Free Civil Service Basic Exam Flashcards

A synonym item asks for the word closest in meaning, not an exact match. Eliminate antonyms and unrelated words first, then choose the option whose connotation best fits typical workplace usage.

Antonym items reward the word most opposite in meaning. The most common trap is a tempting synonym placed beside the correct opposite, so confirm you are reversing the meaning, not matching it.

Solve analogies by stating the link in a sentence ("a flock is a group of birds"), then applying the same relationship to the second pair. Relationship type, not topic, drives the answer.

A frequent pattern is provider:recipient (doctor:patient, teacher:student, attorney:client). Identify who delivers a service and who receives it before picking the matching pair.

Showing careful, persistent effort in work. A core civil-service vocabulary adjective; its opposite is lazy or negligent. Government items favor work-ethic and conduct words.

Treating all sides equally without favoritism or bias. Central to public-service ethics vocabulary; contrast with biased or partial. Often tested in policy and conduct contexts.

Acting with good judgment and caution to avoid unnecessary risk. Distinguish from timid (overly fearful) and reckless (its opposite). A common civil-service ethics/judgment term.

To make something less severe or harmful. Frequently tested as a verb in policy passages; do not confuse with eliminate (remove entirely) or aggravate (its opposite).

Involving great effort or difficulty; burdensome. Context clues such as criticism or opposition signal the negative meaning. Common reading-vocabulary tested word.

Honest and direct in expression. Pairs with frank or forthright; opposite of evasive or guarded. Tested in workplace-communication vocabulary items.

The main idea is the broad point the whole passage supports. Distractors are usually true details from the text that are too narrow to be the central point. Ask: what does everything else support?

Detail items are answered directly in the text. Locate the exact phrase rather than relying on memory; the correct option restates the passage, sometimes with synonyms.

An inference must follow logically from the passage without being stated outright. Reject options that add new facts or stretch the text beyond what it reasonably supports.

Define a word by how the passage uses it, not by its most common meaning. Use surrounding tone and contrast clues, especially in policy and procedural passages.

Decide whether a passage informs, persuades, or instructs, and whether the tone is neutral, critical, or supportive. Government passages are usually informational and neutral.

A common reading distractor takes a true statement and overstates it ("always," "all," "never"). Match the passage's exact scope; absolute language is often the wrong choice.

Some options directly contradict the passage. Quickly eliminate any choice that reverses a stated fact before weighing the remaining answers.

Civil-service passages are short (about 100-200 words). Read the passage once for structure, then return to the text for each question rather than memorizing details.

Expect procedural and regulatory topics (onboarding, ethics rules, public records). The dense, formal style is intentional; focus on what a rule requires, permits, or prohibits.

Distinguish mandatory language ("must," "shall," "is required") from optional language ("may," "typically"). Many comprehension errors come from treating a recommendation as a rule.

Convert the percent to a decimal and multiply: 15% of 240 = 0.15 x 240 = 36. Shortcut: find 10% (24), find 5% (half of that, 12), then add.

Percent change = (new - old) / old x 100. A negative result is a decrease. Always divide by the original value, not the new one.

Gross pay = hourly rate x hours worked (before deductions). Example: $18 x 35 = $630. Overtime, if specified, applies a multiplier to hours beyond the threshold.

Isolate the variable by inverse operations: for 3x + 7 = 22, subtract 7 (3x = 15), then divide by 3 (x = 5). Substitute back to verify.

If 25% is removed, 75% remains. Multiplying by the leftover percent (0.75 x 60 = 45) is faster than subtracting the removed amount.

A ratio compares quantities; a proportion sets two ratios equal. Solve by cross-multiplication. Keep units consistent on both sides before solving.

Evaluate parentheses, exponents, then multiplication/division left to right, then addition/subtraction left to right. Skipping this order is a frequent arithmetic error.

Mean = sum of values / number of values. To find a missing value given a target average, multiply the average by the count to get the required total, then subtract the known values.

A unit rate expresses a quantity per single unit (miles per hour, cost per item). Divide the total by the number of units to compare options fairly.

Aim for about one minute per question. Use estimation to eliminate impossible answers and skip-and-return on multi-step word problems instead of stalling.

From "All A are B" and "X is an A," you may conclude "X is a B." The conclusion must follow from the premises only; do not add outside assumptions.

If P then Q; P is true; therefore Q. Affirming the stated condition guarantees the result. This is a valid deductive form.

If P then Q; Q is false; therefore P is false. Denying the result lets you deny the condition. Example: if rain then canceled; not canceled, so no rain.

From "If P then Q" and "Q is true," you cannot conclude P. Q may have other causes. Recognizing this invalid form prevents a common logic-question mistake.

Each term changes by a constant difference. Find the difference between consecutive terms (e.g., +3) and apply it to the last term to get the next.

A series like 1, 4, 9, 16, 25 is n squared. Recognizing square (and cube) patterns is faster than testing differences term by term.

Convert letters to position numbers (A=1, B=2...) to expose the rule, such as skipping letters or alternating steps, then translate the next number back to a letter.

A sufficient condition guarantees an outcome; a necessary condition is required for it but does not guarantee it. Confusing the two produces invalid conclusions.

"If P then Q" is logically equivalent to "If not Q then not P." Use the contrapositive to test conclusions; the converse and inverse are not equivalent.

Choose only what the premises force to be true. Reject options that are merely plausible or that introduce information not given in the statements.

I before E except after C, so r-e-c-e-i-v-e. Receive is among the most-missed civil-service spelling words; note exceptions like "weird" and "seize."

The verb agrees with the true subject, not a noun in an intervening phrase. "The list of files is..." (subject is "list," singular), not "are."

Adopt = formally accept (a policy). Adapt = adjust to a situation. Adept = highly skilled. Civil-service items frequently test these near-homophones.

A single short clause needs no comma separating its subject from its verb or its verb from its object. Adding one is a common punctuation error tested on the exam.

Their = possessive, there = place or existence, they're = they are. Choose by meaning in the sentence; these are high-frequency civil-service grammar traps.

Affect is usually a verb (to influence); effect is usually a noun (a result). "The rule will affect staffing" vs. "the effect on staffing."

Memorize the patterns in separate, accommodate, occurred, definitely, and different; these recur on civil-service spelling sections and reward rote review.

Two independent clauses joined by only a comma is an error. Fix with a period, semicolon, or a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (and, but, so).

A pronoun must match its antecedent in number. "Each employee submits their form" should usually be "his or her form" in formal civil-service grammar items.

Use an apostrophe for possession (agency's policy) or contractions (it's = it is), not for plain plurals (agencies). "Its" is possessive with no apostrophe.