Tips & Tricks to solve Para Completion question for CAT

The VARC Section for the CAT Exam consists of RCs and Verbal Ability questions based on topics like Para Summary, Para Jumbles, Critical Reasoning, Odd One Out, Para Completion, etc. In this article, we will be learning some amazing tips & tricks to solve Para Completion Question for CAT.

Para Completion questions are not just a part of the CAT exam but other entrance exams as well. So it is quite an important topic for students. Para Completion is quite similar to Para Jumbles in a way that in Para Jumbles you have to construct a whole paragraph with the jumbled sentences in the right order and in Para Completion question you have to form a coherent paragraph with just finding the right missing sentence in the paragraph which is generally the last line of the paragraph. Let us look at a Step-Wise approach for solving CAT Para Completion Questions.

Step – wise Approach for Para Completion Questions

Identify the gist of the paragraph: You have to read the paragraph thoroughly and try to recognize what the author is trying to convey through it. Identifying the main idea of the paragraph or the passage is the first step towards solving the VARC section for the CAT exam.
Identify the continuing thread of thought: We have to read the paragraph and base our inference in coherence to the main idea discussed in the paragraph.

Tips & Tricks to solve Para Completion questions for CAT

Pointer 1: CAT Para Completion Questions

While solving Para Completion questions for CAT, keep in mind not to answer the question subjectively. It should not be according to your personal opinion. You should try to stay objective and track the writer’s train of thought and then find the correct answer with the help of clues given. This conclusion must achieve the following:

a)    It must add something valuable or worthy to the given Paragraph.
b)    It must maintain the cohesiveness of thought and structure.
c)    It must also maintain the consistency of tone which the author has intended in the given Paragraph.

Pointer 2: CAT Para Completion Questions

Try to find the clues to the answer on your own. Do not wait for the clues to show up themselves. Read and comprehend the paragraph thoroughly and try to use your intuition and spot the clues that may show any of the following patterns:

Cause-Effect Relation in Paracompletion Questions:
It is one of the most recurrent conclusion patterns. The paragraph provides us with causes, and the correct answer option provides us with the probable logical effect. It is very important to keep in mind that the effect cannot be in contradiction with the causes. In rare cases, the situation is reversed in which effects are discussed in the paragraph, and the cause is inferred in the answer option.
Course of Action Relation in Paracompletion Questions:
The paragraph consists of a situation and the correct answer option shows a possible course of action.
A Contrasting option in Paracompletion Questions:
The paragraph includes a subject in which only one viewpoint is showcased and the answer option may show us another side of the story. This is a very confusing situation for the candidates. Contrasting options just present us with an opposing viewpoint without invalidating the other as the writer would never invalidate his own argument given in the paragraph.
Chronological Order in Paracompletion Questions:
The paragraph may have facts or events in a proper time sequence and so the correct answer option may extend the same in a proper timeframe too.
A problem–solution approach in Paracompletion Questions:
There may be some problems discussed in the paragraph and its solutions may be discussed in the correct answer option. The solution may be either of the two types: A – what can be done, and B – what could have been done.
Theory – Illustration Relation in Paracompletion Questions:
In this case, the paragraph contains a theoretical discussion and the correct answer choice illustrates the theory properly. Remain cautious of the wrong answer options that may try to disprove the theory instead of proving it.
Reinforcement of an argument in Paracompletion Questions:
In this, the paragraph simply presents an argument and the answer just substantiates it properly. The wrong answer option will not support the argument sufficiently.

