Practice Vocabulary MCQs for PMC National MDCAT English — topic-wise sets with solved answers.
Q1. The teacher asked the students to identify the 'clause' in the sentence. Which part of speech is a clause?
Answer: A group of words with a subject and predicate
Explanation: A clause is a group of words with a subject and predicate
Q2. In the sentence 'The manager of the company will attend the meeting,' what is the function of 'of the company'?
Answer: Prepositional phrase acting as an adjective
Explanation: 'Of the company' is a prepositional phrase modifying 'manager,' thus acting as an adjective. Option B is close but not specific enough.
Q3. The word 'bank' can be a financial institution or the side of a river. This characteristic of 'bank' is known as?
Answer: Homonymy
Explanation: 'Bank' is an example of homonymy as it represents different words with the same spelling. Polysemy involves related meanings.
Q4. The prefix 'un-' in 'unhappy' changes the meaning to?
Answer: The opposite of happy
Explanation: The prefix 'un-' negates the adjective 'happy,' making it the opposite. MDCAT and USAT English reward precise grammar and vocabulary.
Q5. In the sentence 'Having studied all night, she felt confident,' the phrase 'Having studied all night' is an example of?
Answer: A participle phrase
Explanation: 'Having studied all night' is a participle phrase because it begins with a participle
Q6. The term for a word that imitates the sound it describes, like 'buzz' or 'meow,' is?
Answer: Onomatopoeia
Explanation: Onomatopoeia refers to words that phonetically imitate, resemble or suggest the sound that they describe
Q7. Which of the following words is an example of a 'blend'?
Answer: Smog
Explanation: 'Smog' is a blend of 'smoke' and 'fog.' Blends combine parts of two words to create a new word. 'Breakfast' is a compound word, not a blend.
Q8. The word 'self-portrait' is an example of a?
Answer: Compound word
Explanation: 'Self-portrait' is a compound word as it is formed by combining two free morphemes. Derivation involves affixes, not compounding.
Q9. The term 'oxymoron' refers to a figure of speech that combines?
Answer: Two contradictory terms
Explanation: An oxymoron combines contradictory terms, like 'living dead.' It is used for rhetorical effect
Q10. The phrase 'kick the bucket' is an example of?
Answer: Idiom
Explanation: 'Kick the bucket' is an idiom meaning to die. It is not literal and its meaning is not predictable from its individual words. Metaphor and simile involve comparisons, not idiomatic expressions.
Q11. The suffix '-ful' in 'hopeful' changes the base word to?
Answer: An adjective
Explanation: The suffix '-ful' forms an adjective from the noun 'hope.' It indicates full of hope
Q12. A 'portmanteau' word is another term for?
Answer: A blend
Explanation: A portmanteau word is a blend, like 'smog' or 'brunch.' It combines sounds and meanings of two words. Compound words are separate, like 'bookshelf.'
Q13. The word 'unbreakable' is an example of?
Answer: Derivation with a prefix and a suffix
Explanation: 'Unbreakable' involves both a prefix 'un-' and a suffix '-able,' making it a derived word through both prefixation and suffixation. Compounding involves two free morphemes.
Q14. The phrase 'as busy as a bee' is an example of?
Answer: Simile
Explanation: 'As busy as a bee' compares two things using 'as,' making it a simile. Metaphor states one thing is another, without 'like' or 'as.'
Q15. The term for the study of the structure and formation of words is?
Answer: Morphology
Explanation: Morphology is the study of the internal structure of words and how they are formed from morphemes. Syntax studies sentence structure.
Q16. The process of forming a new word by changing its part of speech without any change in form is?
Answer: Conversion
Explanation: Conversion involves changing a word's part of speech without changing its form, like 'light' (verb or noun). Derivation involves affixes.
Q17. The figure of speech that involves an exaggeration used for effect is?
Answer: Hyperbole
Explanation: Hyperbole is an exaggeration used for emphasis or effect, like 'I'm so hungry I could eat a horse.' Metaphor and simile involve comparisons, not exaggerations.
Q18. The term 'neologism' refers to?
Answer: A newly coined word or expression
Explanation: Neologism is a newly coined word or expression. It represents new ideas or concepts. Outdated words are called 'archaisms.'
Q19. The study of meaning in language is known as?
Answer: Semantics
Explanation: Semantics is the study of meaning in language, including the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences. Pragmatics considers context in meaning.
Q20. A 'malapropism' involves the misuse of a word, often by?
Answer: Using a word that sounds similar to the intended word but has a different meaning
Explanation: Malapropism involves using a word that sounds similar but is incorrect, often leading to humorous effects. It is not about being outdated or creating new words.
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