Toyama Prefectural Public High School Entrance Examination - English flashcards

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

-teen vs -ty numbers

-teen numbers (thirteen, fifteen) stress the second syllable and end in a long /iːn/; -ty numbers (thirty, fifty) stress the first syllable and end in a short /i/.

Quarter to, quarter past

A quarter past seven means 7:15; a quarter to seven means 6:45. Half past means thirty minutes after the hour, so half past seven is 7:30.

Stressed negatives in listening

Speakers usually stress the negative: 'I CAN'T go' versus 'I can GO.' Listening for which word carries the stress reveals whether the sentence is negative.

Place prepositions in directions

Directions answers use next to, across from, between A and B, behind, in front of, on the second floor. The correct option repeats the right preposition, not just the building name.

Indirect refusals

A refused invitation often appears as 'I'd love to, but I have to...' or 'Sorry, I'm busy then.' The meaning is no, even though the first words sound positive.

Prices and amounts

Prices are read as 'three hundred twenty-five yen' or 'two dollars fifty.' Fifty and fifteen differ in stress and final sound, so check both before choosing.

Topic sentence position

In an English paragraph the topic sentence usually comes first and states the main idea; the sentences after it give examples, reasons or details.

Pronoun reference rule

For it, this or they, look back for the nearest noun phrase that fits the meaning and the singular or plural form. The closest matching noun is normally the answer.

Discourse markers for order

First, then, after that, next and finally signal the sequence of events. Their order usually matches the order of the choices in ordering questions.

Choosing a title

A correct title covers the whole passage. An option naming only one paragraph's detail is too narrow, and one using ideas absent from the text is too broad.

Paraphrase in answer options

The correct option restates a sentence from the passage in different words. An option you believe from general knowledge but cannot find in the text is wrong.

Three checks for blanks

For a blank in a passage, check grammar fit (tense, number), meaning fit with the sentences around it, and whether the connector but, so or because makes sense.

Scanning for data

For number, date and time questions, find the exact line first, then compare two figures in the text if a difference or total is requested.

Present perfect with for and since

'I have lived here for five years' uses for with a length of time, and since with a starting point: since 2019, since I was ten.

Indirect question word order

In 'Do you know where he lives?' the subject comes before the verb. Do not use do, does or did inside the embedded question.

Passive voice form

Passive is be plus the past participle: 'This bridge was built in 1990.' The doer is added with by only when it is important.

Gerund or to-infinitive

enjoy, finish, stop, mind and practice take -ing; want, hope, decide, need and try take to plus the verb. Stop -ing means quit; stop to do means pause in order to do.

Relative pronoun choice

Use who for people, which for things, and that for either in defining clauses. The relative pronoun is dropped when it is the object, as in the book I bought.

as ... as comparison

'Ken is as tall as Emi' means they are the same height. 'Not as tall as' means shorter. Use the base adjective between as and as.

much, many, a few, a little

many and a few go with countable plural nouns; much and a little go with uncountable nouns. A few is positive, while few alone means almost none.

Building word families

Nouns often end in -tion, -ment, -ness or -er, and adjectives in -ful, -less, -ous or -ive: decide gives decision, happy gives happiness, care gives careful.

Because-clause for reasons

Add a reason with because plus subject and verb: 'I like summer because I can swim.' The because-clause turns a bare opinion into a supported, complete answer.

Counting words in writing

When the task says 25 words or more, count every English word including a, the and I, but not punctuation. Two or three words short loses marks.

Full-sentence written answers

A written answer to 'What club do you want to join?' should repeat the question's structure: 'I want to join the tennis club.' A single word is incomplete.

Opinion plus example

State the opinion first, then give one concrete example: 'I think reading is important. For example, we can learn new words from books.' Two sentences often suffice.

Avoiding literal translation

Word-for-word translation from Japanese produces wrong word order and missing subjects. Build the English sentence subject-first and add articles a, an and the.

Capitals and punctuation

Start every sentence with a capital letter and end with a period or question mark. The pronoun I is always capitalized, even in the middle of a sentence.

May I and Could you

'May I ~?' asks permission to do something yourself; 'Could you ~?' asks the other person to do something politely. 'Can you ~?' is more casual.

Suggestion patterns

Shall we ~?, How about plus -ing?, Why don't we ~? and Let's ~ all make suggestions. They are accepted with 'That sounds good' or 'Sure, let's.'

Matching the reply function

The blank after an utterance must match its function: an invitation needs an accept or refuse, a question needs an answer, bad news needs 'I'm sorry to hear that.'

Reading a school notice

When reading a notice, check who it is for, the date and deadline, the place, and what to bring. Answers usually combine two of these details.

Combining poster and schedule

When two texts must be used together, write each condition as a checklist and eliminate every option that fails even one condition.