WREN & MARTIN's English grammar-Mixed MCQ | 1st Year Intermediate

 

English Grammar — Mixed MCQ | Set 8 1st Year Intermediate

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Q1. Choose the correct meaning of the underlined word: "The scientist made a pragmatic decision to abandon the failed experiment." A. Emotional and impulsive B. Practical and sensible C. Hasty and careless D. Theoretical and idealistic

Q2. "He has been living in Delhi since five years." — The error is in: A. He has been B. living in Delhi C. since five years D. No error

Q3. Choose the correct sentence: A. The boy, as well as his friends, were punished. B. The boy, as well as his friends, are punished. C. The boy, as well as his friends, was punished. D. The boy, as well as his friends, have been punished.

Q4. Choose the word closest in meaning to "Ostentatious": A. Modest and humble B. Showy and pretentious C. Simple and plain D. Quiet and reserved

Q5. Fill in the blank with the correct option: "She would rather _______ at home than go to the party." A. staying B. to stay C. stay D. have stayed

Q6. Choose the correct sentence: A. He is suffering from fever since Monday. B. He has been suffering from fever since Monday. C. He was suffering from fever since Monday. D. He suffers from fever since Monday.

Q7. Choose the correct antonym of "Magnanimous": A. Generous B. Noble C. Petty and mean D. Courageous

Q8. Fill in the blank with the correct option: "It was _______ unique opportunity that everyone wanted to grab it." A. so B. such a C. so a D. such

Q9. Choose the correct sentence: A. The thief was caught red handed by the police. B. The thief was caught red-handed by the police. C. The thief was catched red-handed by the police. D. The thief was catching red-handed by the police.

Q10. "He said, 'Have you finished your homework?'" — Choose the correct reported speech: A. He asked if I have finished my homework. B. He asked whether I had finished my homework. C. He asked that had I finished my homework. D. He asked if had I finished my homework.

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Answers with Explanations

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Q1. ✅ B — Practical and sensible. Pragmatic means dealing with things in a realistic and practical way rather than following fixed theories or ideals. It is commonly used to describe decisions, approaches, or people who focus on what works in practice rather than what is theoretically ideal.

Q2. ✅ C — "since five years" is the error. Since is used with a specific point in time (since Monday, since 2010, since morning). Five years is a period or duration of time, so for must be used. Correct: He has been living in Delhi for five years.

Q3. ✅ C — The boy, as well as his friends, was punished. When two subjects are joined by as well as, together with, or along with, the verb agrees with the first subject only. The boy is singular, so the verb must be singular. Correct: was punished.

Q4. ✅ B — Showy and pretentious. Ostentatious describes something or someone that is designed to impress others by displaying wealth, knowledge, or achievements in an excessive and tasteless way. It carries a negative connotation of showing off unnecessarily.

Q5. ✅ C — stay. After would rather, the bare infinitive (base form of the verb without to) is always used. Staying (gerund) and to stay (infinitive with to) are both incorrect after would rather. Correct structure: would rather + base verb.

Q6. ✅ B — He has been suffering from fever since Monday. Since indicates an ongoing condition from a specific point in time and requires present perfect continuous tense. Simple present (suffers), simple past (was suffering), and present continuous (is suffering) cannot be used with since for ongoing states.

Q7. ✅ C — Petty and mean. Magnanimous means very generous, forgiving, and noble in spirit, especially towards a rival or less powerful person. Its antonym is petty and mean, which describes someone who is small-minded, ungenerous, and selfish in attitude and behaviour.

Q8. ✅ B — such a. Such a is used before a singular countable noun with an adjective to express a high degree. Structure: such a + adjective + noun. Here unique is an adjective and opportunity is a singular countable noun. So is used before adjectives or adverbs without a noun following immediately.

Q9. ✅ B — The thief was caught red-handed by the police. Red-handed is a compound adjective and must be hyphenated when used as a modifier. Catched is not a valid past tense — the correct past tense of catch is caught. The passive voice structure was caught is correct here.

Q10. ✅ B — He asked whether I had finished my homework. When reporting a yes/no question, the reporting verb changes to asked and the question is introduced by if or whether. The question structure changes to a statement (no inversion), and the tense shifts back — have finished becomes had finished. Correct structure: asked + whether/if + subject + past perfect.