28 Nov PSLE English Grammar
PSLE Grammar Rules
The English PSLE Paper 2 features a Multiple-Choice Question (MCQ) component that students should strive to achieve their highest in. The first component tested is the Grammar MCQ, which consists of 10 questions that test the student’s understanding of the various grammar rules that they have learnt throughout Primary school. While generally considered an area students should score well in, there are common grammar rules that students lack awareness in and consequently, apply the wrong logic in tackling these questions.
Two very common examples are ‘Verbs of Perception’ and the interrogative pronouns ‘Who, Whom, Whose, Which’
Verbs of Perception
These are action words that are associated with our five senses. Examples including ‘saw’, ‘observed’, ‘noticed’ and ‘heard’. In a sentence, actions that are perceived should either be in the base form, or present participle ‘-ing’ (to denote an action that is repeating).
Example:
The boy saw the suspicious looking man ________ into the house.
(1) climbs (2) climb
(3) climbed (4) was climbing
A common mistake that students will make is choosing option (3) ‘climbed’ as they assume that the answer must be in past tense to match the word ‘saw’. However, this is wrong as the action that was perceived (the climb) should be in base form. Therefore, the correct answer is (2) ‘climb’.
The boy saw the suspicious looking man climb into the house. ✓
The boy saw the suspicious looking man climbed into the house.✗
Also, option (4) ‘was climbing’ is wrong, as was climbing is the past continuous tense, and not the present participle. The present participle is only the base word with the added -ing behind.
Example:
Max observed the two men _________ with each other in the market.
(1) argues (2) argued
(3) arguing (4) were arguing
In this example, the answer is (3) ‘arguing’. We use the present participle to show that the action is sustained or reoccurring – in this case, the two men were arguing for a period of time.
In short, students should pick the option that is base form for such questions, unless it is unavailable, then they should pick the answer that is present participle (-ing) *reminder, only -ing and without any is/are/was/were in front of the verb.
Interrogative Pronouns (Who, Whom)
Students will also come across a question relating to who, whom, whose, which in the Grammar MCQ. Students are usually aware of when to make use of Whose and Which, but tend to be confused with Who and Whom. Many students default to using Who as it is a word that they are more familiar with.
However, who is used to describe a subject, which is the noun that performs an action while whom is used to describe an object, which is the noun that an action is happening to.
Example 1. Mary, who is passing the ball, is the team captain.
Example 2. Alex, whom the teacher is praising, won an award for integrity.
In example 1, Mary is performing as action (passing the ball), so we use who, whereas in example 2, Alex is having an action performed on him (being praised), so we use whom.
One general rule to follow is that ‘who’ is always in between a person and an action in a sentence, while ‘whom’ is always in between a person(s) and another person(s) in a sentence.
Example 3
Mr Ong _______ drives a taxi, is my neighbour.
(1) who (2) whom
(3) whose (4) which
As Mr Ong is the subject performing the action (drives), the answer is (1) ‘who’.
Example 4
The girls ________ Miss Tan is giving instructions to are Girl Scouts.
(1) whose (2) who
(3) which (4) whom
As the girls are the object receiving the action (being given instructions to), the answer is (4) ‘whom’.
One variant of the who/whom question involves the use of ‘both of’
Example 5
I have two aunts, both of _______ are nurses.
(1) who (2) whom
(3) which (4) whose
One simple way to remember how to approach such questions is asking yourself if the blank can be replaced with the word ‘them’. If it can, the answer must be ‘whom’.
I have two aunts. Both of them are nurses.
I have two aunts, both of whom are nurses. ✓
I have two aunts, both of who are nurses. ✗
Example 6
To ______ should I pass this letter to?
(1) whom (2) whose
(3) which (4) who
Once again, students must ask themselves if the person in the blank is the subject or object. In this case, the person is being passed a letter to, hence they are the object of the sentence, and the answer must be (1) ‘whom’.
To whom should I pass this letter to? ✓
To who should I pass this letter to? ✗
Einstein’s Takeaway
PSLE English MCQ section is one where students can bank on to raise their overall result in English. Thus, having a strong understanding on the grammar rules is an advantage for students to outperform not only in the grammar MCQs, but also the grammar cloze, editing and composition. Strengthen your grammar competency now to uplift your English grades in the PSLE. Book a free trial lesson today!
