven years
(D) fourteen years
- In Katherine Mansfield’s “The Fly”, what does Mr. Woodifield mention that triggers the Boss’ emotions?
(A) The event of Woodifield’s daughters visiting their brother’s grave
(B) The Boss’ retirement
(C) A new business opportunity
(D) His recent illness
- In Conrad’s “The Lagoon”, what does Arsat want to do after the death of his beloved Diamelen?
(A) He wants to remarry
(B) He wants to kill himself
(C) He wants to leave the island
(D) He wants to avenge his brother’s death
- In Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer, Mr. Hardcastle wants his daughter to marry:
(A) Hastings
(B) Tony
(C) Marlow
(D) The Landlord’s son
- In Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, who runs off with Mr. Wickham causing a scandal for the Bnnet family?
(A) Jane Bennet
(B) Mary Bennet
(C) Kitty Bennet
(D) Lydia Bennet
- Join the following sentences using the most appropriate word:
The road was long, _______ we could not see the end
(A) and
(B) however
(C) but
(D) though
- Rectify the sentence by choosing the correct form from the list below:
“This is the most happiest day of my life”.
(A) This is a happiest day of my life
(B) This is the happiest day of my life
(C) This is the happier day of my life
(D) This is the happy day of my life
- In Charles Lamb’s “The Superannuated Man”, what does the term ‘superannuated’ mean in the context of the essay?
(A) Promoted
(B) Retired due to old age
(C) Newly employed
(D) Relocated
- Supply the correct adverb:
He ______ goes to office in the weekends as his office remains shut.
(A) always
(B) sometimes
(C) rarely
(D) never
- In T. S. Eliot’s “The Hollow Men”, what is ‘Mistah Kurtz — lie dead’ epigraph a reference to?
(A) Joseph Conrad’s A Heart of Darkness
(B) William Shakespeare’s Hamlet
(C) T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land
(D) John Milton’s Paradise Lost
- The stranger in Wilfred Owen’s “Strange Meeting”, is
(A) a nurse
(B) a fellow British soldier
(C) a German soldier he killed
(D) a priest
- Choose the appropriate form of changed narration:
We said, “We all love our country”.
(A) We said that we all love dour country
(B) We said that we all love our country
(C) We said that we did not love our country
(D) None of the above
- Supply the appropriate determiner for the following sentence:
_________ cultures are as hard working as those of the Asians are.
(A) Few
(B) No
(C) None
(D) None of these
- Choose the correct form of the article:
She passed with _______ honours degree.
(A) a
(B) an
(C) the
(D) None of the above
- What is the ultimate advice given to the poet by his muse in the final line of “Loving in Truth”?
(A) Study diligently and learn from the masters
(B) Seek advice from wise counsellors
(C) Look in the heart and write
(D) Abandon poetry and pursue other interests
- In Geroge Herbert’s “Virtue”, what is the only truly enduring element in the face of decay and death — as per the poet?
(A) Physical beauty and youth
(B) The works of art and human creations
(C) A virtuous soul
(D) The power of nature
- In W. B. Yeats’s “The Wild Swans at Coole”, what does the speaker muse regarding the swans’ future?
(A) They will always stay at Coole
(B) They will eventually fly to a warmer climate
(C) They will, someday, vanish to another lake
(D) They will guide lost travellers
- The name of Ulysses’s son in Tennyson’s “Ulysses” is:
(A) Pericles
(B) Achilles
(C) Tieresius
(D) Telemachus
- According to G. B. Shaw in “Freedom”, people are afraid of
(A) Wealth
(B) Religion
(C) Real freedom
(D) Education
- In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, what vision does Macbeth see at the banquet?
(A) A bloody child
(B) A bloody dagger
(C) Banquo’s ghost
(D) Duncan’s head
- In G. B. Shaw’s Arms and the Man, what is Raina Petkoff’s initial perception of Bluntschli when he first appears in her bedroom?
(A) A brave hero
(B) A dangerous villain
(C) A pathetic coward
(D) A charming rogue
- Change the voice:
“Open the door”.
(A) She says open the door
(B) She ordered that the door opens
(C) Let the door be opened
(D) None of the above
- Whom did David Copperfield meet unexpectedly at Mr. Spenlow’s house in Charles Dickens’s David Copperfield?
(A) Mr. Micawber
(B) Dora
(C) Miss Murdstone
(D) Mrs. Trotwood
- In James Joyce’s “Araby”, what does the young narrator promise to buy for Mangan’s sister from the bazar?
(A) A book
(B) A piece of jewellery
(C) Whatever she desires
(D) Nothing specific, just a souvenir
- Where does, in S.T. Coleridge’s Christabel, Christabel find the mysterious Geraldine?
