Primary Leaving Examination 2012 — English Language
RNEC Revision Quiz · Auto-correcting · All sections
Section A — Comprehension (30 marks)
Read the passage “Flying” carefully, then answer all questions.
Flying
In 1903, many people dreamt of building an aeroplane and flying. Two brothers in America, Orville and Wilbur Wright, were successful. The Wright brothers did not study science at school. They left school when they were quite young and opened a bicycle shop, but their greatest interest was flying. They carefully studied the problems of flying, working alone at home. They decided to build a plane with a propeller on the front to pull the plane through the air. They worked hard to build a plane and on 17th December 1903, their first plane flew a short distance on the beach at a place called Kitty Hawk. The plane’s name was Flyer. It stayed in the air for only 59 seconds.
The Wright brothers were quiet men without much education. Kitty Hawk was a cold and windy place, far from any town and few people saw the first flight in history. At first, nobody believed that the brothers could succeed because many famous scientists and engineers had failed.
The brothers’ next plane, Flyer 2, flew for 5 minutes and 4 seconds. After that they worked year after year. They built bigger and better planes. In 1908, their plane, Flyer 3, could carry a pilot and one passenger. On 31st December 1908, the plane stayed in the air for 2 hours and 20 seconds.
Other people built aeroplanes, too. In 1909, Louis Bleriot flew across the sea from France to England. Engineers worked hard to improve the planes. They wanted to make bigger and faster planes. At last, in 1919, the first passenger service started from London to Paris. The aeroplane on this service could carry 11 passengers.
A.1 — Answer questions based on the passage (20 marks)
1Which is the best alternative title for the passage?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: The passage covers the entire history of aviation from 1903 to 1919 — not just the Wright Brothers, not just America, and not instructions for building. “The History of Planes” best captures the full scope. → Answer: B.
2What did the Wright brothers do after they left school?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 1 states directly: “they left school when they were quite young and opened a bicycle shop.” → Answer: B — They opened a bicycle shop.
3Were there planes before 1903?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: The passage says the Wright brothers’ flight was “the first flight in history” — implying no planes existed before. → Answer: C — No, there were no planes before 1903.
4What was the name of the first plane built by the Wright brothers?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 1: “The plane’s name was Flyer.” Kitty Hawk was the location, not the plane’s name. → Answer: C — Flyer.
5Flyer 2 was better than Flyer because…2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Flyer stayed up 59 seconds; Flyer 2 flew for 5 minutes and 4 seconds — clearly staying airborne much longer. → Answer: B — it stayed in the air longer than Flyer.
6Which advantage did Flyer 3 have over Flyer 2?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 3: “Flyer 3 could carry a pilot and one passenger.” No mention of Flyer 2 carrying passengers. → Answer: C — Flyer 3 could carry a pilot and a passenger unlike Flyer 2.
7Who flew from France to England, and in which year?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 4: “In 1909, Louis Bleriot flew across the sea from France to England.” → Answer: C — Louis Bleriot in 1909.
8What did engineers want when they worked on improving aeroplanes?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 4: “They wanted to make bigger and faster planes.” → Answer: B — To make bigger and faster planes.
9Were the aeroplanes of the first passenger service bigger than Flyer 3?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Flyer 3 carried a pilot + 1 passenger (2 people). The 1919 service plane carried 11 passengers — so it was certainly bigger. → Answer: C — Yes, they were bigger than Flyer 3.
10How many passengers could the first passenger plane carry?2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 4: “The aeroplane on this service could carry 11 passengers.” → Answer: D — 11 passengers.
A.2 — Complete sentences with words from the passage (10 marks)
11A.2.1 — Orville and Wilbur Wright’s first plane flew on ___________.2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 1: “on 17th December 1903, their first plane flew.” 31st December 1908 was when Flyer 3 broke the duration record. → Answer: B — 17th December 1903.
12A.2.2 — The Wright brothers built ___________ and better planes.2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 3: “They built bigger and better planes.” The exact word from the passage is “bigger.” → Answer: C — bigger.
13A.2.3 — Flyer 3 stayed in the air for ___________.2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 3: “On 31st December 1908, the plane [Flyer 3] stayed in the air for 2 hours and 20 seconds.” 59s = Flyer; 5min 4s = Flyer 2. → Answer: D — 2 hours and 20 seconds.
14A.2.4 — Louis Bleriot flew ___________ the sea.2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 4: “Louis Bleriot flew across the sea from France to England.” “Across” means from one side to the other. → Answer: B — across.
15A.2.5 — Engineers wanted to make ___________ and ___________ planes.2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Paragraph 4: “They wanted to make bigger and faster planes.” Exact words from the passage. → Answer: C — bigger and faster.
Section B — Grammar (40 marks)
B.1 — Join sentences WITHOUT using “and” (10 marks)
Choose the sentence that best combines the two given sentences using an appropriate connective.
