Q&A - PSLE English

[mujin]

Hi TAS, need some help from you


1. If today ______ Tuesday, I would be able to give you a special discount on hotdogs.
is / are / was /were

2. They were not giving up, _________ tedious the task was.
no matter / regardless / nevertheless / however

3. You can buy branded goods ________ there than in Singapore.
cheaply / cheap / cheaper / more cheaply

4, We guessed that they had not left their shop as the door was still ________
open / opened/ opening / opens

Thanks

[starlight1968sg]

mujin:

Hi TAS, need some help from you


1. If today ______ Tuesday, I would be able to give you a special discount on hotdogs.
is / are / was /were

2. They were not giving up, _________ tedious the task was.
no matter / regardless / nevertheless / however

3. You can buy branded goods ________ there than in Singapore.
cheaply / cheap / cheaper / more cheaply

4, We guessed that they had not left their shop as the door was still ________
open / opened/ opening / opens

Thanks

I try:
1) were
2) regardless
3) cheaper
4) open

Let us wait for TAS to reply.

[starlight1968sg]

Hi TAS,

Some advice needed from you on synthesis & transformation:

1) The newscaster on CNA announced, \"There was heavy traffic on the PIE today.\"
...... announced thay.....

2) Mary won a computer for being the best debator. She wants to donate it to the school.
..... which......

Many thanks.

starlight
http://bungerstar.blogspot.com

[joconde]

The Alternative Story:

[quote]Hi, can someone tell me if my child's answer below are acceptable ?


(1) The little boy sat on his father's shoulders. He wanted to be able to see the parade.
____________________so that ______________________.

Child's ans : The little boy sat on his father's shoulders so that he would be able to see the parade.
Ans sheet : The little boy sat on his father's shoulders so that he could see the parade.

Hi joconde,

The answer in the answer sheet is more accurate that the child's answer.

To understand why, .....

TAS[/quote]Hi TAS, thanks !

[elkniwt]

Hi,


Like to ask this qn on synthesis :

Amy took extra lessons. She did not pass her driving test.

Are both answers acceptable ??
1) Despite taking extra lessons, Amy did not pass her driving test.
2) Despite the fact that Amy took extra lessons, she did not pass her driving test.

Best Regards.

[starlight1968sg]

elkniwt:

Hi,


Like to ask this qn on synthesis :

Amy took extra lessons. She did not pass her driving test.

Are both answers acceptable ??
1) Despite taking extra lessons, Amy did not pass her driving test.
2) Despite the fact that Amy took extra lessons, she did not pass her driving test.

Best Regards.

I think both acceptable though I would prefer (1). For Synthesis & Transformation, one can be penalised for writing extra words.

[The Alternative Story]

[quote]Hi TAS, need some help from you


1. If today ______ Tuesday, I would be able to give you a special discount on hotdogs.
is / are / was /were[/quote]Hi mujin,

The answer is 'were' as you are stating the impossible, today is not
Tuesday, if it were, then a special discount would already be given.

For conditionals, when they are stating the impossible, the verb
'were' is used instead of 'was'.

Eg: (stating the impossible)

- If I were you, I would not give my handphone number away.

- If I were Steve Jobs, I would give ipods to all my friends.
[quote]2. They were not giving up, _________ tedious the task was.
no matter / regardless / nevertheless / however[/quote]a) The answer is 'however'. 'However' is used in this context when
it is followed by an adjective.

Eg:

- I kept failing however hard(adjective) I worked.

b)'No matter' is used when there is the word 'how', 'what', 'when'
'who' after it.

Eg:

- I would give up no matter how hard it seems.

c) 'Nevertheless' is followed by a sentence, not a phrase. For
'no matter' and 'however', they are followed by phrases.

Eg:

- He kept doing poorly in his examinations, nevertheless, he would not
give up. ('he would not give up' can be a sentence)

d) 'Regardless' is followed by the word 'of'

Eg:

- I will follow him regardless of the risks.
[quote]3. You can buy branded goods ________ there than in Singapore.
cheaply / cheap / cheaper / more cheaply[/quote]The answer is 'more cheaply'.

'Cheap', 'cheaper' are adjectives. They are used to describe a noun.

Eg:

This bag is cheaper than the other one. (describing a noun- bag)

'Cheaply', 'more cheaply' are adverbs. They are used to describe
a verb.

Eg:

I can shop cheaply in Thailand. (describing a verb - shop)

Hence, the answer is 'more cheaply' as you are describing a verb - buy.
And you are comparing 2 places so 'more cheaply' and not 'cheaply'
is used.
[quote]4, We guessed that they had not left their shop as the door was still ________
open / opened/ opening / opens



Thanks[/quote]The answer is 'open'.

To help you to understand, here are 2 examples:

- The shop is opened by the Lims (passive form of verb- open. It shows
that the Lims opened the shop)

- The shop is open for business (the 'open' here is an adjective, it is
describing the state of the shop)

In your question, you are describing the state of the door-open, and not
showing the action of the door being opened by somebody else, hence
the answer is 'open'.

Hope this helps:D

TAS

[The Alternative Story]

starlight1968sg:

Hi TAS,

Some advice needed from you on synthesis & transformation:

1) The newscaster on CNA announced, \"There was heavy traffic on the PIE today.\"
...... announced thay.....

2) Mary won a computer for being the best debator. She wants to donate it to the school.
..... which......

Many thanks.

starlight
http://bungerstar.blogspot.com

Hi starlight,

The answer for 1)

- The newscaster on CNA announced that there
had been heavy traffic on the PIE that day.

The answer for 2)

- Mary wants to donate a computer which she won for being the best
debator to the school.

TAS

[The Alternative Story]

joconde:

Hi TAS, thanks !

No problem Joconde

[The Alternative Story]

elkniwt:

Hi,


Like to ask this qn on synthesis :

Amy took extra lessons. She did not pass her driving test.

Are both answers acceptable ??
1) Despite taking extra lessons, Amy did not pass her driving test.
2) Despite the fact that Amy took extra lessons, she did not pass her driving test.

Best Regards.

Hi elkinwt,

Starlight is correct, both are acceptable.

TAS