Sample WAEC-style Practice Questions (Original Content)
WAEC Style
Question 1
A figure of speech which makes a comparison between two unlike things using as or like is known as
- A. Metaphor
- B. Simile
- C. Personification
- D. Oxymoron
Answer: B. Simile
Explanation: A simile explicitly compares two things using words such as like or as.
Question 2
The main character in a play or novel is often referred to as the
- A. Antagonist
- B. Villain
- C. Protagonist
- D. Narrator
Answer: C. Protagonist
Explanation: The protagonist is the central figure or hero in a literary work.
Question 3
A speech made by a character alone on stage to reveal their inner thoughts is a
- A. Dialogue
- B. Monologue
- C. Soliloquy
- D. Prologue
Answer: C. Soliloquy
Explanation: A soliloquy is a dramatic device where a character speaks to themselves, revealing thoughts to the audience.
Question 4
The use of a word whose sound suggests its meaning is called
- A. Alliteration
- B. Onomatopoeia
- C. Assonance
- D. Pun
Answer: B. Onomatopoeia
Explanation: Words like hiss or bang are examples of onomatopoeia because they imitate sounds.
Question 5
A poem of fourteen lines with a specific rhyme scheme is a
- A. Lyric
- B. Ballad
- C. Sonnet
- D. Ode
Answer: C. Sonnet
Explanation: A sonnet is a fixed form of poetry consisting of exactly fourteen lines.
Question 6
The resolution of a plot in a tragedy is also known as the
- A. Climax
- B. Denouement
- C. Catastrophe
- D. Exposition
Answer: C. Catastrophe
Explanation: In tragedy, the final disastrous event is called the catastrophe.
Question 7
Giving human qualities to non human objects is known as
- A. Hyperbole
- B. Personification
- C. Irony
- D. Paradox
Answer: B. Personification
Explanation: Personification treats inanimate objects or animals as if they have human feelings or actions.
Question 8
A play that ends on a happy note is generally classified as a
- A. Tragedy
- B. Farce
- C. Comedy
- D. Melodrama
Answer: C. Comedy
Explanation: Comedies are designed to be amusing and usually end with a positive resolution like a wedding.
Question 9
The pattern of rhymes at the end of the lines of a poem is the
- A. Rhythm
- B. Meter
- C. Rhyme scheme
- D. Stanza
Answer: C. Rhyme scheme
Explanation: The rhyme scheme is the formal arrangement of rhymes in a stanza or a whole poem.
Question 10
A deliberate exaggeration for emphasis is called
- A. Litotes
- B. Hyperbole
- C. Euphemism
- D. Metonymy
Answer: B. Hyperbole
Explanation: Hyperbole is an overstatement used to create a strong impression or emphasize a point.
Question 11
The time and place in which a story happens is the
- A. Plot
- B. Setting
- C. Theme
- D. Atmosphere
Answer: B. Setting
Explanation: Setting provides the geographical location and the time period of the narrative.
Question 12
A character who provides a contrast to the protagonist is a
- A. Hero
- B. Foil
- C. Peer
- D. Mentor
Answer: B. Foil
Explanation: A foil highlights the qualities of the main character through contrast.
Question 13
The central idea or message of a literary work is its
- A. Subject
- B. Plot
- C. Theme
- D. Conflict
Answer: C. Theme
Explanation: The theme is the underlying meaning or insight into life expressed by the author.
Question 14
Which figure of speech is used in the phrase The heavy clouds wept?
- A. Synecdoche
- B. Personification
- C. Paradox
- D. Irony
Answer: B. Personification
Explanation: Attributing the act of weeping to clouds gives them human characteristics.
Question 15
A short poem expressing the personal emotions or feelings of the speaker is a
- A. Narrative
- B. Epic
- C. Lyric
- D. Ballad
Answer: C. Lyric
Explanation: Lyric poems are typically short and focus on the internal state of the speaker.
Question 16
The choice and use of words in writing is known as
- A. Syntax
- B. Diction
- C. Tone
- D. Style
Answer: B. Diction
Explanation: Diction refers to the vocabulary used by an author to convey a specific mood or meaning.
