Explanations for Grade 12 Entrance: Word Order Questions (English) with Exam Techniques and Smart Note Summary
Explanations for Grade 12 Entrance: Word Order Questions (English) with Exam Techniques and Smart Note Summary
Brief Summary: Exam Techniques
Q. get to at tea six up we o'clock drink (G-12: Entrance: 2005)
A. To drink at six o'clock tea we get up.B. We get up at six o'clock to drink tea.C. We drink up tea to get at six o'clock.D. We get up to drink tea at six o'clock.
Explanation-9
Brief Explanation
The above question is about order of events: 'getting up' (waking up) and 'drinking tea'. This and other related questions can be answered using the 'order of events'. Look choices A, C and D are wrong: they should be eliminated: B is correct answer.
Ans. B
Additional Explanation
This and any other question about 'word orders' could be answered using 'taking check technique'!
♦ Take some of the first words and check their correctness in terms of orders.
♦ For example, look some of the first words on choices A, C and D; their orders are wrong.
- A.
To drink at sixo'clock tea we get up. - The first 3 words order is wrong/meaningless.
- Drink what? 'Object' is missed.
Eliminate choice A.- C.
We drink up teato get at six o'clock. - The preposition 'up' is used wrongly;
- It (up) must be used with 'get' not with 'drink'.
Eliminate choice B.- D. We get up to drink tea at six o'clock.
- This could be grammatically meaningful but choice B is more meaningful than choice D.
- This is not grammatically wrong because the given adverb of time ''at six o'clock'' could be the time for 'drinking' or it could be the time for 'getting up'!
Note:
- Dear students, this technique ('taking check technique') could work for question about 'word orders'; use it in future!
Ans. B
Q. Stage the is it that she were on high time. (G-12: Entrance: 2015S)
A. She is on high time that were it the stage.B. It is hight time that she were on the stage.C. She is on high time that it were the stage.D. It is the stage that she were on high time.
Explanation-10
You could answer this question in one step, taking 'high time' as clue: 'using key words technique'!
- 'High time' is one of the ways to express unrealistic conditions/used to show something delayed (take more time than expected).
- Based this, eliminate all the choices that don't begin with this structure!
- As a result, look each choice; all the choices must be eliminated except choice B.
Ans. B
Brief Rules: Form: It is high time/it is time/it is about time ... subject + simple past (verb2/were) with all subjects.
Q. Big-Bang theory the world scientist who introduced the was a prominent Stephen Hawkings. (G-12: Entrance: 2015S)
A. The world scientist who introduced the Big-Bang theory was a prominent Stephen Hawkings.B. Stephen Hawkings introduced the world to a Big Bang theory who was a prominent scientist.C. The prominent scientist who introduced a world to Big-Bang theory was Stephen Hawkings.D. Stephen Hawkings was a prominent scientist who introduced the world to the Big-Bang theory.
Explanation-11
Brief Explanation
In this sentence, it is clear that the subject/doer is 'Stephen Hawkings'; the words 'prominent' and 'scientist' describe Stephen Hawkings.
- Eliminate all the choices that don't begin with 'Stephen Hawkings' (as the subject).
- So, choices A and C must be eliminated.
- Using 'who' as clue, choice B must be eliminated. Because 'who', 'that' and 'which' are relative pronouns that are used directly after the nouns (subject) they describe in relative clauses.
Ans. D
Additional Explanation
In the above question, the given group of words (sentence) are relatively long. Whenever you are given this type of question, use 'taking check technique'!
♦ Take some of the first words and check their correctness in terms of orders.
♦ Then, eliminate all the choices with wrong orders.
Look each of the above choices:
A. The world scientist who introduced the Big-Bang theory was a prominent Stephen Hawkings.
- The word orders on choice A are grammatically correct but if relative clause comes after main clause is more preferable.
Eliminate choice A.
B. Stephen Hawkings introduced the world to a Big Bang theory who was a prominent scientist.
- The word orders on choice B are grammatically wrong because relative clause (relative pronoun) should come after the noun it describes.
- The relative pronoun "who" describes 'Stephen Hawkings' or 'a prominent scientist'.
Eliminate choice B.
C. The prominent scientist who introduced a world to Big-Bang theory was Stephen Hawkings.
- The word orders on choice C are grammatically correct but if relative clause comes after main clause is more preferable.
Eliminate choice C.
Ans. D
Q. Their a generation is like passing killing students in exams who have actually failed. (G-12: Entrance: 2015N)
A. Passing students who have actually failed in their exams is like killing a generation.
B. Passing a generation is like killing students who have actually failed in their exams.
C. Passing students in their exams is like a generation who have actually failed killing.
D. Killing a generation is like passing students in their exams who have actually failed.
Explanation-12
Using the words 'who' and 'passing' as key words, you could answer this question in two simple
Look each of the above choices.
- Using 'who' as a clue, choices C and D must be eliminated.
- Because the relative pronouns 'who', 'that' and 'which' are used directly after the nouns (subject) they describe in relative clauses.
- Here, in this sentence, 'who' refers to students, not exams (see D) and generation (see C).
- Using the word 'passing' as a clue, choice B must be eliminated because it goes with students not with generation.
Ans. A
Q. Was the spot down at the criminal gunned right. (Entrance: 2000)
A. The spot was gunned down right at the criminal.B. The right spot was gunned down at the criminal.C. The right spot at the criminal was gunned down.D. The criminal was gunned down right at the spot.
Explanation-13
*[NB. Spot means place, gun down means shoot by bullet/gun]
Look each choice of the above question.
Take sentence on choice A and break into different words/group of words. Then test the meaningfulness of each group of words/phrases.
