PSEB Matric English flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Present perfect tense

Formed with has or have plus the past participle. It links a past action to the present moment, as in "She has finished her homework", and pairs with since or for.

Past perfect tense

Formed with had plus the past participle. It marks the earlier of two past actions, as in "The bus had left before we reached the stop."

Future continuous

Formed with will be plus the present participle. It describes an action in progress at a stated future time, as in "We will be travelling at noon tomorrow."

Simple passive formation

Take the object as new subject, add the correct form of be, then the past participle. "They built the bridge" becomes "The bridge was built."

Reported speech tense shift

When the reporting verb is past, present simple becomes past simple, present continuous becomes past continuous, and present perfect becomes past perfect. Modals will, can, may become would, could, might.

Reported yes/no question

Use asked plus if or whether, keep statement word order, and omit the question mark. "Do you play cricket?" becomes "He asked if I played cricket."

Second conditional

Uses if plus past simple in the condition and would plus base verb in the result. It expresses an unreal or unlikely present situation, as in "If I were rich, I would travel."

Third conditional

Uses if plus past perfect and would have plus past participle. It describes an imagined past that did not happen, as in "If she had studied, she would have passed."

Relative pronoun choice

Use who for people, which for things and animals, that for either in defining clauses, and whose for possession. Whom appears when the pronoun is the object of the clause.

Defining relative clause

Gives information essential to identify the noun and takes no commas. "The boy who won the prize is my cousin" cannot drop the clause without losing meaning.

Non-defining relative clause

Adds extra information about an already identified noun and is set off by commas. "My uncle, who lives in Lahore, is a doctor" keeps the clause optional.

Gerund after prepositions

A verb following a preposition takes the -ing form, not the infinitive. Examples include "good at drawing", "interested in reading", and "before leaving the hall".

Infinitive after certain verbs

Verbs such as want, decide, hope, promise, refuse, and agree take to plus base verb. Verbs such as enjoy, avoid, mind, and suggest take the -ing form instead.

Subject-verb agreement with either

With either...or and neither...nor, the verb agrees with the subject nearer to it. "Neither the teacher nor the students were present" takes a plural verb.

Indefinite pronoun agreement

Each, every, either, neither, everyone, somebody, and nobody are singular and take singular verbs and singular pronouns, as in "Everyone has brought his book."

Article with vowel sounds

Use an before a spoken vowel sound, not merely a written vowel. So "an hour", "an honest man", but "a university" and "a European".

Zero article use

No article appears before uncountable nouns and abstract nouns used in a general sense, before names of languages, meals, games, and most countries, as in "She studies English at school."

Comparative and superlative forms

Short adjectives take -er and -est; longer adjectives take more and most. Never combine both, so "more better" and "most tallest" are wrong.

Double negative error

Standard English allows only one negative in a clause. "I did not see nobody" should be "I did not see anybody" or "I saw nobody."

Direct speech punctuation

Enclose the exact spoken words in inverted commas, capitalise the first word inside, and place the comma or full stop inside the closing mark before the reporting clause continues.

Semicolon and colon use

A semicolon joins two closely related independent clauses. A colon introduces a list, an explanation, or a quotation after a complete clause.

Common preposition collocations

Fixed pairs must be memorised: depend on, consist of, afraid of, capable of, different from, married to, good at, listen to, and apologise for.

Phrasal verb separable type

With verbs like turn on or put off, a pronoun object must sit between verb and particle: "turn it on", never "turn on it". Full noun objects may follow the particle.

Synonym and antonym items

Synonym questions ask for a word closest in meaning in context; antonym questions ask for the opposite. Read the whole sentence because context can narrow meaning.

Reading comprehension main idea

The main idea is the central claim the whole passage supports. It is broader than any single detail and is often stated in the first or last sentence.

Inference in comprehension

An inference is a conclusion the passage implies but does not state directly. It must be supported by textual evidence, not by personal opinion or outside knowledge.

Formal letter structure

A formal letter carries sender address, date, receiver address, salutation, subject line, body in paragraphs, closing, and signature. The tone avoids contractions and slang.

Application letter opening

State the post applied for and where the advertisement appeared in the first paragraph. Keep the purpose explicit and place supporting qualifications in later paragraphs.

Paragraph unity

Every sentence in a paragraph supports one controlling idea, usually stated in the topic sentence. Sentences that drift to a new idea belong in a separate paragraph.

Cohesive devices

Linking words such as however, therefore, moreover, and in addition signal the relation between sentences. Choosing the wrong connector misrepresents the logical link.

Notice and announcement format

A notice is short, uses a heading, states date, time, place, and event, and ends with the issuer's name and designation. It avoids full-sentence paragraphs.

Translation accuracy rule

Translate meaning, not word order. Keep tense, number, and gender consistent with the target language, and render idioms by their sense rather than literally.