11+ Entrance English Punctuation and Grammar Questions and Answers Flashcards

Which of these sentences correctly uses an apostrophe to show that the football kit belongs to several players?

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.

Which sentence correctly uses inverted commas (speech marks) for direct speech?

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.

In the sentence 'The girl waited patiently for the bus, although it was very late', which part is the subordinate clause?

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.

Which sentence uses the words 'practise' and 'practice' correctly according to British English rules?

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'.

Which of the following sentences is grammatically 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.

Identify the adverb in the following sentence: 'The exhausted runner finished the race surprisingly easily.'

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.