P4 English SA2 2020 — Henry Park | Singapore Past Year Paper

Q: Alan found the hike up Bukit Timah Hill easy but his friends found it ____.

C. strenuous. The contrast with 'easy' calls for a word meaning physically demanding. 'Strenuous' means requiring great effort or exertion, which fits a tough hike. 'Forceful' describes strength of action, 'complex' means complicated, and 'inconvenient' means causing trouble — none describe physical difficulty.

Q: The injured footballer ____ off the field after he was heavily tackled by his opponent.

A. limped. An injured footballer would walk with difficulty. 'Limped' means to walk with a hindered gait due to injury. 'Ambled' and 'sauntered' suggest leisurely walking, while 'marched' suggests purposeful, brisk walking — none fit an injured player.

Q: Mrs Bala proudly hung the wooden ____ that she had received for having served thirty years in her company.

C. plaque. Only a 'plaque' is typically wooden and hung on a wall as a long-service award. A trophy is usually metal, a medal is worn, and a certificate is paper-based — none are wooden objects that are hung.

Q: The once clear water in the stream is now cloudy and ____ because of the pollution caused by the nearby construction.

D. murky. 'Murky' specifically describes water that is dark, dirty and difficult to see through, which fits polluted stream water. 'Hazy' and 'foggy' describe air, while 'blurry' describes images.

Q: Rescue workers were immediately ____ to the accident area to assist in the 'Save and Rescue' mission.

D. dispatched. 'Dispatched' means to send off quickly to a destination for a specific purpose, which fits sending rescue workers to an accident. 'Issued' relates to giving out items, 'gathered' means to assemble, and 'forwarded' means to send onwards (used for messages or mail).

Q: The tsunami of 2004 was a ____ that the people of Phuket had not expected.

B. calamity. A 'calamity' is a serious disaster causing great damage, which accurately describes a tsunami. A 'fatality' is a single death, an 'accident' is unintentional and usually smaller in scale, and a 'hardship' is a difficulty rather than a disaster.

Q: My cousin, Jane, often comes to stay with my family ____ the school holidays.

D. during. 'During' is the correct preposition to indicate something happening throughout a period of time such as school holidays. 'In' is too general, 'at' is used for points in time, and 'for' indicates duration.

Q: A group of fans ____ seen outside the ticketing office last weekend buying their favourite singer's concert tickets.

C. was. 'A group' is a collective noun treated as singular, and 'last weekend' indicates past tense, so 'was' is correct.

Q: "Are you reaching soon? We ____ in front of the shop now," Mother asked John.

C. are waiting. The word 'now' signals an action currently in progress, requiring the present continuous tense 'are waiting'.

Q: Last April, Joseph ____ swimming in the pool due to the Circuit Breaker.

B. missed. 'Last April' refers to a completed action at a specific past time, requiring the simple past tense 'missed'.

Q1 MCQ 1 mark

Alan found the hike up Bukit Timah Hill easy but his friends found it ____.

Q2 MCQ 1 mark

The injured footballer ____ off the field after he was heavily tackled by his opponent.

Q3 MCQ 1 mark

Mrs Bala proudly hung the wooden ____ that she had received for having served thirty years in her company.

Q4 MCQ 1 mark

The once clear water in the stream is now cloudy and ____ because of the pollution caused by the nearby construction.

Q5 MCQ 1 mark

Rescue workers were immediately ____ to the accident area to assist in the 'Save and Rescue' mission.

Q6 MCQ 1 mark

The tsunami of 2004 was a ____ that the people of Phuket had not expected.

Q7 MCQ 1 mark

My cousin, Jane, often comes to stay with my family ____ the school holidays.

Q8 MCQ 1 mark

A group of fans ____ seen outside the ticketing office last weekend buying their favourite singer's concert tickets.

Q9 MCQ 1 mark

"Are you reaching soon? We ____ in front of the shop now," Mother asked John.

Q10 MCQ 1 mark

Last April, Joseph ____ swimming in the pool due to the Circuit Breaker.

Q11 MCQ 1 mark

The woman ____ very relieved when someone returned her handphone.

Q12 MCQ 1 mark

The twins ____ an episode from their favourite cartoon programme when the doorbell suddenly rang.

Q13 MCQ 1 mark

"Please help me get ____ bunch of keys on the table over there, Nora," my grandmother called out impatiently to me.

Q14 MCQ 1 mark

Martin volunteered to deliver the speech ____ he was the class monitor.

Q15 MCQ 1 mark

I still have a lot of chores to complete but there is not ____ time left.

Q16 MCQ 1 mark

Desmond can make ____ delicious tuna sandwiches in a short time.

Q17 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 1: Ali wanted to explore the mysterious forest. However, his sisters, Siti and Sarah, refused to join him because (17) ____ were afraid. Choose the correct word from the box (A) him, (B) himself, (C) herself, (D) it, (E) she, (F) they.

