# JAMB UTME & WASSCE Use of English: Lexis & Structure, Oral English (Vowels, Consonants, Stress Patterns), Idioms, Concord & Comprehension

> Covers JAMB UTME & WAEC WASSCE Use of English: Rules of Concord (Subject-Verb Agreement), Oral English (44 RP Phonemes: 12 Monophthongs, 8 Diphthongs, 24 Consonants), Word & Emphatic Stress rules, Question Tags, Subjunctive Mood, Register, Idioms, and Phrasal Verbs.

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- **Level:** basic
- **Languages:** en → en
- **Total Cards:** 32

## Flashcards (32 Cards)

| # | Front (Term / Prompt) | Back (Definition / Answer) | Example | Multiple-Choice Options |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 1 | In JAMB & WASSCE Oral English, how many total phonemes exist in Standard British (Received Pronunciation) English, and how are they divided? | 44 phonemes in total: 20 vowel sounds (12 pure vowels/monophthongs—7 short and 5 long—plus 8 diphthongs) and 24 consonant sounds. |  |  |
| 2 | In JAMB Grammar (Conditional Sentences), what are the structures of Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3 conditionals? | Type 1 (Real): If + Present Simple, will + infinitive; Type 2 (Unreal Present): If + Past Simple (were), would + infinitive; Type 3 (Unreal Past): If + Past Perfect (had + V3), would have + past participle ('Had I known, I would have stayed'). |  |  |
| 3 | In JAMB Grammar, what is the rule of inversion after negative or restrictive adverbs placed at the beginning of a sentence ('No sooner', 'Hardly', 'Scarcely', 'Seldom', 'Never')? | Subject-auxiliary inversion is required: 'No sooner HAD the exam started THAN the power went out' and 'Hardly/Scarcely HAD he arrived WHEN it began to rain.' |  |  |
| 4 | In JAMB Word Stress, how does primary stress shift between two-syllable noun/adjective vs. verb pairs such as 'EXPORT', 'CONDUCT', 'PRESENT', and 'REBEL'? | Nouns and adjectives carry primary stress on the FIRST syllable (EX-port, CON-duct, PRE-sent, RE-bel), whereas verbs carry primary stress on the SECOND syllable (ex-PORT, con-DUCT, pre-SENT, re-BEL). |  |  |
| 5 | In JAMB Phrasal Verbs, what is the difference between 'call off', 'call on', 'put off', 'put up with', and 'turn down'? | Call off = cancel; Call on = visit briefly or formally ask someone to speak; Put off = postpone; Put up with = tolerate/endure; Turn down = reject/refuse (or lower volume). |  |  |
| 6 | In JAMB & WAEC Word Stress, where does primary stress fall in English words ending in the suffixes '-tion', '-sion', '-ic', and '-ian' (e.g., E-du-CA-tion, e-co-NO-mic, po-li-TI-cian)? | On the penultimate syllable (the second-to-last syllable, immediately preceding the suffix). |  |  |
| 7 | In JAMB Prepositions, what are the fixed prepositions for 'congratulate someone ___ success', 'accuse someone ___ theft', 'prefer tea ___ coffee', and 'comprise ___'? | Congratulate ON; Accuse OF (charge WITH); Prefer X TO Y (never 'than'); and 'Comprise' takes NO preposition in the active voice ('The committee comprises five members' or 'is composed of five members'). |  |  |
| 8 | In JAMB Oral English, which pure vowel sound /ɜː/ is shared by the words 'bird', 'nurse', 'word', 'journey', 'earth', and 'colonel'? | The long central vowel /ɜː/ (note that 'colonel' is pronounced /ˈkɜːnəl/, identical to 'kernel'). |  |  |
| 9 | In JAMB Question Tags, what tag is used when the statement contains semi-negative or negative words like 'hardly', 'scarcely', 'barely', 'seldom', 'rarely', or 'nobody'? | A POSITIVE question tag, because those adverbs make the clause negative: e.g., 'He rarely visits his village, DOES HE?' and 'Nobody called, DID THEY?' |  |  |
