Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region III
SCHOOLS DIVISION OFFICE OF PAMPANGA
High School Blvd, Brgy. Lourdes, City of San Fernando
1st Quarterly Examination in English 8
SY 2018-2019

Name: ___________________________________ Score: _______________

I. ORAL LANGUAGE AND FLUENCY

Directions. Choose the letter of the best answer and write it on your answer sheet.

1. A suprasegmental is a vocal effect that extends over more than one sound segment in an utterance,
such as pitch, stress, intonation, or juncture pattern. What suprasegmental is used in the underlined
words in this sentence? Teachers record their students’ grade in their class record.
A. intonation C. pitch
B. juncture pitch D. stress
2. I was out shopping with a friend, and she disappeared. Why did she _____ me?
A. DES-ert C. REF-use
B. des-ERT D. re-FUSE
3. Looking at the expression on your face, I _____ that you haven’t done your homework.
A. CON-tent C. SUS-pect
B. Con-TENT SUS-pect D. sus-PECT
4. Which sentence contains the juncture suggesting that the speaker is talking to the child?
A. Are you, leaving my child with this child?
B. Are you leaving my child with this woman?
C. Are you leaving, my child, with this woman?
D. Are you leaving my child, with this woman?
5. In the sentence, “She said she did not take his money,” which word is stressed if the speaker means,
“But she did take something else of his.”
A. money B. said
B. not D. take
6. Which sentence should be spoken with the rising intonation?
A. Does the governor know where the farmer lives?
B. The farmer lifted his helpless old mother to his back.
C. The governor sent forth heralds bearing an unreasonable order.
D. When did the governor abolish the cruel law?
7. What intonation is to be used in delivering the question, “What sacrifice did Ko-ngai do for her father?”
A. falling C. monotone
B. indefinite D. rising

II. VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT

For items 8 – 13. Determine the meaning of the underlined idiomatic expressions.

8. Kouan –Yu waited for the day when the third and last effort to cast the great bell was to be made with
butterflies in his stomach.
A. to be hungry C. to feel nervous
B. to be excited D. to feel confident
9. The African has so many things to do that he is afraid he won’t be able to finish them all. His master
said, “you bite off more than you could chew.”
A. he works fast C. he has many things to do
B. he eats a lot D. he does not chew his food
10. Senhor Antunes had planned to participate in the demonstration, but then he got cold feet.
A. to lose confidence C. to pay much attention to
B. to feel very cold D. to pour water on something
11. When he heard that he had once again failed, he lost his heart.
A. felt sad C. became angry
B. felt desperate D. became discouraged
12. I met him after a long time, but he gave me the cold shoulder.
A. abused me B. insulted me
B. ignored me C. scolded me
 13. The people of Shinano had to obey the mandate of the governor, to put to death all aged people.
Everyone agreed that the governor was a cold-blooded leader.
A. without feeling C. without consideration
B. without warmth D. without common sense
14. If she has __________ her mind on getting something, there is no stopping her.
A. kept C. thought
B. set D. turned
15. Although I tried really hard, I couldn’t take my mind __________ the work pressure.
A. away C. off
B. of D. on
16. The apartment was designed with Ana __________ mind.
A. at C. of
B. in D. on
17. His rancor or hatred for his brother has caused him to live his life as a lonely person. What does the
underlined word mean?
A. generosity C. love
B. hatred D. tolerance
18. It was gratifying to see how he acted toward his mother because his mother was always kind to him.
The word gratifying means _____.
A. aggravating C. horrifying
B. depressing D. satisfying

Read the passage below to answer questions 19-20.

Apartheid was a political and social system in South Africa while it was

under white minority rule. This was used in the 20th century, from 1948 to the early 1990s.The
word apartheid means "apartness.” This was a social policy in South Africa which forces the Blacks
and people from other racial groups to live separately from the whites. South Africans were classified
into four racial groups (a) “white”, (b) “Indian”, (c) “colored”, and (d) “bantu” or natives. Only whites can
vote. Any marriage between a white and a person of any other racial group is a crime.

