Part 2 of our Verbal Ability reviewer has 20 practice questions in the style of the Civil Service Exam. Answer them in order, read the explanation after each one, and check your score against the 80% passing mark at the end. Questions and choices are reshuffled every time you retake the part.
Start Part 2Sample questions from Part 2
Here are a few questions from this part. Take the full test to answer all 20 and get your score.
Sample question 1
If you don’t spill the beans now, you might gonna regret it.
- spread rumors
- let out a secret
- plant some seeds
- none of the above
Answer: let out a secret
Spill the beans is an idiom meaning to reveal a secret: let out a secret.
Sample question 2
Hey, man, you are absolutely barking up the wrong tree here because I’m innocent.
- choosing the wrong dog
- giving up a fight
- accusing the wrong person
- setting up an event in a tree
Answer: accusing the wrong person
Barking up the wrong tree means pursuing or blaming the wrong person or course. Here, the speaker says he is innocent, so he is being accused wrongly.
Sample question 3
One proven way to beat an enemy is find his Achilles heel.
- secret strategy
- amulet
- strong point
- weak spot
Answer: weak spot
An Achilles heel is a person's vulnerable point, a weak spot.
Sample question 4
His new Ferrari costs an arm and a leg so he is now looking for another job.
- very expensive
- got fired
- met an accident
- was stolen
Answer: very expensive
Cost an arm and a leg means extremely expensive: very expensive.
Sample question 5
He married a woman who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.
- born very beautiful
- born very poor
- born into a very rich family
- born very talkative
Answer: born into a very rich family
Born with a silver spoon in one's mouth means born into a wealthy family.