| 10 | In WASSCE Summary & Comprehension, what distinguishes a Metaphor, a Simile, Personification, Oxymoron, and Euphemism in figurative expressions? | Simile compares using 'like/as'; Metaphor equates directly; Personification gives human attributes to non-human things; Oxymoron pairs contradictory terms side-by-side ('open secret', 'bittersweet'); Euphemism substitutes a mild expression for a harsh one ('passed away' for died). |  |  |
| 11 | In JAMB Oral English, how is the past-tense suffix '-ed' pronounced in 'walked/stopped' vs. 'played/begged' vs. 'wanted/decided'? | Pronounced /t/ after voiceless consonants (walked, stopped, laughed); /d/ after voiced consonants and vowels (played, begged); and /ɪd/ after alveolar stops /t/ and /d/ (wanted, decided). |  |  |
| 12 | In JAMB Idioms, what do the idioms 'to throw in the towel', 'a flash in the pan', 'to bury the hatchet', and 'at the eleventh hour' mean? | Throw in the towel: admit defeat/give up; A flash in the pan: sudden brief success that is never repeated; Bury the hatchet: make peace/end a quarrel; At the eleventh hour: at the very last possible moment. |  |  |
| 13 | In JAMB Oral English, which consonant sound is represented by the letters 'th' in 'thin', 'think', and 'breath' versus 'this', 'mother', and 'bathe'? | Voiceless dental fricative /θ/ in 'thin', 'think', 'breath'; voiced dental fricative /ð/ in 'this', 'mother', 'bathe' (note: 'breath' is noun /θ/, while 'breathe' is verb /ð/). |  |  |
| 14 | In JAMB Oral English, which words contain silent consonant letters in 'plumber', 'debt', 'handkerchief', 'castle', 'psalm', and 'heir'? | Silent 'b' in plumber and debt; silent 'd' in handkerchief; silent 't' in castle; silent 'p' in psalm; silent 'h' in heir (and hour, honest, honour). |  |  |
| 15 | In JAMB Concord, how does 'The Principal, with all his teachers, ___ arrived' differ from 'The Principal and the Secretary ___ arrived'? | Accompaniment phrases ('with', 'together with', 'along with', 'as well as', 'no less than') do not alter the number of the first subject, so 'The Principal, with all his teachers, HAS arrived.' Two distinct people joined by 'and' take a plural verb ('HAVE arrived'). |  |  |
| 16 | In JAMB Lexis, what is the difference between 'compliment' vs. 'complement', and 'stationary' vs. 'stationery'? | Compliment (with 'i'): praise/congratulate; Complement (with 'e'): complete or go well together. Stationary (-ary): not moving; Stationery (-ery): writing materials (paper, envelopes, pens). |  |  |
| 17 | In JAMB Lexis & Structure (Rules of Concord), what verb form follows 'Many a...' (e.g., 'Many a candidate ___ failed due to carelessness')? | 'Many a' is always followed by a singular noun and a SINGULAR verb: 'Many a candidate HAS failed due to carelessness.' |  |  |
| 18 | In WASSCE English Clauses, how do you identify an Adverbial Clause of Concession versus a Noun Clause functioning as Object of a Preposition? | Adverbial Clause of Concession begins with 'although', 'even though', 'though', or 'while' and modifies the main verb; a Noun Clause after a preposition (e.g., 'depends on WHAT HE SAYS') answers 'what?' right after the preposition 'on'. |  |  |
| 19 | In JAMB Question Tags, what are the correct question tags for 'I am invited to the ceremony, ___?' and 'Let us go to the library, ___?' | 'I am invited..., AREN'T I?' and 'Let us (Let's) go..., SHALL WE?' (whereas 'Let him/them go' takes 'WILL YOU?'). |  |  |
| 20 | In JAMB Lexis & Structure (Subjunctive / 'High Time' rule), what verb tense must follow 'It is high time...' or 'It is about time...' when followed by a subject pronoun? | The simple past tense (past subjunctive): 'It is high time we LEFT for the airport' (NOT 'leave' or 'should leave'). |  |  |
| 21 | In JAMB Grammar, what verb form follows the expressions 'would rather' and 'had better'? | 'Had better + bare infinitive' ('You had better STUDY now'). 'Would rather + bare infinitive' when the subject is the same ('I would rather STAY home'), but 'Would rather + Subject + PAST TENSE' when the subject changes ('I would rather you WENT home now'). |  |  |
