GATITU MIXED SECONDARY SCHOOL

END OF TERM I EXAM NAME:.................................................

FORM 1 2013 ADM NO:....................
ENGLISH DATE.....................................

Instructions: Answer all questions in this paper. Time: 2 hrs

CLOZE TEST (10 MARKS)

Fill each of the blank spaces in the passage below with appropriate words. Use only ONE
word in each space.

I used to go into the countryside to sketch animals and plants, carrying my drawing materials in a
bag. One day I was walking across a field, looking (at, for, in, from) (i)___________________
rabbits to draw. Lost (in, about, with, next) (ii) ______________________ thought, I (could,
had, did, have) (iii) ______________________ not noticed a bull running towards me. About
one hundred metres (ago, thin, far, away) (iv) _____________________ was a tree under
(where, which, what, when) (v)______________________ I intended to sit and draw.
Suddenly, I (had, saw, heard, didn’t) (vi) _________________ a noise behind me. I turned and
saw the bull. I knew that a bull can run (very, more, much, so) (vii) _______________ faster
(when, than, with, for) (viii) ______________________ a man, but also knew that a bull cannot
see the movement (clearly, slowly, again, any) (ix)______________. I (had, did, could, will)
(x) ____________________ not panic but ran towards the tree, keeping the (bull, distance, tree,
rest) (xi) _____________, myself and the bull in a straight line. To distract the bull, I then threw
my bag to the right, so it was out of the line of the tree. The bull saw (me, the, it, far) (xii)
_______________________ sudden movement and headed towards the bag. I (arrived,
reached, near, went) (xiii) ____________________________ the tree and climbed up it. From
(there, now, many, bull) (xiv) ___________________ I watched the bull attacking my bag with
its horns and feet. It continued to (again, did, does, do) (xv) ___________________ this for
fifteen minutes and I was very (angry, lazy, happy, annoyed) (xvi) ____________________ to

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be up the tree. (Finally, Never, Near, Good) (xvii) ___________________, the bull was
satisfied and moved off. I waited until it was a very long way (near, away, jump, again) (xviii)
________________________ and then got down from the tree and picked up my bag. I left the
field as fast as I (can, will, could, am) (xix) _____________________ and then looked inside
my bag. Everything in it was (completely, so, more, near) (xx) _____________________
ruined.

QUESTION 2: COMPREHENSION (20mks)

Chief Ullin’s Daughter

Heavy dark clouds were gathering in the late afternoon sky. There was stillness in the air, a
stillness that threatened a storm. The boatman who rowed people across the lake was making fast
his boat when a young man and woman approached him in a great hurry. They were desperate to
cross the lake, they said, and urged him to take them. He shook his head and pointed to the sky.
He told them that a storm was soon coming and that they should wait until it blew over. It would
be dangers to take his small rowing boat out on to the lake.
All the time he was talking, the young couples were nervously looking behind them.
Simon, the young man pleaded with the boat man to take them and offered him a purse of
silver coins. He told the boatman he and Elizabeth, the young woman, were in love and were
determined to marry. Her father was Chief Ullin and he wanted to marry Elizabeth off to a
neighbouring chief, a man she did not love. The Chief was at that moment pursuing them. They
must cross the lake to be safe.
The boat man knew of Chief Ullin’s fiery temper and how he would kill the young man if
he caught him. He could how much the young couple were. Just then the boatman’s son, Eric,
came. He was a strapping young man who helped his father. He was told the story of the young
couple and sympathized with their plight. The young woman spoke up. She would rather, she
said, face the turbulent waters than meet the wrath of her angry father. Tears welled up in her
eyes. Never, she protested, would she marry a man she did not love.
The boatman was touched by her appeal and told his son that he had decided to row the
couple across –not for money, but because he admired their courage and love. Eric looked
anxiously at his father. A storm was certainly coming, he warned. It would be far too risky.
However, his father was already herding his passengers into his boat. When they were both
seated, he untied the rope and made to get in himself. Suddenly, Eric pulled his father away
and leapt into the boat, took up the oars and began to row away.
His father, when he recovered his breath, shouted for his son to come back. His wife, on
hearing the shouts, ran down the lake’s edge. Seeing her son rowing away over the stormy
water, she screamed for him to return. The threatening wind whipped her words away.

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 Towards the lake a group of armed men came. It was the chief with his warriors. He was
angry, but when he saw his daughter tossed by the angry waves, he was terribly afraid. He
bellowed that he forgave them and they should return. It was in vain. As he shouted, the waves
capsized the little craft and its three occupants were drowned as the old people watched.
From the skills of English, Oxford University Press.

1. What was the boatman doing when the young man and woman approached him? (1mk)

2. Why did the boatman refuse to take the young man and woman across the lake? (1mk)
A. They had no money to pay the boatman.
B. A storm was soon coming.
C. The boatman was waiting for his son.
D. The boat had mechanical problems.

3. Why was the young couple in a hurry to cross the lake? (1mk)
A. They were fleeing from the gathering storm.
B. They were fleeing from a neighbouring chief who wanted to marry Elizabeth.
C. They were fleeing from Elizabeth’s father who wanted her to marry a neighbouring
chief.
D. They were fleeing from Simon’s father who did not want him to marry Elizabeth.