16B.1.1 — “We were very tired. We could not continue the journey.”2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Option A uses “so” (a conjunction — still joining with a coordinate). Option B uses the structure “too + adjective + infinitive” — a single clean sentence showing cause and effect without any conjunction. Option D reverses the logical order. → Answer: B — We were too tired to continue the journey.
17B.1.2 — “The camp site was very beautiful. The tourist decided to spend the night there.”2 mks
💡 Worked solution: The “so … that” structure expresses result — the beauty caused the tourist’s decision. “While” implies time, not cause. “Although” implies contrast. → Answer: A — The camp site was so beautiful that the tourist decided to spend the night there.
18B.1.3 — “The children stopped walking in order to rest. Their feet were tired.”2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Option B successfully joins both ideas: the action (stopped to rest) and the reason (tired feet) with “because” — logical and grammatically correct. → Answer: B.
19B.1.4 — “The restaurant was very clean. We stopped to eat there.”2 mks
💡 Worked solution: The “so … that” pattern shows the cleanliness caused the decision to stop — matching the logic of both original sentences precisely. → Answer: C — The restaurant was so clean that we stopped to eat there.
20B.1.5 — “The man knew a lot about the area. He showed us the way.”2 mks
💡 Worked solution: Option C uses “so much … that” cleanly without “and.” Option A uses “so” as a conjunction (coordinate). Option D is missing “so” before “that.” → Answer: C — The man knew so much about the area that he showed us all the way.
B.2 — Choose the right answer to complete each sentence (10 marks)
21B.2.1 — “Here is a map. Show me ___________.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: In an indirect/embedded question after “show me,” the word order is subject + verb (not question order). “Where were you” is direct question order — wrong here. “Where you been” lacks “have.” → Answer: B — where you were.
22B.2.2 — “As soon ___________ he will come and help us.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: After “as soon as”, we use the present simple (not future) to refer to a future action: “as soon as he finishes.” “Will finish” after “as soon as” is incorrect. → Answer: A — as he finishes his work.
23B.2.3 — “The box was so heavy that he failed ___________ it.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Failed to + infinitive” is the correct pattern in English. “Failed lifting” is not standard. → Answer: C — to lift.
24B.2.4 — “___________ for long distances in the heat is so exhausting.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The sentence needs a gerund (verb used as a noun) as the subject: “Walking … is exhausting.” “Walk” and “Walks” are finite verbs, not noun forms. → Answer: D — Walking.
25B.2.5 — “Egypt’s source of soil fertility is ___________ Nile River.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The Nile River is a specific, unique river requiring the definite article “the.” “Their” would need a plural subject; “it’s” means “it is” — grammatically wrong here. → Answer: D — the.
26B.2.6 — “Will you repair that chair? It ___________ a broken leg.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “It” (singular) takes “has” — third person singular present simple. “Have” is for I/you/we/they. “Is having” = progressive, not for states. → Answer: C — has.
27B.2.7 — “They spent half his money yesterday. They ___________ only ten francs now.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Now” signals the present moment — present simple is needed. “They have only ten francs now” = current state. “Are having” = progressive (not for possession). → Answer: A — have.
28B.2.8 — “If you get these questions right, you ___________ the examinations.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: This is a first conditional (real possibility): If + present simple, will + base verb. “Would pass” = second conditional (unreal). → Answer: D — will pass.
29B.2.9 — “If they ___________ the answer, they would tell us.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Would tell” in the result clause signals a second conditional (unreal/hypothetical): If + past simple, would + base verb. → Answer: B — knew.
30B.2.10 — “While the teacher ___________ the pupils are writing down notes.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Pupils are writing” is present continuous. “While” + simultaneous action also needs present continuous: “While the teacher is talking.” “Was talking” would need “were writing.” → Answer: D — is talking.
B.3 — Put words in the right order (10 marks)
31B.3.1 — door / opened / I / quietly / the1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Standard English adverb placement: Subject + adverb + verb + object → “I quietly opened the door.” (Adverb between subject and verb is natural here.) → Answer: B.
32B.3.2 — letters / I / this morning / wrote / two1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Standard SVO order: Subject + verb + object + time phrase → “I wrote two letters this morning.” → Answer: C.
33B.3.3 — to / work / everyday / walks / Gasore1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + verb + destination + frequency → “Gasore walks to work everyday.” → Answer: A.
34B.3.4 — I / in bed / morning / my breakfast / had / this1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + verb + object + place + time → “I had my breakfast in bed this morning.” Place before time is the standard English order. → Answer: B.
35B.3.5 — in October / Mugisha / to the University / will be going1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + future continuous + destination + time → “Mugisha will be going to the University in October.” → Answer: C.
36B.3.6 — I / a beautiful bird / this evening / in the garden / saw1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + verb + object + place + time → “I saw a beautiful bird in the garden this evening.” → Answer: A.