| 22 | In JAMB Emphatic (Contrastive) Stress, how do you select the correct question for the sentence: 'The principal bought a NEW car yesterday' (with 'NEW' capitalized)? | Choose the interrogative option that contradicts the capitalized word ('NEW') while keeping all other elements constant—e.g., 'Did the principal buy an OLD car yesterday?' |  |  |
| 23 | In JAMB Use of English Register, what specialized vocabulary belongs to the Judiciary/Law register versus the Stock Exchange/Finance register? | Judiciary/Law: plaintiff, defendant, appellant, subpoena, affidavit, injunction, acquittal, bail, chambers. Stock Exchange/Finance: dividends, equities, debentures, bull/bear market, stockbroker, blue-chip shares, prospectus. |  |  |
| 24 | In JAMB Concord, when two nouns refer to a single unit or meal (e.g., 'Rice and beans', 'Bread and butter') vs. two distinct items, what verb is used? | When referring to a single composite dish or concept, it takes a SINGULAR verb ('Rice and beans IS my favourite meal'); when referring to separate items ('Rice and beans ARE sold in those two sacks'), it takes a plural verb. |  |  |
| 25 | In JAMB Grammar (Uncountable Nouns), why are expressions like 'informations', 'equipments', 'furnitures', 'luggages', and 'advices' grammatically incorrect? | They are mass (uncountable) nouns in Standard English that have no plural '-s' form and cannot take 'a/an'; to count them, use partitives like 'pieces of information/advice/equipment/furniture'. |  |  |
| 26 | In JAMB Pronoun Case, which is correct: 'Between you and I' or 'Between you and me', and why? | 'Between you and me' is correct because 'between' is a preposition and requires pronouns in the objective case (me, him, her, us, them). |  |  |
| 27 | In JAMB Grammar, what is the difference between 'each other' and 'one another' in traditional exam grammar, and between 'its' and 'it's'? | 'Each other' is used for two persons/things, while 'one another' is used for three or more. 'Its' is a possessive determiner, whereas 'it's' is a contraction of 'it is' or 'it has'. |  |  |
| 28 | In JAMB Grammar, why must a participle phrase at the start of a sentence match the subject of the main clause (Avoiding Dangling Modifiers)? | In 'Walking down the street, a snake bit Musa', 'walking' dangles because the snake wasn't walking. Correct: 'Walking down the street, Musa was bitten by a snake.' |  |  |
| 29 | In JAMB Concord, what verb form follows 'A number of students...' versus 'The number of students...'? | 'A number of + plural noun' takes a PLURAL verb ('A number of students ARE waiting'), whereas 'The number of + plural noun' takes a SINGULAR verb ('The number of students IS increasing'). |  |  |
| 30 | In JAMB Word Stress, where does primary stress fall in words ending in '-ity', '-ate' (3+ syllables), '-fy', and '-gy' (e.g., u-ni-VER-si-ty, CER-ti-fy, bi-O-lo-gy)? | On the antepenultimate syllable (the third syllable from the end of the word). |  |  |
| 31 | In JAMB Adjective Order, what is the standard order of cumulative adjectives before a noun (DOSASCOMP)? | Determiner -> Opinion -> Size -> Age -> Shape -> Colour -> Origin -> Material -> Purpose + Noun (e.g., 'A beautiful big old round brown Nigerian wooden dining table'). |  |  |
| 32 | In JAMB Idioms, what do 'to play the devil's advocate', 'to sit on the fence', 'a white elephant project', and 'to leave no stone unturned' mean? | Play devil's advocate: argue an opposing view to test the strength of an argument; Sit on the fence: remain neutral/undecided; White elephant: costly project with little practical utility; Leave no stone unturned: try every possible means. |  |  |

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