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KCSE English Grammar & Literary Devices

Essential grammar transformations, phrasal verbs, poetic devices, and oral literature terms for KCSE.

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Inversion with 'Seldom' / 'Rarely'

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Inversion with 'Seldom' / 'Rarely'

Auxiliary before subject: Seldom have we witnessed such remarkable resilience.

Phrasal Verb: 'Put up with'

To tolerate or endure an unpleasant situation: I cannot put up with this noise any longer.

Phrasal Verb: 'Come across'

To find or meet someone/something by chance: I came across an old manuscript in the archives.

Phrasal Verb: 'Call off'

To cancel an arranged event: The sports festival was called off due to heavy downpours.

Literary Term: Alliteration

Repetition of identical initial consonant sounds in neighboring words: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Literary Term: Onomatopoeia

Words whose pronunciation imitates the actual sound they describe: buzz, hiss, clang, sizzle.

Literary Term: Dramatic Irony

Occurs when the audience or reader knows important facts that the characters on stage do not know.

Literary Term: Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part represents the whole: All hands on deck (hands = sailors); Check out my new wheels (wheels = car).

Oral Literature: Trickster Narrative

Folktales featuring clever, physically weaker characters (e.g. Hare, Tortoise, Anansi) who outwit larger, predatory opponents through cunning.

Oral Literature: Ogre / Monster Narrative

Folktales featuring terrifying cannibalistic creatures representing evil, greed, or disruption of communal harmony, ultimately defeated by moral heroes.

Oral Literature: Riddles Structure

A verbal puzzle presented in two parts: the challenge / precedent (Challenger: Kitendawili) and the response / solution (Audience: Tega).

Oral Literature: Proverbs

Terse, memorable traditional sayings expressing universal truths or moral guidance passed across generations.

Active to Passive with Indirect Objects

Active: She gave him a book. Passive: He was given a book OR A book was given to him.

Reported Speech: Tense Backshift

Present Simple → Past Simple; Present Perfect → Past Perfect; 'will' → 'would'; 'can' → 'could'; 'now' → 'then'; 'today' → 'that day'.

Relative Clause: Restrictive vs Non-restrictive

Restrictive: essential, no commas (The book that you lent me was fascinating). Non-restrictive: extra info, bounded by commas (My uncle, who lives in Kisumu, is visiting).

Conditional Type 2 (Hypothetical Present)

If + past simple, would + infinitive: If I won the scholarship, I would study astrophysics.

Homophones: 'Complement' vs 'Compliment'

Complement = to complete or enhance (Wine complements cheese). Compliment = expression of praise (He gave her a nice compliment).

Homophones: 'Principal' vs 'Principle'

Principal = school head or main capital (principal sum). Principle = fundamental rule or moral belief.

Silent Letter in 'Castle'

The letter 't' is silent: /ˈkɑː.səl/ or /ˈkæs.əl/.

Silent Letter in 'Solemn'

The terminal letter 'n' is silent: /ˈsɒl.əm/.

Question Tag: 'Nobody called'

'Nobody' is negative, so use positive tag with plural pronoun 'they': Nobody called, did they?

Gerund vs Infinitive after 'Stop'

Stop smoking = cease the habit. Stop to smoke = halt an activity in order to smoke.

Gerund vs Infinitive after 'Remember'

Remember lock the door = remember to do something in future. Remember locking = recall a past memory.

Poetic Meter: Iambic Pentameter

A line of poetry comprising 5 metrical feet, each consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable: da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM.

Sonnet Structure

A 14-line poem written in iambic pentameter. Petrarcan (Octave + Sestet) or Shakespearean (3 Quatrains + 1 Couplet, abab cdcd efef gg).

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