NDA (II) 2017 General Ability Test · Question 42 of 150

Correct — B, against. A thing is insured against the risk it might suffer, so the sentence reads 'My house is insured against theft and fire.'

• (a)for — 'Insured for' introduces the sum of money the policy will pay, as in 'the house is insured for twenty lakh rupees', and not the risk that is covered.
• (c)in — There is no use of 'insure in' in English.
• (d)towards — 'Towards' shows direction or a contribution to a cost, and it has no place after 'insured'.

'Insure' takes different prepositions for different jobs — against the risk, for the amount, with the company.

Those three prepositions divide the sentence neatly. 'Against theft and fire' names what is being guarded against, 'for twenty lakh rupees' would name the sum, and 'with a public sector company' would name the insurer. Only the first of the three fits the words printed after the blank.

• Words of protection take 'against' — insured against loss, guarded against attack, vaccinated against measles.
• 'Insured for' answers the question 'how much', not 'against what'.
• 'Insure' and 'ensure' are different verbs; 'ensure' means to make certain that something happens.

• Choosing 'for' by analogy with 'paid for' or 'asked for'.

Asked as a blank-filling item testing the preposition a particular verb requires.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Choose the preposition that best fills the blank — The children have been vaccinated ____ measles.

  • (a)for
  • (b)against
  • (c)from
  • (d)with

  Answer(b) against — verbs of protection take 'against' before the danger.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Choose the preposition that best fills the blank — The shop is insured ____ five lakh rupees.

  • (a)against
  • (b)for
  • (c)in
  • (d)to

  Answer(b) for — 'insured for' introduces the sum of money, not the risk.