P4 English SA1 2025 — Maha Bodhi

Q: The children were curious about the old, dilapidated house that ____ empty at the end of the street.

A. stood. The sentence describes the house in past tense ('were curious'), so the verb must also be in the simple past tense — 'stood' agrees with this and with the singular subject 'house'.

Q: While the chef ____ the soup in the kitchen, the fire alarm suddenly rang.

D. was stirring. 'Was stirring' (past continuous) is used for an ongoing action interrupted by another past action ('the fire alarm suddenly rang').

Q: By the time we arrived at the cinema, the movie ____.

C. had started. 'By the time' with a past clause signals past perfect tense for the earlier event — 'had started' shows the movie began before they arrived.

Q: You can watch your favourite cartoon ____ you finish your homework early.

A. if. The conditional 'if' fits: the cartoon-watching is allowed on the condition that homework is finished early.

Q: The boy ____ book was lost looked very sad.

D. whose. 'Whose' is the possessive relative pronoun showing the book belongs to the boy.

Q: The stack of old books in the corner ____ covered in dust. We need to clean it now.

A. is. The subject 'stack' is singular, and the present situation ('We need to clean it now') needs the singular present-tense 'is'.

Q: She ____ agreed to help her mother buy food downstairs as she was still reading her storybook.

C. reluctantly. 'Reluctantly' means unwillingly — she did not really want to stop reading her storybook to help, which matches the context best.

Q: Holding the old map, the explorers set off on a thrilling ____.

D. expedition. An 'expedition' is an organised journey for exploration, which best fits 'explorers' setting off with a map.

Q: The author's ____ descriptions brought the fantasy world to life, making it feel incredibly real.

C. vivid. 'Vivid' means producing powerful, life-like images in the mind — it best matches descriptions that 'brought the fantasy world to life'.

Q: Ming Hao tried to ____ about why he was late for school. The teacher knew that it was not true.

A. spin a yarn. 'Spin a yarn' is an idiom meaning to tell a long, untrue story — the teacher knew his explanation was not true.

P4 English 2025 SA1 28 questions 30 marks

Source: Maha Bodhi, 2025

This P4 English SA1 paper from Maha Bodhi (2025) contains 28 questions worth 30 marks. Use it as a study reference for English topics typically tested at P4 level in Singapore schools.

Q1 MCQ 1 mark

The children were curious about the old, dilapidated house that ____ empty at the end of the street.

Q2 MCQ 1 mark

While the chef ____ the soup in the kitchen, the fire alarm suddenly rang.

Q3 MCQ 1 mark

By the time we arrived at the cinema, the movie ____.

Q4 MCQ 1 mark

You can watch your favourite cartoon ____ you finish your homework early.

Q5 MCQ 1 mark

The boy ____ book was lost looked very sad.

Q6 MCQ 1 mark

The stack of old books in the corner ____ covered in dust. We need to clean it now.

Q7 MCQ 1 mark

She ____ agreed to help her mother buy food downstairs as she was still reading her storybook.

Q8 MCQ 1 mark

Holding the old map, the explorers set off on a thrilling ____.

Q9 MCQ 1 mark

The author's ____ descriptions brought the fantasy world to life, making it feel incredibly real.

Q10 MCQ 1 mark

Ming Hao tried to ____ about why he was late for school. The teacher knew that it was not true.

Q11 MCQ 1 mark

The old washing machine suddenly ____. My mother had to wash the clothes by hand.

Q12 MCQ 1 mark

Jane said (12) ____ was about a group of kids who found a secret map. They travelled across the country and discovered hidden treasure."

Q13 MCQ 1 mark

"Wow, that sounds exciting (13) ____ Tom in delight. "Can you lend the book to me?"

Q14 Open-ended 1 mark

Section D: Grammar Cloze. Choose the correct pronouns from the box (hers, his, mine, ours, theirs, yours) and write the answer in the blanks provided. The lost and found box was full of forgotten items. "I wonder whose this is," the teacher said, taking a blue wallet from the box. "Maybe it's (14) ____ ," suggested Lisa, pointing to the girl, Sue, who was a metre away.

Q15 Open-ended 1 mark

"No, that's not (15) ____ ," Sue replied.

Q16 Open-ended 1 mark

Lisa took out another wallet. "This has to be (16) ____ ," Lisa smiled, handing it to Sue.

Q17 Open-ended 1 mark

"No, I've just found mine! It's in my pocket! I remember David holding it. It must be (17) ____ ," said Sue.

Q18 Open-ended 1 mark

Section E: Vocabulary Cloze. Choose the best word from the box (abrupt, beaming, cast, flickered, pounding, shone, emitted, unusual) and write the answer in the blanks provided. Sarah tightened her grip around the flaming torch. She (18) ____ it around the dark cave.

Q19 Open-ended 1 mark

As the wind blew, the flame on the torch (19) ____ , sending shadows dancing around the narrow passage.

Q20 Open-ended 1 mark

Her heart was (20) ____ in her chest.

Q21 Open-ended 1 mark

Suddenly, the search came to an (21) ____ halt as a low growl echoed through the cave.

Q22 Open-ended 1 mark

Moments later, the torch (22) ____ a big shadow on the floor of the cave. To calm her racing heart, she took a deep breath, ready to face the creature.

Q23 Open-ended 1 mark

Why did Leo think of the grandmother's garden as magical? (1m)

Q24 MCQ 1 mark

What was the main purpose of Leo's quest in the garden? Put a tick (√) beside the correct answer. (1m) (a) play with bumblebees (b) discover the Sparkle Stone (c) find the rose bushes (d) watch the ants marching

Q25 Open-ended 1 mark

Write 1, 2 and 3 in the blanks below to describe the correct order of sequence of events. (1m) ____ Leo watched the ants marching in an orderly manner. ____ A busy bumblebee buzzed past Leo's ear. ____ Leo observed a tiny spider weaving its web.

Q26 Structured 2 marks 🖼 Visual

Complete the table. Write down the description of the Sparkle Stone in each box. (2m) Characteristic | Description from the Passage Appearance | ____ Texture | ____

Q27 Structured 1 mark 🖼 Visual

State if each sentence is True or False. Give a reason why you think so. (1m) Sentence: Leo knew what he would see when he pushed the branches of the willow tree aside.

Q28 Structured 2 marks

(a) Refer to the last paragraph. Which adjective best describes Leo when he picked up the stone? Tick one correct answer. (2m) - surprised - fearless - relieved - cautious (b) Why do you say so?

P4 English SA1 2025 — Maha Bodhi

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