Use Of English 2015 Jamb Examination

In A.H. Mohammed's novel, *The Last Days at Forcados High School*, the story opens with Jimi being jolted out of his sleep by an unexpected visitor. While he is still in a groggy, half-asleep state, he discovers that his older brother, Wole, has returned home. Wole is considered the 'black sheep' of the family, and his sudden appearance is a major shock because he had been away for a long time following a serious fallout with their father. This return sets the tone for the familial tension that persists throughout the novel, as Wole's presence is often associated with trouble and conflict within the Solade household.

Breeze - /briːz/
For words to rhyme, they must share the same stressed vowel sound and any following consonant sounds. 'Breeze' contains the long vowel /iː/ followed by the voiced alveolar fricative /z/.
stress - /stres/ (ends in /es/)
chess - /tʃes/ (ends in /es/)
free - /friː/ (ends in the vowel /iː/ but lacks the final /z/ consonant)
trees - /triːz/ (ends in /iːz/)
The word 'trees' is a perfect rhyme for 'breeze' as they both share the /iːz/ phonetic ending. Although 'free' has the same vowel, it is a 'near rhyme' because it lacks the concluding /z/ sound that both 'breeze' and 'trees' possess.

Believe (verb) - /bɪˈliːv/
The spelling in option B is incorrect. In United Kingdom English, the word follows the classic spelling rule: 'i' before 'e' except after 'c'. Therefore, the correct spelling is 'believe', not 'beleive'. The other options are correctly spelled: 'quite' (meaning completely or to a certain extent), 'proceed' (to move forward, spelled with double 'e'), and 'advise/advice' (representing the verb and noun forms respectively).

This sentence is an example of the third conditional, which is used to describe hypothetical situations in the past—things that did not actually happen. The structure for the third conditional is:
If + Past Perfect (had + past participle), ... would have + past participle.
The second part of the sentence uses 'would have been lynched', which indicates the result of the hypothetical past condition. Therefore, the 'if-clause' must use the past perfect 'had been caught'. This shows that the robbers were not actually caught, and thus they were not lynched.

Heroes (noun) - /ˈhɪə.rəʊz/
When forming the plural of nouns ending in '-o', English grammar usually requires adding '-oes' if the '-o' is preceded by a consonant. Words like 'hero', 'potato', and 'tomato' follow this rule, becoming 'heroes', 'potatoes', and 'tomatoes'. The spelling 'heros' is generally considered incorrect in standard British English, and 'heroses' is a non-existent form. Since the sentence discusses 'Shakespearian' figures in a general, plural sense (indicated by the verb 'are'), the correctly spelled plural 'heroes' is required.

Defuse (verb) - /ˌdiːˈfjuːz/
In United Kingdom English, the verb 'defuse' specifically means to remove the fuse from an explosive device or to make a dangerous situation calmer. It is derived from adding the prefix 'de-' (meaning to remove or reverse) to 'fuse'. The word 'diffused' (/dɪˈfjuːzd/) means to spread over a wide area or among a large number of people. While they sound similar, 'diffuse' refers to dispersion, whereas 'defuse' refers to rendering a bomb harmless. The other options, 'druse' and 'difused', are either unrelated terms or incorrect spellings.

In A.H. Mohammed's novel, *The Last Days at Forcados High School*, Jimi Solade is portrayed as an all-rounder. Not only is he a popular student and a talented athlete on the football field, but he is also exceptionally brilliant in the sciences. Specifically, the narrative identifies him as the best student in Chemistry. This academic prowess is part of why he is considered the 'golden boy' of both the school and his family, serving as a sharp contrast to his brother Wole's academic failures and social delinquency.

Embarrassed (adjective) - /ɪmˈbær.əst/
The correct spelling of this word requires double 'r' and double 's': e-m-b-a-r-r-a-s-s-e-d. In option B, the word is missing the second 'r', making it 'embarassed', which is a common spelling error. The other words provided are spelled correctly according to United Kingdom English standards: 'disappointed' (one 's', double 'p'), 'equipped' (double 'p'), and 'restaurant' (ending in '-ant').

Hang - /hæŋ/
The underlined letters 'ng' in 'hang' represent the voiced velar nasal consonant sound /ŋ/.
hinge - /hɪndʒ/ (ends in the /ndʒ/ sound)
tinge - /tɪndʒ/ (ends in the /ndʒ/ sound)
song - /sɒŋ/ (ends in the /ŋ/ sound)
balm - /bɑːm/ (the 'l' is silent, ends in /m/)
The word 'song' features the same /ŋ/ consonant sound as 'hang'. In 'hinge' and 'tinge', the 'g' is soft and combines with 'n' to form a different phoneme (/ndʒ/). Therefore, 'song' is the correct phonetic match for the velar nasal sound.

This sentence is an example of reported speech (indirect speech). The introductory verb 'complained' is in the past tense, which typically requires a 'backshift' in the tense of the reported clause. If the trader's original words were 'I was robbed' (Past Simple) or 'I have been robbed' (Present Perfect), both would shift to the Past Perfect 'had been robbed' when reported. Using 'had been' indicates that the robbery occurred prior to the moment the trader made the complaint, maintaining proper chronological sequence in the narrative past.