19. What social issue is similar to “Apartheid”?

A. right to vote press freedom C. press freedom
B. social poverty D. racial discrimination
20. Which racial group consists of ‘black African people’?
A. bantu C. Indian
B. colored D. white

III. GRAMMAR AWARENESS AND STRUCTURE

For items 21-24. Choose the option that maintains parallel structure in each sentence. Use the underlined
phrases as clues.

21. When the farmer realized that his helpless old mother made vegetables and rice for dinner, he
__________, claimed to be full, and excused himself from the table.
A. clutched his stomach C. was clutch his stomach
B. clutches his stomach D. was clutching his stomach

22. To protect his mother’s delicate hands, the African boy volunteered to rake the yard, __________, and
to do the dishes.
A. scrub the bathroom C. scrubbing the bathroom
B. to scrub the bathroom D. to scrubbing the bathroom
23. They labored exceedingly, like giants, neglecting rest and sleep, toiling both day and night, and
__________ in all things.
A. strives C. striving
B. to strive D. will strive
24. Learning a new language as an adult is more difficult than __________ one as a child.
A. learned C. learning
B. to learn D. to learning
25. Which sentence observes parallel structure?
A. Recommended exercise includes to run, to swim, and cycling.
B. Recommended exercise includes running, to swim, and cycling.
C. Recommended exercise includes running, swimming, and cycling.
D. Recommended exercise includes running, swimming, and to cycle.
 26. Which of the following sentences does not observe parallelism?
A. To see is to believe.
B. Teaching, facilitating, and mentoring are the major tasks of a teacher.
C. Mark’s opinion of his employer is that he is smart, eloquent, and considerate.
D. Every athlete can lead his team to a whooping victory by practicing hard, studying the plays,
and if he focuses on the signals.

For items 27-32. Complete the paragraph below with the appropriate cohesive devices. Choose from
the pool of words. (Write only the letter of your choice on your answer sheet.)
A. and C. but E. that G. since
B. because D. moreover F. therefore H. whether

The methods of reading usually differ in accordance with the content of books, 27. __________
all books should be read with equal seriousness. Amusement is not the main objective of reading,
28. __________ a good book, 29. __________ helps us to know life better. It is 31. ___________
said 32. __________ books are the best teachers.

IV. READING COMPREHENSION / LITERATURE

Read the excerpt below to answer questions 33-36.

My mother is the only one who must be right about this question of a black’s hands being lighter
than the rest of his body.
“ God made Blacks because they had to be. They had to be, my son. He thought they really had
to be. Afterwards, He regretted having made them because other men laughed at them and took them
off to their homes and put them to serve as slaves or not much better.”
But because He could’nt make them all be white, for those who were used to seeing blacks
would complain, He made it so that the palms would exactly like the palms of other men.
Well, listen: It was to show that what men do is only the work of men…That what men do is
done by hands that are the same- hands of people who, if they had any sense, would know that before
anything else they are men.

33. What is the tone of the speaker in describing God in sentence 5?

A. angry C. sad
B. delighted D. satisfied
34. What mood did God have after making the color of the palms of the Africans exactly like the palms of
other men?
A. anxious C. dignified
B. arrogant D. relieved
35. What point of view is used in the story?
A. reader’s point of view C. first person point of view
B. people’s point of view D. third person point of view
36. What is the author’s purpose in saying that God couldn’t change the color of the blacks in sentence 6?
A. to show that God is reasonable
B. to demonstrate that God has limitations
C. to express that God fears the people He created
D. to prove that God cannot change his former decisions

Read the excerpt below to answer questions 37-39.

