Fukui Entrance English cheat sheet

Listen for the question word first (what/where/when/who/why/how); it fixes the type of answer the second speaker must give.

Numbers in listening tasks are usually contrasted: hear two prices, times, or dates and the correct one is the one attached to the final decision, not the first number spoken.

Distractor rule: an option that repeats a word from the audio is often wrong; the right option usually paraphrases the idea ("cancel the trip" → "not go").

Trap signals to note: but, actually, sorry, instead, on second thought, never mind - the answer usually follows these.

For picture/map tasks, track direction words: turn left/right, next to, across from, between, at the corner of, go past.

Request-and-response items: a request ("Could you open the window?") is answered by an action or permission, not by a yes/no fact about the window.

Inference items ask how the speaker feels or what will happen next; judge from tone words (sigh, hesitate, "Oh no") rather than from stated facts.

Before audio plays, read the options and predict the topic and likely vocabulary; this primes recognition of key words at natural speed.

Short notices and emails: identify sender, receiver, purpose, and required action - the answer is usually one of these four.

Time/place questions: scan only for digits, days, and place names; do not read the whole text first.

NOT/EXCEPT questions: three options are confirmed in the text; the answer is the one with no matching sentence.

A pronoun (it, this, they) refers to the nearest preceding noun phrase that fits grammatically and makes sense.

Sign and label items: match the condition ("Members only", "No entry before 9 a.m.") to the situation described in the question.

Price and discount items: apply the discount to the stated subtotal, then check whether tax or a fee is added afterward.

If two options seem true, re-read the question's exact wording (who/what/when); one option answers a different question.

Main-idea answer must cover the whole passage; an option that is true but only about one paragraph is a detail, not the main idea.

Paragraph-function questions: ask what the paragraph does (gives an example, presents a counterargument, offers a solution), not what it says.

Cross-text retrieval: build a small table of the compared items and their attributes; the answer is the row where all conditions match.

Condition-matching rule: an option is correct only if it satisfies every stated requirement (date, category, price, location) - one mismatch eliminates it.

Chronology questions: anchor on time markers (first, then, by 2010, after that) and order events by those markers, not by sentence order.

Vocabulary-in-context: substitute each meaning into the sentence and keep the one that preserves the sentence's logic.

Author's-attitude items: locate evaluative adjectives and adverbs (surprisingly, unfortunately, remarkably); they carry the stance.

Subject-verb agreement: the verb agrees with the head noun, not with a phrase between them ("The list of items is long").

Present perfect (have/has + past participle) pairs with for/since, already/yet, and experience; simple past pairs with a finished past time (yesterday, in 2019).

Conditionals: If + present, will + base (real future); If + past, would + base (unreal present); If + had + past participle, would have + past participle (unreal past).

Relative pronouns: who for people, which for things, whose for possession, where for places; omit the pronoun only when it is the object.

Gerund vs infinitive: enjoy/avoid/finish/look forward to + -ing; want/decide/hope/plan + to + base form.

Passive form is be + past participle; use it when the doer is unknown, obvious, or less important than the action.

Comparatives: -er/more for two items, the -est/most for three or more; as ... as shows equality, not difference.

Preposition collocations to memorize as chunks: depend on, interested in, good at, afraid of, arrive at/in, listen to.

Word-family rule: identify the part of speech the blank needs (noun, verb, adjective, adverb) before choosing the form.

Common suffix-to-class map: -tion/-ment/-ness → noun; -able/-ive/-ous → adjective; -ly → adverb; -ize/-en → verb.

Prefix meanings: un-/in-/im-/dis- = not; re- = again; pre- = before; over- = too much; under- = too little.

Collocation pairs worth memorizing: make a decision, take a break, do homework, pay attention, keep a promise, heavy rain.

Context clue types: definition ("a vet, that is, an animal doctor"), contrast (but, unlike), example (such as), cause-result (therefore).

False friends and near-synonyms differ in register or use: say vs tell (tell + person), lend vs borrow (direction of object), few vs a few (negative vs some).

Phrasal verbs change meaning with the particle: give up (quit), give in (surrender), give out (distribute), give away (donate).

Locate the topic sentence first: it introduces the subject without pronouns referring backward (avoid starting with it/this/they).

Cohesion markers decide order: however/but signal contrast; therefore/so signal result; for example signals a preceding general claim.

Pronoun and article clues: a/an introduces new information; the/this/these refer to something already mentioned, so they come later.

Time and sequence words (first, next, finally, in the end) fix relative position; match them to the actual order of events.

Dialogue completion: match the response to the function of the preceding turn - invitation → accept/decline; apology → reply; offer → accept/refuse.

Question-answer agreement: a Why question needs because/to + verb; a How long question needs for/since; a How often question needs a frequency.

Politeness and register: a formal opening (May I ...?) pairs with a formal reply (Certainly / I'm afraid not), not with casual slang.

Answer the prompt's parts explicitly: each bullet or question in the task must appear as a sentence in the response.

Paragraph structure: topic sentence → supporting detail or reason → example → closing sentence that returns to the topic.

Linkers by function: addition (also, moreover), contrast (however, on the other hand), cause (because, since), result (so, as a result), example (for instance).

Email format: greeting (Dear Mr. Tanaka,), opening purpose sentence, body, closing (Best regards,), then name - keep the register consistent.

Tense control in narratives: set the scene in simple past, use past continuous for background actions, and past perfect for earlier events.

Word-count tasks: aim slightly above the minimum, and cut repetition rather than adding new ideas to reach the limit.

Common point-losing errors: missing third-person -s, article omission (a/the), and comma splices joining two full sentences.

Integrative items combine a text with a task: read the task question first, then scan the text for the specific data it demands.

When listening and reading are combined, trust the written text for numbers and names; use audio for intention and tone.

Table and chart completion: keep the column's unit and format (yen, minutes, day of week) identical to the given examples.

Summarizing rule: a summary keeps the main claim and one or two key supports; it drops examples, repetition, and side remarks.

Note-taking shorthand: record only content words (nouns, verbs, numbers), then expand into full sentences when answering.

If information conflicts between two sources, answer according to the source the question names ("according to the email").

Multi-step tasks: complete each step in order and carry the result forward; an error in step one propagates to later answers.