In choice A, ‘The spot’ is the phrase before the verb (was gunned down). This phrase (‘The spot’) could not be the subject of this sentence. Because ‘spot’ is place, it could not be gunned down/ shoot. It is a place where the action (gunning down) was done. It is meaningless here. Eliminate A. You have 3/4 probability.
The reason why sentence A is eliminated is that the usage of the word ‘spot’ as subject is incorrect. So, by ‘Extending Clue Technique’, look other choices in which the word ‘spot’ is used as subject and eliminate them.In choices B & C the word ‘spot’ is used as the subject: The right spot.... All are eliminated except D.
Ans. D
Note: 'Taking and Checking Technique'
Dear students, please, do the same whenever you are asked questions about word orders!
- Take the words on each choice, and break them into different words/group of words or some of the first words!
- Then test the meaningfulness of each group of words/phrases!
- Finally, eliminate all the choices with meaningless groups of words/wrong order!
Q. Mammo dog the skinny killed. (G-12: Entrance: 2007)
A. Mammo the skinny dog killed.B. Skinny dog killed the Mammo.C. Skinny the dog Mammo killed.D. The skinny dog killed Mammo.
Explanation-14
Look this question, let’s take choice /sentence A and break into different words or group of words and see whether the groups of words are meaningful (separately and together) or not.
Mammo/ the skinny dog killed.
The word Mammo, name of person can be used at the beginning as subject (meaningful); the groups of words ‘the skinny dog killed’ is also meaningful. But when we put them together, they are meaningless. Because, the meaning is Mammo is dog. Eliminate choice A.
Ans. D
Brief Rule
Rule1: Transitive verb must be followed by object!
- The word ‘killed’ is transitive verb, it needs object after it. ‘Killed what?’
- In English sentence: S+V+O. Look also choice C the verb ‘killed’ is used at the end. Eliminate C.
Q. looking have we over you all been for. (G-12: Entrance: 2005)
A. We have been looking for you all over.B. We all have been looking over for you.C. You have been looking for we all over.D. All over you have been looking for we.
Explanation-15
In the above question, the group of words are meaningful up to ‘we’, but when put these group of words (Y ou have been looking for) with ‘we’ it will be meaningless. As the sentence is affirmative, the order is S+V+O. After ‘for’ object is needed but ‘we’ is subject. So, eliminate choice A; take this as clue and look for other choices in which the word ‘we’ is used in place of object. Look choice D; eliminate it. ‘Looking for’ is phrasal verb, the preposition ‘for’ must be used with ‘looking’, it should not be separated. Eliminate choice B.
Ans. C
Q. Plane I by travelling hate. (G-12: Entrance: 2008A)
A. By plane I hate travelling.B. Travelling by plane I hate.C. I hate travelling by plane.D. I hate by plane travelling.
Explanation-16
By 'taking and checking technique', all the above choices must be eliminated except choice C. Because the first 3 or 4 words on these choices are wrong!
Look:
A.By plane Ihate travelling.B. Travellingby plane I hate.C. I hate travelling by plane.D.I hate by planetravelling.
Ans. C
Additional Explanation
Note: Sometimes, some groups of words could be meaningful separately but meaningless when put together.
For example, look choice A; in ‘By plane/ I hate travelling’.
- The group or phrase ‘By plane’ is meaningful. Because we can say by car, by plane, by cycle....
- “I hate travelling” is also meaningful as we can say or have this type of word orders (I/We/They hate writing/talking/ reading….).
- But when we put them (the first and the second groups of words), they will be meaningless.
- So, eliminate choice A. Because they were interchanged, their places were exchanged.
The sentence is declarative (SVO), it should begin with subject. The subject of this sentence could be "I".
Let’s exchange the places by putting “I hate travelling” first and “ by plane” second. We can get “I hate travelling by plane.” So, eliminate all choices except C.
Ans. C
Q. World I the sail to around want. (G-12: Entrance: 2005)
A. To sail around the world I want.B. I want around the world to sail.C. I want to sail around the world.D. Around the world I want to sail.
Explanation-17
(Sail means travelling on water body by ship…) “To sail around the world” / “I want.”
- Both groups could be meaningful separately because we can say /have word order like this (To sail around the country/city/ continent… I/We/ They want...).
- But when put together both groups of words, they will be meaningless.
- A is meaningless; we eliminate it.
- The reason is that their positions were interchanged. Because the sentence is ‘declarative’, it should begin with subject. When we exchange (rearrange) the position, we can get meaningful sentence. “I want to sail around the world.”
Ans. D
Q. Next do in who class to sit? (G-12: Entrance: 2003)
A. Who do you sit next to in class?B. Next who do you sit in to class?C. To who next do you sit in class?D. Who next to do you sit in
Explanation-18
This question is about ‘interrogative sentence’. As a rule the word order in ‘question sentence’ should begin with ‘Wh-words or AV’. So, choice B&C could be eliminated (why?). Choice D will be eliminated by ‘Wh-word + AV’ rule.
Ans. A
Q. she in do the what you evenings know does. (G-12: Entrance: 2005)
A. What she does do you know in the evenings?B. In the evenings do you know what she does?C. Do you in the evenings know what she does?D. Do you know what she does in the evenings?
Explanation-19
Ans. D: Using the "interrogative sentence word order'!
Q. looking have we over you all been for. (G-12: Entrance: 2005)
A. We have been looking for you all over.B. We all have been looking over for you.C. You have been looking for we all over.D. All over you have been looking for we.
Explanation-20
Ans. A: Using the word order look for ... declarative subject + verb + object...!