Question 17
An address to an absent person or a personified object is called
- A. Apostrophe
- B. Epilogue
- C. Eulogy
- D. Allusion
Answer: A. Apostrophe
Explanation: In an apostrophe, the speaker speaks directly to someone or something that cannot answer.
Question 18
A play or story intended to teach a moral lesson is
- A. Satire
- B. Didactic
- C. Allegory
- D. Parody
Answer: B. Didactic
Explanation: Didactic literature aims primarily to instruct or provide moral guidance.
Question 19
The repetition of vowel sounds in a line of poetry is
- A. Alliteration
- B. Assonance
- C. Consonance
- D. Onomatopoeia
Answer: B. Assonance
Explanation: Assonance is the repetition of similar vowel sounds within nearby words.
Question 20
The point of highest tension or interest in a plot is the
- A. Falling action
- B. Exposition
- C. Climax
- D. Rising action
Answer: C. Climax
Explanation: The climax is the turning point where the conflict reaches its peak.
Question 21
The use of light and funny scenes to interrupt a serious or tragic dramatic work is
- A. Tragic irony
- B. Comic relief
- C. Satire
- D. Farce
Answer: B. Comic relief
Explanation: Comic relief provides the audience a moment of relaxation from intense emotional tension.
Question 22
Which of these is a long narrative poem celebrating the deeds of a hero?
- A. Sonnet
- B. Epic
- C. Haiku
- D. Elegy
Answer: B. Epic
Explanation: Epics like the Iliad or Beowulf focus on large scale heroic adventures.
Question 23
A hint or clue of what is to come later in a story is
- A. Flashback
- B. Foreshadowing
- C. Suspense
- D. Irony
Answer: B. Foreshadowing
Explanation: Foreshadowing builds anticipation and prepares the reader for future events.
Question 24
A poem written to mourn the death of a person is an
- A. Ode
- B. Elegy
- C. Epigram
- D. Epitaph
Answer: B. Elegy
Explanation: An elegy is a sorrowful poem, often used as a lament for the dead.
Question 25
The words spoken by characters in a play is the
- A. Prologue
- B. Epilogue
- C. Dialogue
- D. Script
Answer: C. Dialogue
Explanation: Dialogue consists of the conversational exchange between characters.
Question 26
Which figure of speech expresses a bitter or mocking remark?
- A. Sarcasm
- B. Euphemism
- C. Allusion
- D. Metaphor
Answer: A. Sarcasm
Explanation: Sarcasm uses irony to mock or convey contempt.
Question 27
A stanza of four lines is called a
- A. Couplet
- B. Tercet
- C. Quatrain
- D. Sestet
Answer: C. Quatrain
Explanation: Quatrains are the most common stanza form in English poetry.
Question 28
A reference to a well known person, place, or event in history or literature is an
- A. Allegory
- B. Alliteration
- C. Allusion
- D. Analogy
Answer: C. Allusion
Explanation: Allusion allows an author to enrich a work by linking it to other cultural knowledge.
Question 29
The person telling the story in a novel is the
- A. Author
- B. Narrator
- C. Persona
- D. Protagonist
Answer: B. Narrator
Explanation: The narrator is the voice or character who conveys the story to the reader.
Question 30
A struggle between opposing forces in a story is the
- A. Climax
- B. Conflict
- C. Suspense
- D. Resolution
Answer: B. Conflict
Explanation: Conflict can be internal (man versus self) or external (man versus man or nature).
Question 31
A mild or pleasant word used instead of one that is harsh or offensive is a
- A. Litotes
- B. Euphemism
- C. Oxymoron
- D. Pun
Answer: B. Euphemism
Explanation: Passing away is a euphemism for dying.
Question 32
Two lines of verse that rhyme and have the same meter are a
- A. Sestet
- B. Octave
- C. Couplet
- D. Quatrain
Answer: C. Couplet
Explanation: A couplet consists of two successive rhyming lines.
Question 33
The use of humor, irony, or ridicule to expose and criticize human vice is
- A. Satire
- B. Farce
- C. Parody
- D. Tragedy
Answer: A. Satire
Explanation: Satire is often used in literature to bring about social or political change.
