ASSEB HSLC English (Second Language) cheat sheet

Skim the passage once for gist, then read each question before re-reading the relevant lines; answers to factual questions sit in one or two adjacent sentences.

Main-idea questions are answered by the topic sentence, usually the first or last sentence of the opening paragraph, not by the most striking detail.

Inference questions ask what is implied, not stated: choose the option that must be true given the text, and reject options that add outside information.

Vocabulary-in-context questions: substitute each option into the sentence and keep the one that preserves the passage's meaning and tone.

True/False and matching items are scored by explicit textual evidence; a statement that is generally true but absent from the passage is marked false.

Tone and purpose questions use signal words: 'criticize, warn' signal critical tone; 'describe, outline' signal informative purpose.

For summary or title questions, prefer the option covering the whole passage over one covering only the first or last paragraph.

Time rule: allocate roughly one minute per mark; answer explicit-detail questions first and return to inference items with remaining time.

Formal letter layout order: sender's address, date, receiver's designation and address, subject line, salutation (Dear Sir/Madam), body, subscription (Yours faithfully), signature and name.

Informal letters use 'Dear + first name' and close with 'Yours lovingly' or 'Yours affectionately'; never use 'Yours faithfully' to a relative.

A notice is boxed and contains the word NOTICE at the top, the issuing body's name, a date, a short heading, and a body of about 50 words in third person, with no salutation or subscription.

A report carries a title, the reporter's name and designation, a place-and-date line, and a body in past tense and third person, since the writer was a witness, not a participant.

Paragraph structure: one controlling topic sentence, three to five supporting sentences with examples or reasons, and a concluding sentence that restates the point without new claims.

Essay openings should avoid 'Nowadays' and dictionary definitions; begin with a specific observation, statistic-style statement, or short rhetorical question.

Cohesive devices to deploy deliberately: however, therefore, moreover, in contrast, as a result, for instance; one per two or three sentences is enough.

Word-limit discipline: exceeding the limit by more than about ten per cent is penalised; count the body only, excluding addresses and subscription.

Present perfect (have/has + past participle) is used for past actions with present relevance or with since/for; simple past is used with a finished past time such as yesterday or in 2010.

Passive voice formula: object of the active sentence becomes subject + correct form of be + past participle + by + agent; tense of 'be' matches the original tense.

Imperative active ('Open the door') becomes passive 'Let the door be opened'; interrogative active keeps question order: 'Was the letter written by him?'

Reported speech backshifts one tense: present to past, past to past perfect, will to would, can to could; time words shift now to then, today to that day, tomorrow to the next day.

In reported questions use the statement order and no question mark: 'He asked me where I lived', not 'where did I live'.

Articles: 'a/an' for one of many countable singulars, 'the' for something already specified or unique, zero article for uncountable and plural generics (Water is scarce; Books are useful).

Prepositions of time: in for months, years and long periods; on for days and dates; at for clock times and night. Fixed pairs include depend on, insist on, capable of, prefer to.

Transformation rules: 'too ... to' equals 'so ... that ... not'; 'No sooner ... than' pairs with past perfect in the first clause and past simple in the second.

Word formation by suffix: -ness, -ity, -ment, -tion make nouns (kind, kind of noun: kindness); -ful, -less, -ous, -ive make adjectives; -ly makes adverbs; -en and -ise/-ize make verbs.

Prefix meanings: un-, in-, im-, dis-, non- negate; re- means again; pre- means before; mis- means wrongly; over- means excessively.

Antonym pairs frequently tested: bold/timid, frugal/extravagant, candid/evasive, transient/permanent, lenient/severe, abundant/scarce.

Idioms are fixed: 'a bolt from the blue' means a sudden shock; 'to beat about the bush' means to avoid the point; 'once in a blue moon' means very rarely; 'to let the cat out of the bag' means to reveal a secret.

Phrasal verbs are separated by meaning, not by the verb: give up (surrender), give in (yield), give away (donate or betray), give off (emit), give out (distribute or fail).