PSLE Grammar Rules
The English PSLE Paper 2 features a Multiple-Choice Question (MCQ) component that students should strive to achieve their highest in. The first component tested is the Grammar MCQ, which consists of 10 questions that test the student’s understanding of the various grammar rules that they have learnt throughout Primary school. While generally considered an area students should score well in, there are common grammar rules that students lack awareness in and consequently, apply the wrong logic in tackling these questions.
Two very common examples are ‘Verbs of Perception’ and the interrogative pronouns ‘Who, Whom, Whose, Which’
Verbs of Perception
These are action words that are associated with our five senses. Examples including ‘saw’, ‘observed’, ‘noticed’ and ‘heard’. In a sentence, actions that are perceived should either be in the base form, or present participle ‘-ing’ (to denote an action that is repeating).
Example:
The boy saw the suspicious looking man ________ into the house.
(1) climbs (2) climb
(3) climbed (4) was climbing
A common mistake that students will make is choosing option (3) ‘climbed’ as they assume that the answer must be in past tense to match the word ‘saw’. However, this is wrong as the action that was perceived (the climb) should be in base form. Therefore, the correct answer is (2) ‘climb’.
The boy saw the suspicious looking man climb into the house. ✓
The boy saw the suspicious looking man climbed into the house.✗
Also, option (4) ‘was climbing’ is wrong, as was climbing is the past continuous tense, and not the present participle. The present participle is only the base word with the added -ing behind.
Example:
Max observed the two men _________ with each other in the market.
(1) argues (2) argued
(3) arguing (4) were arguing
In this example, the answer is (3) ‘arguing’. We use the present participle to show that the action is sustained or reoccurring – in this case, the two men were arguing for a period of time.
In short, students should pick the option that is base form for such questions, unless it is unavailable, then they should pick the answer that is present participle (-ing) *reminder, only -ing and without any is/are/was/were in front of the verb.
Interrogative Pronouns (Who, Whom)
Students will also come across a question relating to who, whom, whose, which in the Grammar MCQ. Students are usually aware of when to make use of Whose and Which, but tend to be confused with Who and Whom. Many students default to using Who as it is a word that they are more familiar with.
However, who is used to describe a subject, which is the noun that performs an action while whom is used to describe an object, which is the noun that an action is happening to.
Example 1. Mary, who is passing the ball, is the team captain.
Example 2. Alex, whom the teacher is praising, won an award for integrity.
In example 1, Mary is performing as action (passing the ball), so we use who, whereas in example 2, Alex is having an action performed on him (being praised), so we use whom.
One general rule to follow is that ‘who’ is always in between a person and an action in a sentence, while ‘whom’ is always in between a person(s) and another person(s) in a sentence.
Example 3
Mr Ong _______ drives a taxi, is my neighbour.
(1) who (2) whom
(3) whose (4) which
As Mr Ong is the subject performing the action (drives), the answer is (1) ‘who’.
Example 4
The girls ________ Miss Tan is giving instructions to are Girl Scouts.
(1) whose (2) who
(3) which (4) whom
As the girls are the object receiving the action (being given instructions to), the answer is (4) ‘whom’.
One variant of the who/whom question involves the use of ‘both of’
Example 5
I have two aunts, both of _______ are nurses.
(1) who (2) whom
(3) which (4) whose
One simple way to remember how to approach such questions is asking yourself if the blank can be replaced with the word ‘them’. If it can, the answer must be ‘whom’.
I have two aunts. Both of them are nurses.
I have two aunts, both of whom are nurses. ✓
I have two aunts, both of who are nurses. ✗
Example 6
To ______ should I pass this letter to?
(1) whom (2) whose
(3) which (4) who
Once again, students must ask themselves if the person in the blank is the subject or object. In this case, the person is being passed a letter to, hence they are the object of the sentence, and the answer must be (1) ‘whom’.
To whom should I pass this letter to? ✓
To who should I pass this letter to? ✗
Einstein’s Takeaway
PSLE English MCQ section is one where students can bank on to raise their overall result in English. Thus, having a strong understanding on the grammar rules is an advantage for students to outperform not only in the grammar MCQs, but also the grammar cloze, editing and composition. Strengthen your grammar competency now to uplift your English grades in the PSLE. Book a free trial lesson today!