Q&A - PSLE English

[youngtay]

Hi atutor 2001


Thanks for your explanation.

Best wishes.

[youngtay]

Hi atutor 2001


Thanks for your explanation.

Best wishes.

[jasmineong]

youngtay:

Sun_2010, Thanks for your answer , two more question, pls help.


1) I don't like playing games _______rules are complicated.

a) who
b) whom
c) which
d) whose

2) His interest in golf______after a few months and now he hardly goes to the club.
a) waned
b) expired
c) reduced
d) subsided

TIA

Hi all,

The explanation for question 1, and also anther question about 'my uncle is one those who are..\" has been addressed here by TAS before.
http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7586&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=60

[Learning Partners]

youngtay:

Sun_2010, Thanks for your answer , two more question, pls help.


1) I don't like playing games _______rules are complicated.

a) who
b) whom
c) which
d) whose

2) His interest in golf______after a few months and now he hardly goes to the club.
a) waned
b) expired
c) reduced
d) subsided

TIA

Hi youngtay,



1. The answer is (d)whose.


We can rephrase the sentence to read:

I don't like playing those games because the games' rules are complicated.

In this case, the relative pronoun is used to indicate possession, hence we should use the word 'whose'.


Just bear in mind that:

Relative pronoun 'who' is used to refer to a human subject (the person that does the action).

Eg. John is the student who always comes in late.


'Which' may refer to both inanimate items or animals. It may also be used as a subject or object.

Eg. The black cat which you saw belongs to Mrs Chong. [object]

The telephone which rang non-stop belongs to Molly. [subject]


'Whom' is used to refer to a human object (the person the action is done to).

Eg. Ali whom Mary detests is going to America next month.


'Whose' is used to indicate possession (so it can be used for both animate and inanimate subjects.)

Eg. Peter whose father is a tailor has many suits.
[Peter's father]

The wolf whose pups were missing was in a savage mood. [The wolf's pups]

Ditto Question (1): We are talking about [the games' rules].



(2) Answer is (a) - waned.

Meanings of words:

(a) waned - became weaker

(b) expired - ended

(c) reduced - decreased

(d) subsided - became less intense

Out of the four options, both (a) and (d) are possible answers but (a) is the better answer because there was no indication about the intensity of the person's interest in golf. (d) implies that initially, the person's interest must have been pretty strong which may or may not be the case.

Moreover, 'interest' is more commonly paired with 'wane' than with 'subside'.

It is one of those things about language (and hence the importance of reading). Some words are more commonly paired together and so we accept that as the correct usage:

For example, we use the phrase 'minute detail' but not 'small detail'.

Adam likes to describe his baby in such minute detail that all his colleagues avoid him the moment he whips out his handphone.

During examinations in schools, the better answer tends to be the one that is more commonly used.



Learning Partners

[Learning Partners]

[quote]1. The iron was too hot and it resulted in Zoe's favourite dress being ____.


a) singed
b) flamed
c) seared
d) charred [/quote]
The answer should be (a) singed.

All 4 options refer to items being burnt but there are slight differences to their meanings.

(a) singed - slightly burnt.
(b) flamed - burnt with flames licking (think 'flambe')
(c) seared - burnt suddenly
(d) charred - burnt till it turned black (think 'char siew')

Hence in the question's context, the best answer is (a). Think of the drama series that we watch, each time the character would realise that he/she has burnt a piece of clothing rather soon after it happens and remove the iron immediately, leaving said clothing only slightly burnt. :lol:



Learning Partners

[youngtay]

Learning Partners


Thanks for your explanation.

Best wishes

[youngtay]

Hi. Pls help


She stepped outside and ____when a cold wind blew.
1) cringed
2) flinched
3) cowered
4) shuddered

May I know what is the answer? TIA

[tianzhu]

youngtay:

Hi. Pls help


She stepped outside and ____when a cold wind blew.
1) cringed
2) flinched
3) cowered
4) shuddered

May I know what is the answer? TIA

Hi youngtay

Please refer to link.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cringed

I’d go for option (1) --- cringed

Let’s wait for Learning Partners or TAS to confirm the answer.

Best wishes

[youngtay]

Thanks Mr Tianzhu


Best wishes

[The Alternative Story]

youngtay:

Hi. Pls help


She stepped outside and ____when a cold wind blew.
1) cringed
2) flinched
3) cowered
4) shuddered

May I know what is the answer? TIA

Hi youngtay,

The answer should be (1), like what Tianzhu pointed out.

Let us explain which options are clearly out first and why:

Option (3) - COWERED- is out.

Meaning of 'cower': To cower is to shrink back in fear.

How to remember?: COWer looks like the
word COWard. If you are a coward, you are usually
fearful so you only cower when you are fearful.

This option is out as you cower when you are fearful and not
because you are cold.

Option (4)- SHUDDERED- is also out.

Meaning of 'shudder': To shudder is to
shiver convulsively(involuntary muscle contraction) from
fear or because you are repulsed by something.

How to remember?: When you shiver convulsively,
your muscles contract and you 'shake' and SHudder looks
like SHake

This option is out because usually only fear and revulsion makes
a person shudder and not the cold.

Option (2)- FLINCHED- is very close to (1) but it is also out.

Meaning of 'flinch': To flinch is to wince involuntarily
from pain, shock or something unpleasant or to tense as if
expecting something uncomfortable.

How to remember?: FLInch looks like the
word FLIck, if I flick a whip at you, you flinch because
you expect something uncomfortable or painful to happen to you
- (the whipping)

Option (2) is out as you do not really flinch when a cold wind
blows.

Option (1) - 'Cringe' is correct.

Meaning of 'cringe': To cringe is to shrink back in fear
or to wince because you are embarrassed or because you are cold.

How to remember?: CRInge sounds like
CRY and you cry when you are in fear or because you
were embarrassed or the C in Cringe can stand for
'cold' so when you are cold, you cringe.

Hence the answer should be 'cringe'

TAS