THE WEST AFRICAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL
GHANA

Basic Education Certificate Examination

ENGLISH 1993

Essay and Objective

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OBJECTIVE TEST

PART I
LEXIS AND STRUCTURE

SECTION A

From the alternatives lettered A to D, choose the one which most suitably completes each sentence.

1.

According to the passage, Garba taught Bako to ......

A.

use a matchet.

B.

fell trees.

C.

read and write.

D.

gossip and laugh.

E.

read and fell trees.

2.

Bako got additional income by ......

A.

cutting down trees.

B.

going to the hospital.

C.

meeting his friends on Monday.

D.

working as a letter-writer and reader.

E.

felling trees and reading letters.

3.

The people trusted Bako because he ......

A.

kept what he knew about them secretly.

B.

wrote and read their letters.

C.

gossiped and laughed with them.

D.

was hardworking and clever.

E.

earned extra income.

4.

How did the accident affect Bako?

A.

He lost his senses and job

B.

He could not read and write again

C.

He became weak and jobless

D.

His face was stitched

E.

His friends left him

5.

Bako liked Mondays because ......

A.

Monday started the week

B.

He met all his friends again

C.

He received his pay

D.

He wrote and read letters

E.

He heard news from other villages

6.

He fell unconscious means he ......

A.

fell asleep

B.

became mad

C.

lost his confidence

D.

lost awareness of his surroundings

E.

fell down and died

7.

Why did the writer think his job would be difficult?

A.

The other members were final year students

B.

He had to control his closest friends

C.

He was inexperienced

D.

He had to work with new officers

E.

Some of his friends stopped talking to him

8.

Which of the following words best describes the behaviour of the writer's friends?

A.

Uncooperative

B.

Jealous

C.

Insulting

D.

Funny

E.

Talkative

9.

According to the passage which of the following statements is true? The writer

A.

settled the misunderstanding between him and his friends.

B.

stopped talking to his friends.

C.

lost all his closest friends.

D.

appointed only his friends as officers.

E.

did not listen to the advice of his friends.

10.

The word disputes means ......

A.

misgiving.

B.

debates.

C.

insults.

D.

wars.

E.

differences.

11.

The Manager was dismissed for gross inefficiency.

A.

laziness

B.

dishonesty

C.

incompetence

D.

misconduct

E.

disrespect

12.

Prices of goods have been fairly controlled.

A.

kept down

B.

kept away

C.

kept off

D.

kept out

E.

kept hanging

13.

Remember to look over your work when you finish.

A.

watch

B.

look on

C.

oversee

D.

read through

E.

overlook

14.

Although the labourers agreed to do the work, they did it reluctantly.

A.

leisurely

B.

nervously

C.

unwillingly

D.

sparingly

E.

angrily

15.

The thief was humiliated when he was caught.

A.

sentenced

B.

cautioned

C.

beaten up

D.

discouraged

E.

mocked at

16.

I don't like Ben. He is always pulling my legs. This means Ben is always ......

A.

pulling me down

B.

gossiping about me

C.

abusing me

D.

borrowing my shoes

E.

teasing me

17.

The judge turned a deaf ear to what the murderer said. This means the judge ......

A.

was partially deaf

B.

ignored what the murderer said

C.

favoured the murderer when he heard his story

D.

pretended that he was listening to the murderer's story

E.

was asleep when the murderer gave his evidence

SECTION B

Choose from the alternatives lettered A to D the one which is nearest in meaning to the underlined word in each sentence.

18.

If you don't want to regret, cut your coat according to your cloth. This means ......

A.

live within your means.

B.

use the coat cut from your cloth.

C.

sew your own coat.

D.

put on your cloth and coat.

E.

do not worry about the problems of others.

19.

Were it not for the policemen the workers would have gone on strike. From this we know the policemen ......

A.

didn't go on strike.

B.

saw the workers on strike.

C.

forced the workers to go on strike.

D.

and the workers were on strike.

E.

prevented the workers from going on strike.

20.

Razak has been in a bad way for several days. This means Razak has been ......

A.

badly treated

B.

unable to eat for many days

C.

misbehaving

D.

quite ill

E.

very unfriendly towards everyone

21.

Our school is now famous throughout the district.

A.

popular

B.

anonymous

C.

unknown

D.

irrelevant

E.

hidden

22.

Our new pastor is very modest in his ways.

A.

friendly

B.

kind

C.

particular

D.

boastful

E.

fashionable

SECTION C

In each of the following sentences a group of words has been underlined. Choose from the alternatives lettered A to D the one that best explains the underlined group of words.

23.

Issa was very rude to his teacher.

A.

respectful

B.

polite

C.

obedient

D.

truthful

E.

gentle

24.

We walked on the smooth side of the pavement.

A.

hard

B.

rough

C.

coarse

D.

slippery

E.

narrow

25.

The president was denounced by his subjects.

A.

elected

B.

welcomed

C.

supported

D.

advised

E.

hailed

26.

Our ancestors ...... to us a lot of knowledge about our culture.

A.

handed in

B.

passed out

C.

passed through

D.

handed down

27.

The government has set ...... a committee on education.

A.

apart

B.

up

C.

in

D.

by

SECTION D

From the list of words lettered A to D, choose the one that is most nearly opposite in meaning to the word underlined in each sentence.

28.

None of the suspects ...... his guilt.

A.

admit

B.

admits

C.

are admitting

D.

have admitted

29.

Amidu promised to be patient until his toy ...... repaired.

A.

has been

B.

will be

C.

was

D.

can be

30.

The Headmaster, with his assistant ...... inspecting the new school library.

A.

will have been

B.

are

C.

have been

D.

is

31.

I would have told you about the wedding if I ......

A.

have known

B.

know

C.

had known

D.

have been knowing

32.

His writing is so bad that I can't make it ......

A.

on

B.

out

C.

down

D.

in

PART II
LITERATURE

From the list of words lettered A to D, choose the one that correctly answers each question or completes the sentence.

33.

You will be ill if you ...... too much.

A.

are eating

B.

eat

C.

had eaten

D.

ate

34.

If it ...... necessary, I shall see you again at six o'clock.

A.

is

B.

had been

C.

is being

D.

was

35.

If we had not closed down the market, the traders ...... there.

A.

shall still be

B.

will still be

C.

are still going

D.

would have still been

36.

Mr. Adu has never been pleased with his children's performance, ......?

A.

hasn't he

B.

didn't he

C.

has he

D.

did he

37.

You prefer playing soccer to volley ball, ......?

A.

do you

B.

will you

C.

won't you

D.

don't you?

38.

The cashier was rude to his boss, ......?

A.

was he

B.

wasn't he

C.

did he

D.

didn't he

39.

These days students are not very interested ...... improving their English.

A.

on

B.

about

C.

of

D.

in

40.

Kofi ate ...... food than anyone else.

A.

more

B.

most

C.

much

D.

too much

THEORY QUESTIONS

1.

Write a letter to a friend who wants to visit your school giving him directions to your school and telling him about two interesting things he will see on his visit.

2.

As the Senior Prefect of your school write a letter to your District Chief Executive telling him about three problems which worry the pupils of your school.

3.

Describe a festival which was celebrated recently in your area.

4.

Describe a dream you will never forget.