Pointer 3: CAT Para Completion Questions

Use the ‘Elimination Strategy’ and flush out the wrong answer choices like the following:

Irrelevant Options: Such type of answer options are the conclusions that are either entirely unrelated to or only slightly related to the paragraph.
Repetition of Idea: A subject cannot be elaborated upon by repeating either directly or indirectly what has already been stated earlier. It would not “complete” the paragraph as such. The idea stated in the paragraph should consist of new arguments to explain it.
Contradiction to the Main Idea: The last line of the paragraph cannot disprove what the main idea in the paragraph has tried to prove.
Broadness in Opinion: This is the kind of answer option that goes beyond the scope of the argument illogically.
Narrow Opinion: The incorrect answer option tries to focus unnecessarily on a very minor aspect of the paragraph, and therefore fails to complete the major theme or the main idea of the passage.
Inconsistent tone of the Paragraph: Be cautious of the options that are not in line with the tone of the passage used to elucidate the main theme.
Introduction of New themes: They are the most deceptive of all. Such new themes are somewhat related to the ongoing discussion in the paragraph to confuse the readers, but they cannot be immediately introduced. No new ideas can be presented as the conclusion of the passage.

Pointer 4: CAT Para Completion Questions

In the Verbal Ability of CAT Exam, solving Paragraph Completion questions require a combination of observation skills, inference, empathy, and instinct. But you can take some risks with some difficult questions. Never be skeptical to take chances.

Practice Para Completion questions for CAT using the above given Tips and Tricks and see the difference. You will now be able

Para Completion Question for CAT | VARC Practice for CAT

Example- 1: The following question has a paragraph from which the last sentence has been deleted. From the given options, choose the one that completes the paragraph in the most appropriate way.

It’s been nearly eight years since American astronauts last launched into space from American soil. When NASA shuttered the Space Shuttle Program in 2011, it did so under the hopes that the private industry would be willing and able to take a huge step forward and partner with the agency to ferry astronauts back and forth between the International Space Station, as well as other potential low Earth orbit destinations.________________

A) That vision is finally on the cusp of becoming reality.
B) If the weather proves favorable, SpaceX will finally launch its first spacecraft designed for human spaceflight.
C) The agency would simply partner with Russia, getting its astronauts to the ISS through Soyuz missions launching from Kazakhstan for a few years.
D) NASA believed it could emulate this same paradigm as a part of its human spaceflight operations as well.

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
The passage ends with NASA hoping that other private agencies would ferry astronauts. Option B is irrelevant. Option C, would simply suggest that they already have many options and Russia is the easy way out. Options about which are not mentioned in the passage. Thus, it can be eliminated. Also, emulate the same paradigm means that the plan of taking help from private agencies was successful. We do not know how they hope or plan went. So, using the same logic again is not certain. Thus, it can also be eliminated. Option A best completes the passage. It just tells that it was correct to expect help. Hence, option A is the correct answer.

Example- 2: The following question has a paragraph from which the last sentence has been deleted. From the given options, choose the one that completes the paragraph in the most appropriate way.

Whether waiting for a bus, playing outside, or walking the dog — during the colder winter season, everyone is looking for ways to stay warm. Luckily, the process your body uses to break down food serves as an internal heater. But when the weather is cold, some defensive strategies are also necessary to prevent your body from losing its heat to the surrounding environment. As the temperature difference between your warm body and its frigid surroundings increases, heat is lost more quickly________________

A) It becomes more of a challenge to maintain a normal body temperature.
B) The most common thing people do to stay warm is to wear a coat, hat, and gloves. Obviously increasing clothing thickness or piling on the layers helps.
C) Winter is more about your psychological responses. The more you think the more you suffer.
D) Differences in body size, body fatness, and metabolic activity influence how different individuals experience cold.

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
Option 1 is correct because it is completing the paragraph by giving another statement for the maintenance of normal temperature.
Option 2 is incorrect because it talks about the accessories that keep you warm.
Option 3 is incorrect because it talks about our psychological responses that are responsible for winter and it is not related to the above paragraph here, in the paragraph it is asking for difficulties in maintenance of temperature.
Option 4 is incorrect because it talks about the variations suffered by the various body which is not an appropriate choice in the completion of the paragraph.

Want more Practice questions on Para Completion for CAT?? Check here…

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