Seven Types of English Comprehension Questions
What types of questions can you expect in your English Language Comprehension paper? My analysis of past years’ ‘O’ Level papers suggests that the questions can be generally categorised into seven types:
Sometimes, however, you may find that some questions straddle two categories. For example, you may find a question that can be categorised either as a Use Your Own Words Question or a Language Use Question.
- The Factual Question
- The Inferential Question
- The Use Your Own Words Question
- The Language Use Question
- Writing down/Quoting a Word/Phrase/Sentence/Expression
- The Vocabulary Question
- The Summary Question
Sometimes, however, you may find that some questions straddle two categories. For example, you may find a question that can be categorised either as a Use Your Own Words Question or a Language Use Question.
The Rephrasing Question
The rephrasing question requires you to express certain phrases or sentences in your own words, .i.e. you have to explain their meaning. In answering this type if question, you have to read the given phrase or sentence in its context, i.e. you have to read the given phrase or sentence in its context, i.e. you have to read what comes before or after, in order to understand its meaning fully.
“I waited for Harry to appear. The minutes ticked by. It seemed like an age before he finally appeared.”
To understand the meaning of the phrase “an age” you have to read the two sentences before it. Then you understand “an age” to mean a very long time.
Now read the following:
“Once you have tracked down the animal. you must shoot it cleanly.”
"Cleanly" here means killing it immediately. Notice how that meaning of clean here is related to the context of hunting, and has nothing to do with the usual meaning of clean (i.e. free of dirt.)
Sometimes sentences given to you contain idioms and figures of speech , such as metaphors.
For instance:
1.) The ghosts of his past misdeeds keep returning to huant him.(He kept remembering, with guilt and fear, his pass wrongdoings.)
2.) He was convinced that his enemies, one fine day, would do him in.
Question: Explain the phrase in italics
Answer: It means__________________________________
“I waited for Harry to appear. The minutes ticked by. It seemed like an age before he finally appeared.”
To understand the meaning of the phrase “an age” you have to read the two sentences before it. Then you understand “an age” to mean a very long time.
Now read the following:
“Once you have tracked down the animal. you must shoot it cleanly.”
"Cleanly" here means killing it immediately. Notice how that meaning of clean here is related to the context of hunting, and has nothing to do with the usual meaning of clean (i.e. free of dirt.)
Sometimes sentences given to you contain idioms and figures of speech , such as metaphors.
For instance:
1.) The ghosts of his past misdeeds keep returning to huant him.(He kept remembering, with guilt and fear, his pass wrongdoings.)
2.) He was convinced that his enemies, one fine day, would do him in.
Question: Explain the phrase in italics
Answer: It means__________________________________