Q18 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 1: Ali decided that he would go by (18) ____. Choose the correct word from the box (A) him, (B) himself, (C) herself, (D) it, (E) she, (F) they.

Q19 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 1: His sisters stood outside the forest, hoping that nothing bad would happen to (19) ____. Choose the correct word from the box (A) him, (B) himself, (C) herself, (D) it, (E) she, (F) they.

Q20 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 1: Sarah was especially afraid because she had heard scary stories about the forest and did not want to be near (20) ____. After an hour, there was still no sign of Ali. Choose the correct word from the box (A) him, (B) himself, (C) herself, (D) it, (E) she, (F) they.

Q21 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 2: Every week, Tom borrows books about animals from the library. One of the books, "Animal Tales", (21) [ contain / contains ] many interesting stories about animals.

Q22 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 2: Tom (22) [ read / reads ] the book with his younger brother every night.

Q23 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 2: They (23) [ enjoy / enjoys ] looking at the beautiful pictures in the book together.

Q24 Open-ended 1 mark

Grammar Cloze Part 2: Their favourite story in the book is about how a brave mouse (24) [ help / helps ] a proud lion. Tom wants to borrow another book on animals again.

Q25 Open-ended 1 mark

Comprehension Cloze: Last week, Sally and her sister baked a cheesecake for their grandfather. Before they started baking, they visited the supermarket to buy all the necessary (25) ____ such as butter, cream cheese and sugar.

Q26 Open-ended 1 mark

Comprehension Cloze: As Sally had never baked a cheesecake before, she read the (26) ____ for baking a cheesecake several times. She followed it closely.

Q27 Open-ended 1 mark

Comprehension Cloze: Sally was very careful as she (27) ____ not want to make any mistakes.

Q28 Open-ended 1 mark

Comprehension Cloze: After the cheesecake had been baked, Sally's sister decorated it with some fresh strawberries. Finally, the cheesecake (28) ____ ready. They felt certain that their grandfather would enjoy eating it.

Q29 Open-ended 1 mark

Synthesis: Henry was playing with his toys. I was doing my homework. (Use: while)

Q30 Open-ended 1 mark

Synthesis: The boys continue to be late for school. The boys will be punished. (Use: If)

Q31 Open-ended 1 mark

Synthesis: Ben ran as fast as he could. Ben did not win the race. (Use: Although)

Q32 Open-ended 1 mark

Synthesis: The old house was not dark. The old house was not scary. (Use: neither)

Q33 MCQ 1 mark 🖼 Visual

Which word in the sentence has the same meaning as 'brave'? Circle either (A) or (B). The sentence shown is: 'He was a (A) courageous and (B) majestic king who fought very hard to keep his country safe.'

Q34 MCQ 1 mark

Tick (✓) your chosen answer. Robert Bruce went into the cave because he ____.

Q35 MCQ 1 mark

Tick (✓) your chosen answer. Why did Robert Bruce feel like giving up?

Q36 Open-ended 1 mark

Read the statement and tick (✓) 'True' or 'False'. Statement: 'Robert Bruce and his army were fighting against England.'

Q37 Open-ended 1 mark

Read the statement and tick (✓) 'True' or 'False'. Statement: 'The spider failed to spin the web in the cave.'

Q38 Open-ended 1 mark

Write the number (1, 2 or 3) in the boxes beside the events below to show the order in which they happened in the passage. Events: (a) The king watched the spider spinning a web in a cave. (b) The army fought hard but they still lost the war to England. (c) Robert Bruce fled to the woods after his army was scattered.

Q39 Open-ended 2 marks

List the two ways in which the spider spun her web. i. ____ [1m] ii. ____ [1m]

Q40 MCQ 1 mark

Tick (✓) your chosen answer. The couple was finally blessed with a son after ____.

Q41 MCQ 1 mark

The mongoose and the little boy were like brothers because they always ____.

Q42 Open-ended 1 mark

Write the number (1, 2 or 3) in the boxes beside the events below to show the order in which they happened in the passage. Events: (a) The mongoose bit the cobra. (b) The farmer and his wife went out. (c) The farmer's wife hit the mongoose on the head, causing its death.

Q43 Open-ended 1 mark

What does the word "it" in line 9 refer to?

Q44 Open-ended 1 mark

Which four-word phrase in paragraph 4 tells us that the farmer's wife acted too rashly?

Q45 Open-ended 1 mark

Why was the farmer's wife horrified to see blood around the mouth and paws of the mongoose?

Q46 Structured 2 marks 🖼 Visual

State whether each statement below is true or false. Give a reason for your answer. (a) The mongoose defended the little boy from the cobra. (b) The little boy woke up during the fight between the mongoose and the cobra.

Q47 MCQ 2 marks 🖼 Visual

Which adjectives best describe the farmer's wife's feelings towards the mongoose? Circle one adjective from each of the columns below. Column 'At the beginning of the story': caring / understanding. Column 'Towards the end of the story': jealous / suspicious.

P4 English SA2 2020 — Henry Park

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