Advanced Grammar
What is .....?
The grammatical feature used in this sentence to add emphasis: "Hardly had I arrived at the station when the train pulled out."
What is inversion?
What adjective describes a person who is incredibly stubborn and refuses to change their mind, even when they are wrong?
Answer: Obstinate (or pig-headed)
What idiom completing this sentence means to irritate or annoy someone intensely? "His constant whistling really gets ________."
Answer: on my nerves
What is the difference between a foreword and a forward?
Answer: A foreword is an introductory text in a book; forward is a direction meaning ahead.
What informal British slang adjective means to be utterly shocked, surprised, and speechless?
Answer: Gobsmacked
The structural error in this sentence detailing a past habit: "When I was a teenager, I would have a large collection of comic books."
When I was a teenager, I used to have a large collection of comic books
What suffix do you add to the word brother or neighbor to create an abstract noun meaning the state or feeling of belonging to a community?
Answer: -hood (brotherhood / neighborhood)
Which phrasal verb means to successfully communicate an idea so that people understand it? "The speaker failed to get his message ________ to the audience."
Answer: across
Which word completes the sentence: "Company ________ was low after the budget cuts"—moral or morale?
Answer: Morale (meaning mental/emotional confidence; moral relates to right and wrong).
What conversational discourse marker is used to steer a conversation back to the original topic after a digression?
Answer: Anyway (or as I was saying)
Which modal verb structure fits the blank to express strong past certainty? "You ________ forgotten the keys; I saw you put them in your bag five minutes ago!"
can't have / couldn't have
What compound adjective describes a job that has no future prospects or opportunities for promotion?
Answer: Dead-end (as in a "dead-end job")
What idiomatic phrase means to finally master a new skill or become comfortable doing something? "It takes a few days to get the ________ of the new software."
Answer: hang
What French loanword is used in English to describe a deep feeling of boredom and dissatisfaction caused by having nothing interesting to do?
Answer: Ennui
What four-word idiom is used in conversation to passionately agree with someone's complaint? Example: "It's freezing today!" — "You're ________!"
Answer: telling me ("You're telling me!")
How do you correctly complete this sentence using an "empty" pronoun? "I don't like ______ when people talk loudly on their phones."
"I don't like it when...")
What adjective describes a person you can always count on and trust to do what they promise?
Answer: Reliable (or dependable)
What idiom means to take revenge on someone who has wronged you? "He promised he would get his ________ back after they tricked him."
Answer: own
What is the difference in usage between as a matter of fact and by the way?
Answer: As a matter of fact adds details to confirm or contradict a statement; by the way introduces a completely new, unrelated topic.
What three-word phrase describes a strong, instinctive feeling about a situation, rather than logical proof? "I just have a ________ that things will go wrong."
Answer: gut feeling
Rewrite this sentence to add dramatic emphasis, starting with the words "Not until...": "She didn't realize until much later that she had won."
Not until much later did she realize that she had won.
What compound adjective describes someone who easily gets angry or loses their patience over small things?
Answer: Bad-tempered (or short-tempered)
What phrasal verb means to successfully avoid a responsibility or duty? "She managed to get ________ of attending the boring meeting."
Answer: out
Which word correctly fills the blank: "The new regulations will deeply ________ our daily operations"—affect or effect?
Answer: Affect (the verb; effect is the noun).
What idiom means to face a painful, difficult situation with courage and just get it over with?
Answer: To bite the bullet