Separable phrasal verbs allow the object between verb and particle with a pronoun: 'turn it off', never 'turn off it'.

Collocation decides the choice among synonyms: 'make a decision', 'do homework', 'heavy rain', 'strong tea'.

Context rule for synonym items: pick the option that fits the sentence grammatically and in register, since near-synonyms differ in intensity and formality.

Answer literature questions with a claim plus textual evidence plus comment; a bare plot summary earns little credit.

Character questions need traits supported by actions: state the trait, name the incident, and quote or paraphrase the line that shows it.

Theme questions should name the theme in one sentence, then trace how it develops from beginning to climax to resolution.

For 'justify the title' items, link each key word of the title to a specific character, event, or symbol in the text.

Narrative point of view matters: first-person narrators are limited and may be unreliable, so distinguish the narrator's view from the author's implied view.

When asked about the author's purpose, connect the piece to its social or historical context rather than to the writer's biography alone.

Value-based questions require a stated personal position plus one reason drawn from the text; unsupported opinion is not credited.

Quotation accuracy: reproduce short remembered phrases exactly; if unsure, paraphrase and name the speaker instead of inventing wording.

Identify the form first: sonnet (14 lines), ballad (narrative stanzas), ode (address to an object), lyric (short personal expression), free verse (no fixed metre or rhyme).

Metre check: count stresses per line; iambic pentameter has five unstressed-stressed pairs, and deviations usually mark emphasis or emotion.

Rhyme scheme is labelled by letters per line end (abab, aabb); note where the scheme breaks, since a break often signals a turn in thought.

Figures of speech: simile uses like/as; metaphor states one thing is another; personification gives human qualities to non-human things; hyperbole is deliberate exaggeration; oxymoron joins opposites.

Sound devices: alliteration repeats initial consonants, assonance repeats vowel sounds, onomatopoeia imitates sound; link each to mood rather than merely naming it.

The volta or turn in a sonnet usually falls between lines 8 and 9 or at the final couplet; it marks the shift from problem to resolution.

Tone words for poetry answers: wistful, defiant, reverent, ironic, nostalgic, resigned; support the chosen word with a quoted phrase.

Poetry answers should quote at least one short phrase per point and explain its effect, not merely identify the device.

Rapid Reader questions are usually factual and short: name the character, the place, and the incident precisely rather than offering interpretation.

Track each story by protagonist, central conflict, turning point, and outcome; most questions target one of these four.

Distinguish major from minor characters: exam items often ask what a minor character reveals about the protagonist.

For 'moral' or 'message' items, state the lesson in one sentence and tie it to the protagonist's final choice or change.

Sequence questions require chronological order of events as narrated, which may differ from the order of telling if there is a flashback.

Setting questions expect place plus social atmosphere, for example a village fair or a colonial town, and how setting shapes the conflict.

Irony and twist endings should be explained by contrasting what the character expected with what actually happened.

Keep titles, author names, and spellings exact; misspelt proper nouns are treated as factual errors.

Dialogue completion: match the response to the function of the preceding line, whether greeting, request, apology, invitation, or complaint.

Politeness markers change register: 'Could you possibly...' is more formal than 'Can you...', and 'Would you mind...' expects 'Not at all' rather than 'Yes'.

Gap-fill items test collocation and fixed expressions: 'make an apology', 'take a decision' in British usage, 'pay attention', 'keep a promise'.

Instruction and direction texts use imperatives and sequencers: first, next, then, after that, finally; answers must preserve that order.

Notice and advertisement items ask for purpose, audience, and required action; identify who must do what by when.

Telephonic and announcement English uses formulaic frames: 'May I speak to...', 'Hold on, please', 'This is to inform all students that...'.

Error-spotting in context checks subject-verb agreement, article use, preposition choice, and tense consistency, in that order of frequency.

Punctuation in functional writing: comma after introductory phrases, no comma before 'that' in reported clauses, and a colon before a list.