11+ Entrance English Punctuation and Grammar Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of these sentences correctly uses an apostrophe to show that the football kit belongs to several players?
- The players's football kit was ready for the match.
- The player's football kit was ready for the match.
- The players' football kit was ready for the match. (Correct answer)
- The players football kits' was ready for the match.
Correct answer: The players' football kit was ready for the match.
For a plural noun that already ends in 's' (like 'players'), the apostrophe is placed after the 's' to show possession. 'Player's' would be for a single player.
Question 2: Which sentence correctly uses inverted commas (speech marks) for direct speech?
- "What time is the school play?" asked my mum. (Correct answer)
- "I'm really excited", said Ben, "for the trip tomorrow".
- The teacher announced "We are going to the museum."
- "Don't forget your coat, said Dad."
Correct answer: "What time is the school play?" asked my mum.
The question mark must be placed inside the closing inverted comma because it is part of the speech. The other options are incorrect: a comma is needed after 'excited', a comma is missing before the speech in the third option, and the reporting clause ('said Dad') should not be inside the speech marks.
Question 3: In the sentence 'The girl waited patiently for the bus, although it was very late', which part is the subordinate clause?
- The girl waited patiently
- for the bus
- it was very late
- although it was very late (Correct answer)
Correct answer: although it was very late
A subordinate clause has a subject and a verb but cannot stand alone as a complete sentence; it depends on the main clause. 'Although it was very late' adds information to the main clause ('The girl waited patiently for the bus') but does not make sense by itself.
Question 4: Which sentence uses the words 'practise' and 'practice' correctly according to British English rules?
- To get better at the piano, you must practise every day, as practice makes perfect. (Correct answer)
- To get better at the piano, you must practice every day, as practise makes perfect.
- It is good practise to get lots of practice before the exam.
- The doctor's practise is very busy, so I will have to practice my patience.
Correct answer: To get better at the piano, you must practise every day, as practice makes perfect.
In British English, 'practise' (with an 's') is the verb (the doing word), and 'practice' (with a 'c') is the noun (the thing). You 'practise' the piano, and the repetition is called 'practice'.
Question 5: Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct?
- Me and my friend went to the cinema.
- The dog wagged it's tail excitedly.
- There were fewer people there than we expected. (Correct answer)
- She done her homework very quickly.
Correct answer: There were fewer people there than we expected.
This sentence correctly uses 'fewer' for a countable noun (people). The other sentences are incorrect: 'My friend and I' should be used as the subject. 'It's' is a contraction of 'it is'; the possessive is 'its'. 'Done' is a past participle and should be 'did' in this context.
Question 6: Identify the adverb in the following sentence: 'The exhausted runner finished the race surprisingly easily.'
- exhausted
- finished
- surprisingly (Correct answer)
- race
Correct answer: surprisingly
'Surprisingly' is an adverb because it modifies (describes) another adverb, 'easily'. 'Exhausted' is an adjective, 'finished' is a verb, and 'race' is a noun.
11+ Entrance English Punctuation and Grammar Questions and Answers
Which of these sentences correctly uses an apostrophe to show that the football kit belongs to several players?