4. Explain why the boatman decided to row the couple across the lake in spite of the bad
weather. (2mks)

5. What do you think made Eric decide to row the young couple across the lake instead of
his father? (1mk)

6. Why did Chief Ullin pursue the young couple with a group of armed men? (1mk)

7. In about one paragraph write down what you think could have happened if the boat had
not capsized. (2mks)

8. Explain the meaning of the following words and phrases as used in the passage. (7mks)
a. Making fast-
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 b. A strapping young man-

c. Turbulent-

d. Herding his passengers-

e. Whipped her words-

f. Bellowed-

g. Capsized-

8. Write the antonyms of the following words from the story. (3mks)
a. Love
b. Angry
c. Pulled

9. What do you learn from this story? (1mk)

2. ORAL LITERATURE (15MKS)

a) Define the term oral literature (1mk)

b) List down 3 genres of oral literature (3mks)

c) Identify 3 functions of oral literature (3mk)

d) What are fables? (1mk)

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 e) How are tongue-twisters important to you as a learner? (1mk)

f) Write down 2 types of songs that you know.(1mk)

g) Write down a proverb in any language and its meaning. (translate it if not in
English) (2mks)

h) Identify three words that show courtesy while speaking to other people. (3mks)

QUESTION 4: GRAMMAR (55MKS)

a) The following list contains proper nouns and common nouns. Proper nouns should be
written with an initial capital letter. Identify the proper nouns and re-write them correctly.
(5mks) ( sports, olympic games, parents, paul tergat, mt. kenya, colleges, mrs. korir,
furniture, christmas day)

b) Identify abstract nouns in the following sentences by underlining them (4mks)

i) God’s love does not end.

ii) Kindness is a quality we all enjoy.

iii) Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

iv) The teacher’s advice was ignored by the naughty boys.

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c) In the following sentences, fill the blanks with the appropriate words, choose from the
brackets. (3mks)

i) The old man narrated the __________ about how the horse got its beautiful __________
(tail, tale)

ii) The young boy felt very tired and told his ____________ that he could not walk
______________(father, further)

iii) The thief wanted to__________ the door made of_____________ (steel, steal)

d) Identify the collective nouns in the following sentences by underlining them. (4mks)

i) The pirates demanded a ransom from the ships crew.

ii) David’s case will require a jury.

iii) The preacher asked the flock to start avoiding drugs.

iv) The committee has met and rejected the idea.

e) The following sentences are in plural form. Re-write each in the singular. Remember to
make all the necessary changes. (5mks)

i) There were people standing at the bus stops when we arrived.

ii) I met three Japanese at the headquarters.

iii) The schools require new students to buy desks.

iv) The scouts were determined to cross the rivers by all means.

v) There are active volcanoes in Japan.

f) Rewrite the following sentences into their plural. (3mks)

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(a) The bearded man was looking for an oasis.

(b) I have never seen a louse.

(c) He has just injured his foot.

g) From the following list, identify by underlining words that are pronounced the same as
this -church. (5mks)

choked achieve cheerfully chronic

chord character chores

choir chapter chlorine

h) Use a, an or the to fill the blanks in the following sentences (5mks)

i) ……...smile shows that ……. person wants to be friendly.

ii) ……apple ……day is good for your health.

iii) The king suffered…….. strange disease and died without naming ……….heir to his
throne.

iv) In some parts of ……… world, a cow is………sacred animal.

v) He gave………….money he earned to ……..old man in the hospital.

(i) Rewrite the following sentences appropriately correcting the errors in the
underlined Nouns. (5mks)

(a) My uncle told me that oxes can be used in ploughing the field.

(b) The greatest fear in many woman is rape.

(c) The furnitures in that house looked very old.

(d) When we watched the video, he cried when he saw the heros suffering.

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(e) The cactuses are plants with thorny leaves.

(j) Identify the words that mean the opposite of the underlined words in the following
sentences. (3mks)
(a) The hostile communities were educated on the importance of good neighbourhood.
(strong, friendly, many, harsh)
(b) The old man was asking for something to eat. (new, young, aged, recent)
(c) The students were asked to assemble for an announcement. (listen, disperse, stand,
depart)

(k) Underline the correct word to use in the following sentences. (3mks)
(a) You are not (aloud/ allowed) to speak during exams.
(b) The boy broke a (pane/ pain) of glass.
(c) It is wrong to (waste/ waist) food.

(l) Complete the following (5mks)

(a) A bevy of_____________
(b) A ______________________ of believers.
(c) A flotilla of __________________
(d) A _____________of bees
(e) A troupe of_____________

(m) Complete the following proverbs. (4mk)

(a) One good turn_________________________________________
(b) Every man for himself______________________________________
(c) Don’t kill the goose_________________________________________
(d) More haste,_______________________________________________

(n) Identify the correct spelling of the following word. (where the dead are buried)
(1mk)

cementry cemetery cemertry

cementary cementery cemetary