37B.3.7 — my umbrella / I / last night / left / the restaurant / in1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Both B and C are natural English. The most neutral standard order is Subject + verb + object + place + time → “I left my umbrella in the restaurant last night.” → Answer: C.
38B.3.8 — fluently / English / speak / to / want / I1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + verb + infinitive + object + adverb → “I want to speak English fluently.” Adverb follows the object it modifies (English). → Answer: A.
39B.3.9 — hotel / I / early / the / arrived / at1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Subject + verb + place + adverb → “I arrived at the hotel early.” → Answer: C.
40B.3.10 — mine / of / friend / is / a / Gakire1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Simple subject + verb + complement: “Gakire is a friend of mine.” Uses all five given words in natural order. → Answer: C.
B.4 — Question & answer completions (10 marks)
41B.4.1 — “___________?” “No, he is on holiday.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The answer “he is on holiday” is present tense. A correct present continuous question: “Is Peter working?” “Does Peter work today” is simple present (habit/routine) — the holiday response fits current state better. → Answer: C — Is Peter working.
42B.4.2 — “Where ___________?” “In a village near Bugesera.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: In a direct question with “where,” use auxiliary + subject + verb: “Where does your uncle live?” “Where lives your uncle” is inversion without auxiliary — old/incorrect. → Answer: B — does your uncle live.
43B.4.3 — “I speak English but ___________ Swahili.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The first clause uses present simple (“I speak”) — so the negative should also be present simple: “I don’t speak Swahili.” “I didn’t speak” = past tense (inconsistent). → Answer: D — I don’t speak.
44B.4.4 — “Where is Sam?” “___________ a shower at the moment.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “At the moment” signals an action happening right now — present continuous: “He is having a shower.” “Have” can be used progressively for activities (bathing, a meal). → Answer: A — He is having.
45B.4.5 — “Why ___________ angry with me yesterday?”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Yesterday” signals past tense. Direct question order needed: “Why were you angry?” “Was you” is grammatically wrong (you → were). “You were” is statement order, not question. → Answer: A — were you.
46B.4.6 — “I ___________ out last night. I was too tired.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Last night” = definite past → past simple negative: “I didn’t go.” “Didn’t went” is a double past form (wrong). “Haven’t gone” = present perfect (needs no time marker like “last night”). → Answer: C — didn’t go.
47B.4.7 — “Manyobwa is from Karongi. She ___________ there all her life.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “All her life” (up to now) signals the present perfect: “She has lived there all her life.” This connects past to present. “Lived” = simple past (finished). → Answer: B — has lived.
48B.4.8 — “What ___________ when you saw her?”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “When you saw her” = a moment in the past. The clothing being worn at that moment = past continuous: “What was Keza wearing?” (ongoing action at the time of seeing). → Answer: B — was Keza wearing.
49B.4.9 — “What time ___________? It is ten o’clock.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The answer “It is ten o’clock” is present tense. The question asking for current time: “What time is it?” → Answer: C — is it.
50B.4.10 — “I saw Mukiza at the station this morning, but he ___________ me.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “This morning / I saw” = past simple context → “he didn’t see me.” “Doesn’t see” = present habit. “Didn’t saw” = wrong (double past). → Answer: A — didn’t see.
Section C — Vocabulary (30 marks)
C.1 — Possessive pronouns: my / our / your / his / her / their / its (10 marks)
51C.1.1 — “Do you like ___________ job?”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The question is addressed to “you” — asking about the listener’s own job: “Do you like your job?” → Answer: C — your.
52C.1.2 — “I know Mr. John but I do not know ___________ wife.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Mr. John is male → the possessive for a male person is “his”: “Mr. John’s wife” = “his wife.” → Answer: D — his.
53C.1.3 — “Mr. and Mrs. Gatera live in Butare. ___________ son lives in Kigali.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Mr. AND Mrs. Gatera = two people (plural) → the son belongs to both of them: “Their son.” → Answer: C — Their.
54C.1.4 — “We are going to have a party. We will invite all ___________ friends.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The speaker says “We” throughout — so the friends belong to “us”: “our friends.” → Answer: B — our.
55C.1.5 — “Mary is going out with ___________ sister this evening.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Mary is female → the sister belongs to Mary: “her sister.” → Answer: C — her.
56C.1.6 — “I like volleyball. It’s ___________ favourite sport.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The speaker is talking about themselves (“I like volleyball”) → the favourite sport is theirs: “my favourite sport.” → Answer: A — my.
57C.1.7 — “Is that ___________ car?” “No, I haven’t got a car.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The question is directed at the listener (“you”), asking if the car belongs to them: “Is that your car?” The reply “I haven’t got a car” is the response to “your.” → Answer: C — your.
