English-Language Exam Past Questions and Answers | JAMB, WAEC and NECO

English is the study of the English language. The goal is to improve communication skills by practicing listening, speaking, reading, writing, and understanding language rules like pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.

• Question 1:

  Answer the following question below and choose the option nearest in meaning to the underlined word or phrase in.

  Okibe was rusticated for his derogatory remark about the principal.

  Options:
  A) complimentary
  B) unsavoury
  C) unwarranted
  D) lack lustre
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is B .
• Question 2:

  In the question below select the option that best explains the information conveyed in the sentence:

  Had Aminu been a dull student, his failure wouldn't have surprised anybody

  Options:
  A) Aminu failed and it surprised everybody since he was dull
  B) Aminu was not a dull student and so everybody was surprised that he failed
  C) Because Aminu was a dull, student, everybody was surprised that he failed
  D) Aminu had been a dull student, and so nobody was surprised that he failed
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is B .
• Question 3:

  There are one or two things this country can teach others, one of them is the art of writing obituaries. One suspects that the reason why some of our newspapers still manage to break even is because of the great amount of revenue they derive from obituaries. It is not unusual for about one quarter of the volume of an average daily to be constituted of obituaries and in in memorial alone. One possible explanation for this, it has been argued, is that Nigerians value their dead greatly. And there is a saying amongst us that you do not say evil things against the dead. This is obviously the philosophy behind the large dose of encomiums with which our dead are bestowed. From evidences of these obituaries and in memorial, every dead Nigerian must have been something of a saint while alive. This would explain why the death of most Nigerians is attributed to the evil Machinations of the wicked. Only very few people in our country die natural death, and even when they do, the obituaries, etc always give the impression that such deaths constitute the saddest loss to befall the deceased family. And that is why writers of these obituaries and their allied advertisements are experts on ‘mortuary stylistics’. This ‘mortuary stylistics’ the study in the art of eulogizing the dead and making their loss sound so heart breaking, is one of the commodities we can export to other countries.

  One suspects that the reason why some of our newspaper still manage to break even _____suggests that some Nigerian newspapers Options:
  A) would be runnung at a loss but for obituaries
  B) are patronized only because they specialize in obituaries
  C) derive all their revenue from obituaries
  D) invest huge revenue in obituaries
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is A .
• Question 4:

  Fill the gap with the most appropriate option from the list following the gap.

  If the boys arrived early enough, the match _____ ?

  Options:
  A) would have been played
  B) will be played
  C) will have to be played
  D) would be played
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is A .
• Question 5:

  In the question below choose the word or phrase which best fills the gap in each sentence:

  Whilst the thief was _____ the passengers, he kept apologizing for the inconvenience he was causing them

  Options:
  A) robbing
  B) rubbing
  C) robing
  D) rubing
  E) robbed
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is A .
• Question 6:

  In the question below choose the option nearest in meaning to the word(s) or phrase(s) Underlined:

  The builder's taste reflected superfluous grandeur

  Options:
  A) excellent
  B) superlative
  C) expensive
  D) too much
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is D .
• Question 7:

  Choose the option that best conveys the meaning of the underlined portion in the following sentence;

  The bill has to wait as we are now insolvent

  Options:
  A) overworked
  B) bankrupt
  C) unsettled
  D) insoluble
  E) affluent
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is B .
• Question 8: Choose the option nearest in meaning to the word or phrase underlined. Publishing as a business venture has become a hot potato in Nigeria? Options:
  A) unacceptable
  B) unpleasant
  C) expensive
  D) profitable
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is B .
• Question 9:

  Answer the following question below and choose the option that best completes the gap(s):

  His many years of success in legal practice, _______didn't come without challenges.

  Options:
  A) indeed
  B) but
  C) inspite of it all
  D) however
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is D .
• Question 10:

  Choose the option opposite in meaning to the underlined word(s).

  The doctor examined the patient painstakingly?

  Options:
  A) carefully
  B) perfunctorily
  C) professionally
  D) painfully
  Show Answer
  The correct answer is B .