WREN & MARTIN's English grammar-Comprehensive MCQ | Intermediate

 

English Grammar — Comprehensive MCQ | Set 15 1st Year Intermediate

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Q1. (Idioms and Phrases) Choose the correct meaning of the idiom: "After years of struggle, his business finally took off." A. Failed completely B. Began to be successful rapidly C. Was taken over by a rival D. Closed down permanently

Q2. (Idioms and Phrases) Choose the correct meaning of the phrase: "He let the cat out of the bag at the party." A. Released a pet cat accidentally B. Made an embarrassing mistake C. Revealed a secret unintentionally D. Created unnecessary confusion

Q3. (Error Correction) "The quality of the mangoes were not good." — The error is in: A. The quality B. of the mangoes C. were not good D. No error

Q4. (Error Correction) "Inspite of working hard, he could not clear the examination." — The error is in: A. Inspite of B. working hard C. he could not D. clear the examination

Q5. (Active and Passive Voice) Choose the correct passive voice of: "They are renovating the old palace." A. The old palace was renovated by them. B. The old palace is being renovated by them. C. The old palace has been renovated by them. D. The old palace is renovated by them.

Q6. (Direct and Indirect Speech) "He said to me, 'Where are you going?'" — Choose the correct indirect speech: A. He asked me where was I going. B. He asked me where I was going. C. He told me where are you going. D. He asked me where I am going.

Q7. (Parts of Speech) Identify the part of speech of the underlined word: "She ran quickly to catch the bus." A. Adjective B. Noun C. Adverb D. Conjunction

Q8. (Tenses) Fill in the blank with the correct tense: "Every morning she _______ for an hour before going to work." A. is walking B. walks C. has walked D. was walking

Q9. (Prepositions) Fill in the blank with the correct preposition: "The thief was arrested and handed _______ to the police." A. up B. in C. over D. out

Q10. (Idioms and Phrases) Choose the correct meaning of the idiom: "The new employee proved to be a dark horse in the competition." A. A person who is rude and aggressive B. A person who is dishonest and cunning C. A person who unexpectedly succeeds D. A person who refuses to participate

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Answers with Explanations

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Q1. ✅ B — Began to be successful rapidly. Take off is a phrasal verb and idiom meaning to suddenly become successful or popular very quickly. It is commonly used in the context of businesses, careers, or ideas that begin to grow or progress rapidly after a period of struggle or slow development.

Q2. ✅ C — Revealed a secret unintentionally. Let the cat out of the bag is a popular idiom meaning to accidentally disclose a secret or surprise that was supposed to be kept hidden. It often implies that the revelation was unintentional and that it caused some embarrassment or spoiled a plan.

Q3. ✅ C — "were not good" is the error. The subject of the verb is quality, not mangoes. Quality is singular, so the verb must be singular. The phrase of the mangoes is a prepositional phrase that modifies quality but does not change the number of the subject. Correct: The quality of the mangoes was not good.

Q4. ✅ A — "Inspite of" is the error. In spite of is always written as three separate words — never as one word (inspite) or two words (inspite of). It is a prepositional phrase meaning despite and is followed by a noun or gerund. Correct: In spite of working hard, he could not clear the examination.

Q5. ✅ B — The old palace is being renovated by them. The active voice uses present continuous tense (are renovating), so the passive must also be in present continuous: is/are + being + past participle. Correct: is being renovated. The object (the old palace) becomes the subject in passive voice.

Q6. ✅ B — He asked me where I was going. When reporting a wh- question, the reporting verb changes to asked. The question structure changes to a statement — no inversion and no auxiliary verb. The tense shifts back: are going becomes was going. The pronoun you changes to I based on context.

Q7. ✅ C — Adverb. Quickly is an adverb that modifies the verb ran. It tells us how she ran. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs and commonly end in -ly. The root word quick is an adjective, but adding -ly converts it into an adverb describing the manner of the action.

Q8. ✅ B — walks. The sentence describes a regular, habitual action that happens every morning. Habitual or routine actions are always expressed in the simple present tense. The time expression every morning is a clear signal that the simple present tense (walks) is the correct choice here.

Q9. ✅ C — over. Hand over is the correct phrasal verb meaning to give something or someone to another person, especially in an official or formal context. Correct: handed over to the police. Hand in means to submit something. Hand out means to distribute. Hand up is not a standard phrasal verb.

Q10. ✅ C — A person who unexpectedly succeeds. A dark horse is an idiom referring to a person who is not well known but suddenly and surprisingly performs better than expected or achieves unexpected success in a competition or contest. It is commonly used in sports, politics, and professional contexts to describe an unlikely winner.