Grade 10 indigenous languages – Intensive Listening Quiz
1. Direct speech: "I will come tomorrow," said Amina. Choose the correct reported speech.
In reported speech the future 'will' shifts to 'would' and 'tomorrow' changes to 'the next day'.
2. Choose the correct subject-verb agreement: "The team ____ ready to leave."
In Kenyan and standard English 'team' as a collective noun is usually treated as singular, so the singular verb 'is' is correct.
3. Choose the correct tag question: "You're coming to the meeting, ____?"
The auxiliary 'are' in the main clause 'You are coming' becomes 'aren't' in the negative question tag: 'aren't you?'.
4. Choose the correct verb form for first conditional: "If it ____ tomorrow, we will cancel the trip."
First conditional uses present simple in the 'if' clause ('rains') and 'will' in the main clause to show a real future possibility.
5. Choose the correct indirect question form: "Can you tell me where ____?"
In indirect questions the subject comes before the verb: 'where the bank is'.
6. Choose the correct pronoun: "When Peter and Mary arrived, ___ left quickly."
Peter and Mary are a compound subject, so the correct subject pronoun is the plural 'they'.
7. Choose the correct passive form: "People speak Kiswahili in Kenya."
The passive of 'people speak Kiswahili' is 'Kiswahili is spoken in Kenya' (present simple passive: 'is spoken').
8. Choose the correct article: "I saw ___ elephant at the Nairobi National Park."
Use 'an' before a vowel sound; 'elephant' begins with a vowel sound, so 'an elephant' is correct.
9. Choose the correct form after a modal: "You ____ finish your homework before going out."
Modals like 'must' are followed by the base form of a verb without 'to': 'must finish'.
10. Choose the correct past perfect: "By the time the teacher arrived, the students ____ their books."
Past perfect ('had opened') shows an action completed before another past action (teacher arrived).
11. Choose the correct comparative: "Mount Kenya is ____ Mount Kilimanjaro in height."
Short adjectives form the comparative with '-er': 'taller than' is grammatically correct.
12. Reported question: Direct: "Where did you buy that shirt?" He asked me ... Choose the correct reported form.
In reported speech past simple shifts to past perfect: 'did you buy' becomes 'I had bought' and question word order becomes statement order.
13. Choose the correct form (gerund or infinitive): "I enjoy ____ traditional stories."
After 'enjoy' we use a gerund: 'enjoy listening'.
14. Choose the correct verb with a compound subject: "Mama Wanjiru and her son ____ at the market every Saturday."
Two people joined by 'and' form a plural subject, so use the plural verb 'are'.
15. Choose the correct expression for past habit: "When I was small, I ____ climb mango trees."
'Used to' + base verb describes a past habitual action: 'used to climb'.
16. Choose the correct form after 'wish' for a present unreal: "I wish I ____ Kiswahili better."
For present unreal wishes we use the past simple: 'I wish I spoke Kiswahili better.'
17. Choose the correct relative pronoun: "The book ____ I borrowed explained Luo proverbs."
'Which' refers to things (the book). 'Who'/'whom' refer to people; 'whose' shows possession.
18. Choose the correct past continuous: "While the class ____ , the principal entered."
Past continuous ('was starting') indicates an action in progress when another past event ('the principal entered') occurred.
19. Choose the correct verb for permission/inviting help: "____ me help you carry that water jerrycan."
'Let me' is the correct phrase to offer help or request to act on behalf of the speaker.
20. Which contraction correctly represents 'I have' in spoken English?
The contraction for 'I have' (present perfect auxiliary) is 'I've'. 'I'd' is 'I had' or 'I would', 'I'll' is 'I will', 'I'am' is incorrect.
21. Choose the correct preposition: "She lives ____ Mombasa."
Use 'in' for cities: 'She lives in Mombasa.' 'At' is used for specific addresses, 'on' for streets, 'to' indicates movement.
22. Choose the correct question tag for a negative statement: "You haven't eaten the mango, ____?"
Negative statement 'You haven't...' takes a positive tag 'have you?'. The auxiliary 'have' is used.
23. Reported speech with present perfect: Direct: "I have visited Kakamega Forest," she said. Choose the correct reported form.
In reported speech the present perfect ('have visited') typically shifts to past perfect ('had visited').
24. Choose the correct inversion for a past unreal conditional: "Had I known, I ____ you."
Inversion 'Had I known' expresses a past unreal condition; the result uses the perfect conditional 'would have helped'.
25. Choose the most polite modal for a request: "____ you please pass the salt?"
'Could you please...' is a polite and common modal request in spoken English; 'Would' is also polite but 'Could' is most typical here.