(A) At the castle-gate
(B) Underneath an old palm tree
(C) By a ruined fountain
(D) In the forest, near a large oak tree
- ” I washed the car after I had come home” is an example of
(A) Complex sentence
(B) Simple sentence
(C) Compound sentence
(D) None of the above
- The lamb, in William Blake’s “The Lamb”, has a:
(A) Resounding voice
(B) Happy voice
(C) Frail voice
(D) Tender voice
- In Robert Browning’s “The Last Duchess”, what is the Duke showing to the envoy from a foreign Count?
(A) His collection of ancient coins
(B) A portrait of his late wife
(C) Plans for a new palace-wing
(D) His prized stable of horses
- In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, who wants, “Where we are, there are daggers in men’s smiles”?
(A) Donalbain
(B) Banquo
(C) Macduff
(D) Malcolm
- Choose the appropriate structure in the following:
When we reached the crematoria, the dead body ________ already cremated.
(A) had
(B) had been
(C) was
(D) would
- “The paper says that the city is in trouble”. Here, the usage of ‘paper’ exemplifies a
(A) Simile
(B) Alliteration
(C) Synecdoche
(D) Parable
- Supply the correct preposition:
He deals ________ gold.
(A) in
(B) on
(C) by
(D) under
- Choose the correct word to fill in the blank:
You are not ______ to be present at the meeting since you are on leave.
(A) required
(B) require
(C) requisite
(D) allow
- Provide the correct form of adjective (for ‘mischief’) in the sentence below:
He is a very _____ boy
(A) mischiefing
(B) mischiefful
(C) mischievous
(D) mischieving
- In J. M. Synge’s Riders to the Sea, what item of Michael’s clothing do the sisters examine to identify his body?
(A) His coat
(B) His trousers
(C) His shirt and stockings
(D) His handkerchief
- “The wind howled in the night” is an example of
(A) Simile
(B) Interrogation
(C) Onomatopoeia
(D) Parable
- In John Keats’s “To Autmn”, with what does Autumn conspire to load and bless the vines?
(A) The sun
(B) The moon
(C) The rain
(D) The west wind
- Choose the correct relative clause for the following sentence:
The person ______ called you is waiting outside.
(A) that
(B) who
(C) which
(D) will
- In Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock, what item symbolises Belinda’s pride and beauty?
(A) Her necklace
(B) Her gown
(C) Her hair
(D) Her fan
- In P. B. Shelley’s “To a Skylark”, what quality of the Skylark’s song does the speaker emphasise upon most?
(A) Its sadness
(B) Its power
(C) Its joy and uninhibited nature
(D) Its complexity
- What will give ‘eternal life’ to the beloved in William Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day”?
(A) Wealth
(B) Youth
(C) The Poet’s verse
(D) Beauty
- Choose the correct form (of narration):
Rita said, “The sun rises in the east”.
(A) Rita reported that the sun rose in the east
(B) Rita said that the sun rises in the east
(C) Rita predicts that the sun will rise in the east
(D) Rita was said that the sun was rising in the east
- What is the subtitle of S. T. Coleridge’s “Kubla Khan”?
(A) A dream in a vision
(B) A vision in a dream
(C) A vision and a dream
(D) A dream and a vision
- Choose the correct split form in the following simple sentence from the options:
He is too weak to run.
(A) He is very weak. He cannot run.
(B) He will not run. He was very weak.
(C) He will be very weak. He would not run.
(D) He did not want to run. He is very weak.
- “Because I studied hard, I passed the exam, and I was so happy” is an example of
(A) Simple sentence
(B) Complex sentence
(C) Compound-complex sentence
(D) Compound sentence
- Choose the correct infinite in the following sentence:
Indian Air Force-pilot witnesses a Pakistani aircraft ______ down.
(A) falled
(B) falling
(C) fallen
(D) fell
- She studied hard, and she passed the exam. This is an example of
(A) Simple sentence
(B) Complex-compound sentence
(C) Compound sentence
(D) None of the above
- “She had been studying for three hours” is an example of the usage of
(A) Past perfect continuous tense
(B) Future continuous tense
(C) Past perfect tense
(D) Present perfect continuous tense
- Why does William Blake name his 1794 poem “Tyger” instead of “Tiger”?
(A) He spelt it wrongly.
(B) Blake was not serious about the title of his poem.
(C) He wanted to suggest the uniqueness of the tiger and celebrate its exceptional strength.
(D) None of the above
- From which Sonnet-sequence is “One Day I wrote her Name” taken?
(A) Prothalamion
(B) Amoretti
(C) Epithalamion
(D) The Faerie Queene, Book-I
- In Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, what is Mr. Collins’s profession?
(A) He is a lawyer.
(B) He is a clergyman.
(C) He is a tradesman.
(D) He is a kinsman.
- The title of William Somerset Maugham’s “The Louis Eater” alludes to:
(A) Greek mythology — people who forget responsibilities
(B) Indian spirituality
(C) Japanese gardening
(D) Roman war rituals