I Am an African
by Thabo Mbeki

I am an African.
I owe my being to the hills and the valleys, the mountains and the glades, the rivers, the
deserts, the trees, the flowers, the seas and the ever-changing seasons that define the face of our
native land.
My body has frozen in our frosts and in our latter day snows. It has thawed in the warmth of our
sunshine and melted in the heat of the midday sun. The crack and the rumble of the summer thunders,
lashed by startling lightening, have been a cause both of trembling and of hope.
The fragrances of nature have been as pleasant to us as the sight of the wild blooms of the
citizens of the veld.
 The dramatic shapes of the Drakensberg, the soil-colored waters of the Lekoa, iGqili
noThukela, and the sands of the Kgalagadi, have all been panels of the set on the natural stage on
which we act out the foolish deeds of the theatre of our day.
At times, and in fear, I have wondered whether I should concede equal citizenship of our
country to the leopard and the lion, the elephant and the springbok, the hyena, the black mamba and
the pestilential mosquito.
A human presence among all these, a feature on the face of our native land thus defined, I
know that none dare challenge me when I say - I am an African!

37. What is the speaker’s purpose in beginning and ending his speech with the line, “I am an African”?
A. To impress his audience.
B. To highlight that he is an African.
C. To maintain balance in his speech.
D. To show how proud he is to be an African.
38. What is the speaker’s purpose in mentioning the beautiful things found in Africa?
A. To invite people to go to Africa.
B. To express wonder to nature’s beauty.
C. To express gratitude to nature’s bounty.
D. To identify the beautiful places in Africa.
39. What is the overall purpose of the speaker?
A. To encourage people to visit Africa.
B. To express pride to being an African.
C. To promote the local culture of Africa.
D. To tell his listeners how brave Africans are.
40. What sensory impression is evoked in this line?
“We do not only sour, but also salt (daing, tuyo, bagoong) because the blandness of rice
suggests the desirability of sharp contrast.”
A. feeling C. smelling
B. seeing D. tasting
41. Which sensory detail does this statement appeal to?
“So the ponderous casting was made; and lo! when the metal had become cool, it was found
that the bell was beautiful to look upon and perfect in form, and wonderful in color above all other
bells.”
A. sight C. taste
B. smell D. touch
42. In Japan, it is considered rude to pour your own drink when eating with others--you pour your
companion's drink and your companion pours yours. This is a sign of _________.
A. courtesy C. hospitality
B. gratitude D. respect
43. As part of the Asian continent, Filipinos share the same values and traditions with the Chinese and the
Japanese. What values are common among these groups of people?
A. goal-oriented, hardworking, religious
B. family-oriented, hardworking, religious
C. family-oriented, hardworking, superstitious
D. goal-oriented, hardworking, nature-enthusiast
44. For Asians, shame and honor go far beyond the individual, and reflect directly upon one’s family,
nation, or other group, and so is taken very seriously. This is true because __________.
A. Asians are passive and submissive
B. family comes first among Asians
C. pride is so important to them.
D. tradition is considered vital.
45. Most of the themes in African Literature focus on freedom, independence, equality and economic
freedom to name a few. What do these lines from the African story of creation reveal about their
values?

A West African creation tale explains how two spirit people were accidentally sent down to earth
by the sky god. Lonely, the people decided to create children from clay, but feel they must hide them
when the sky god comes down. Because they are hidden in fire, the children soon turn to various
shades based on how long they had been exposed to the heat. Over time, these clay children grow up
and move to various regions of the earth, ultimately populating it (Fader).
A. Africans follow their religion.
B. Africans are hardworking people.
C. Africans value people’s differences.
D. Africans entertain themselves through tales.
V. WRITING

For items 46-50. Read the following paragraphs, and then complete the outline that follows.

In 1812, Helen Keller was struck by an unidentified illness. She suffered violent pain and high
fever which shattered her senses. She lost the use of her eyes and ears. Helen’s world became a dark,
silent place.
Helen became a difficult child to live with. She had become a “wild destructive animal.” She was
often filled with anger. She was hitting out and kicking at things in tearful rage.
- from Helen Keller by Nigel Hunger

I. Helen Keller was struck by an illness

A. Suffered violent pain and fever

1. (46) __________________________________________________

2. (47) __________________________________________________

B. Helen’s world became dark and silent

II. (48) ______________________________________________________________

A. Had become wild and destructive
1. (49) __________________________________________________

2. (50) __________________________________________________