Question 34
A statement that appears self contradictory but reveals a truth is a
- A. Metaphor
- B. Paradox
- C. Oxymoron
- D. Irony
Answer: B. Paradox
Explanation: An example of a paradox is the beginning of the end.
Question 35
The attitude of the author toward the subject or audience is the
- A. Mood
- B. Tone
- C. Style
- D. Diction
Answer: B. Tone
Explanation: Tone can be formal, informal, serious, comic, sarcastic, or sad.
Question 36
An introduction to a play or a long poem is the
- A. Epilogue
- B. Prologue
- C. Preface
- D. Foreword
Answer: B. Prologue
Explanation: A prologue sets the scene or provides background information before the main action begins.
Question 37
When a character speaks to the audience and the other characters on stage are not supposed to hear, it is an
- A. Aside
- B. Soliloquy
- C. Monologue
- D. Interior monologue
Answer: A. Aside
Explanation: An aside is a brief comment directed to the audience for dramatic effect.
Question 38
Literature that is based on the imagination and not on facts is
- A. Non fiction
- B. Biography
- C. Fiction
- D. Autobiography
Answer: C. Fiction
Explanation: Fiction includes novels, short stories, and plays that are invented by the author.
Question 39
The repetition of initial consonant sounds in a line of poetry is
- A. Assonance
- B. Alliteration
- C. Consonance
- D. Rhythm
Answer: B. Alliteration
Explanation: An example of alliteration is Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Question 40
A character who does not change throughout the story is a
- A. Dynamic character
- B. Static character
- C. Round character
- D. Flat character
Answer: B. Static character
Explanation: Static characters remain the same from the beginning to the end of the narrative.
Question 41
The error of judgment or character flaw that leads to the downfall of a tragic hero is
- A. Hubris
- B. Hamartia
- C. Nemesis
- D. Catharsis
Answer: B. Hamartia
Explanation: Hamartia is the Greek term for the tragic flaw.
Question 42
Which literary genre uses actors to perform stories on a stage?
- A. Poetry
- B. Prose
- C. Drama
- D. Non fiction
Answer: C. Drama
Explanation: Drama is intended to be performed by actors for an audience.
Question 43
A story that uses symbols to convey a deeper moral or political meaning is an
- A. Allusion
- B. Allegory
- C. Anecdote
- D. Autobiography
Answer: B. Allegory
Explanation: George Orwell s Animal Farm is a famous political allegory.
Question 44
The feeling or atmosphere a writer creates for the reader is the
- A. Tone
- B. Mood
- C. Theme
- D. Voice
Answer: B. Mood
Explanation: Mood is the emotional response that the writer pulls out of the reader.
Question 45
A play that mocks a serious work in a light or humorous way is a
- A. Satire
- B. Parody
- C. Tragedy
- D. Melodrama
Answer: B. Parody
Explanation: Parody imitates the style of a particular writer or genre with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect.
Question 46
Excessive pride which often leads to the downfall of a hero is
- A. Hamartia
- B. Hubris
- C. Catharsis
- D. Irony
Answer: B. Hubris
Explanation: Hubris is a specific type of flaw involving overwhelming arrogance or self confidence.
Question 47
An imitation of a serious work using low or vulgar language is
- A. Burlesque
- B. Comedy
- C. Farce
- D. Satire
Answer: A. Burlesque
Explanation: Burlesque is a style of entertainment that makes fun of a serious subject by treating it in a ridiculous way.
Question 48
The purging or release of emotions like pity and fear by the audience at the end of a tragedy is
- A. Hubris
- B. Hamartia
- C. Catharsis
- D. Climax
Answer: C. Catharsis
Explanation: Catharsis is the emotional cleansing experienced by the audience of a tragedy.
Question 49
A figure of speech in which two contradictory terms are combined is an
- A. Paradox
- B. Metaphor
- C. Oxymoron
- D. Pun
Answer: C. Oxymoron
Explanation: Examples include bittersweet or deafening silence.
Question 50
A story that explains the origin of the world or natural phenomena is a
- A. Legend
- B. Fable
- C. Myth
- D. Folktale
Answer: C. Myth
Explanation: Myths are traditional stories, often involving supernatural beings, that explain how things came to be.