NSW HSC · HSC English

Reading, vocabulary and structure

24 practice questions, each with the answer and an explanation.

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Random questions from this topic, one at a time. You see the answer and the explanation straight after each one.

All 24 questions

  1. Read: "The old man shuffled to the window, his reflection a stranger in the glass." What does the word 'stranger' suggest?
  2. Read: "She laughed, but the laughter never reached her eyes." What does this reveal?
  3. Read: "Rain tapped on the roof like a patient visitor." The effect of this simile is to suggest:
  4. Read: "The headline screamed: CRISIS!" What is the effect of 'screamed'?
  5. Which of these is an example of a formal register?
  6. Which of the following best describes the purpose of a satire?
  7. Which of the following is a feature of a news report?
  8. Which structure does a narrative commonly follow?
  9. What is the effect of a flashback in a narrative?
  10. Which of the following is a synonym for 'ambiguous'?
  11. Which of the following is an antonym for 'benevolent'?
  12. What is a 'connotation'?
  13. Which word has a negative connotation?
  14. Which of the following sentences uses a semicolon correctly?
  15. Which sentence uses an apostrophe correctly?
  16. Which of the following is a complex sentence?
  17. What is a 'dangling modifier'?
  18. Which of the following is the correct plural of 'phenomenon'?
  19. What is the purpose of an editorial in a newspaper?
  20. A film uses a low-angle shot of a character. What effect does this commonly create?
  21. Which of the following is a reason a writer might use second-person address ("you")?
  22. In a poem, what does 'stanza' mean?
  23. What is 'enjambment' in poetry?
  24. What is a sonnet?

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