Fill in the blank with the suitable adverbs from the given alternatives.
There is no way of succeeding in exams _______ thorough practice.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → without
Complete sentence: There is no way of succeeding in exams without thorough practice. "There is no way of succeeding in exams without thorough practice" means that success is impossible if one does not practise thoroughly.
| Option | Used to show | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) because | “Because” is a conjunction and must be followed by a clause with its own verb (because they practised). It cannot come before a bare noun phrase. | She passed because she studied every day. |
| (2) unless | “Unless” (if not) is also a conjunction and needs a clause: “unless you practise thoroughly”. | You will miss the train unless you leave now. |
| (3) without (answer) | Without means not having or not using something, and is followed by a noun or noun phrase. | You cannot enter the hall without an admit card. |
| (4) hence | for this reason, therefore. It introduces a result and makes no sense before “thorough practice”. | The roads were flooded, hence the delay. |
Note: In the original NTA paper, Option 4 read "other than". NTA accepted this option as a correct answer as well. To leave only one correct answer and avoid confusion for students, it has been changed here to "hence".
Advice for the exam: In the real exam, mark the answer that is grammatically or factually correct. If NTA’s provisional answer key marks a different option, challenge it during the answer-key challenge window and give the reason in one or two lines.