58C.1.8 — “I want to phone Joseph. Do you know ___________ phone number?”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Joseph is male → the phone number belongs to Joseph: “his phone number.” → Answer: D — his.
59C.1.9 — “Do you think most people are happy with ___________ jobs?”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Most people” = third person plural → the jobs belong to those people: “their jobs.” → Answer: B — their.
60C.1.10 — “I am going to wash ___________ hair before I go out.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The speaker says “I am going” — it is their own hair: “my hair.” → Answer: A — my.
C.2 — Adjective or Adverb? (5 marks)
61C.2.1 — “Don’t eat so ___________. It is not good for you.” (quick / quickly)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The word modifies the verb “eat” (how you eat) → an adverb is needed. Adverbs modify verbs; adjectives modify nouns. “Eat quickly” ✓ | “Eat quick” ✗ (informal only). → Answer: B — quickly.
62C.2.2 — “Why are you ___________ with me?” (angry / angrily)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Are you ___” uses the verb “to be” as a linking verb — it requires a predicate adjective (describing the subject): “you are angry.” “Angrily” is an adverb, not used after “be.” → Answer: A — angry.
63C.2.3 — “Can you speak a bit ___________, please?” (slow / slowly)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Modifies the verb “speak” (how to speak) → adverb: “speak slowly.” → Answer: B — slowly.
64C.2.4 — “Bill is a very ___________ driver.” (careful / carefully)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Modifies the noun “driver” (what kind of driver) → adjective: “a careful driver.” → Answer: A — careful.
65C.2.5 — “Please be ___________. I am studying.” (quiet / quietly)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: “Be ___” = linking verb + predicate adjective: “be quiet” (describing the state of the person). “Be quietly” is ungrammatical. → Answer: A — quiet.
C.3 — Match person to description (5 marks)
Box B options: sells meat | looks after your teeth | is very stupid | doesn’t tell the truth | is ill in hospital
66C.3.1 — A butcher ___________.1 mk
💡 Worked solution: A butcher is a person who cuts and sells meat. → Answer: A — sells meat.
67C.3.2 — A dentist ___________.1 mk
💡 Worked solution: A dentist is a medical professional who cares for teeth and gums. → Answer: B — looks after your teeth.
68C.3.3 — A fool ___________.1 mk
💡 Worked solution: A fool is someone who acts or thinks without good sense — very stupid. → Answer: C — is very stupid.
69C.3.4 — A liar ___________.1 mk
💡 Worked solution: A liar is a person who habitually says things that are not true. → Answer: D — doesn’t tell the truth.
70C.3.5 — A patient ___________.1 mk
💡 Worked solution: A patient (noun) is a person receiving medical treatment — ill in hospital. → Answer: E — is ill in hospital.
C.4 — Complete the text with words from the box (10 marks)
Word box: Languages, writing, good, circle, people, picture, sentences, letters, birthday, books
71C.4.1 — “There’d be no ___________, magazines, or newspapers.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The trio “books, magazines, newspapers” are all reading publications — “books” fits the series naturally. → Answer: A — books.
72C.4.2 — “There would be no ___________ or anniversary cards.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Paired with “anniversary cards” — the parallel item is “birthday” (birthday cards). → Answer: A — birthday.
73C.4.3 — “We memorize the ___________ of our alphabet and their sounds.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: An alphabet is made up of individual letters (A, B, C…) — each with a sound. → Answer: A — letters.
74C.4.4 — “We can combine the marks into words and ___________.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Words combine into sentences — the natural linguistic progression: letters → words → sentences. → Answer: A — sentences.
75C.4.5 — “People probably began with ___________ writing.” (general type)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Early writing used drawings/images to represent ideas — this is “picture writing” (pictographic writing). The next sentence confirms: “a sign stands for an object.” → Answer: A — picture.
76C.4.6 — “In ___________ writing, a sign stands for an object.” (specific system)1 mk
💡 Worked solution: This sentence elaborates on the same system — “picture writing” where a sign (picture) stands for an object, like the sun. → Answer: D — picture.
77C.4.7 — “Pictures can’t be strung together to sound the way ___________ speak.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The subject who “speaks” must be human: “the way people speak.” Languages don’t speak; books don’t speak. → Answer: A — people.
78C.4.8 — “The ___________ that stood for sun began to stand for the sound.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: The passage says “a circle might stand for the sun” — so “the picture/circle” that represented the sun evolved. “Circle” was given as the example of the sun image. → Answer: B — circle.
79C.4.9 — “This was a ___________ system.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: After describing how pictures evolved into sound symbols, the text concludes it was a “good system” — an evaluative adjective summarising the development. → Answer: A — good.
80C.4.10 — “This also happened to Chinese and many other ___________.”1 mk
💡 Worked solution: Chinese is a language — the evolution of writing “also happened to Chinese and many other languages.” → Answer: A — Languages.
