Free International English Olympiad Basic Questions and Answers

Question 1

The magician had clever_______ concealed several rabbits in his hat.

Accepted Answer

ly

Answer

Adding '-ly' to the adjective 'clever' forms the adverb 'cleverly,' which correctly modifies the verb 'concealed' to describe how the magician performed the action. The suffixes '-fully,' '-ness,' and '-ity' create different word forms (another adjective, a noun, or a noun), none of which function as adverbs modifying a verb.

Question 2

Choose the correct expression.

Accepted Answer

Practice makes perfect

Answer

'Practice makes perfect' is the correct traditional English proverb meaning that repeated effort leads to mastery. The other options either alter the subject, reverse the logic, or change the verb in ways that do not match the established expression.

Question 3

Choose the odd phrase.

Accepted Answer

Take it

Answer

Take off, take up, and take on are all true phrasal verbs — multi-word verbs with distinct idiomatic meanings (depart, occupy/begin, accept a challenge). 'Take it' is simply the verb 'take' followed by a pronoun object and does not form a phrasal verb with a specialized meaning.

Question 4

The ________ is fine today. Let's go for a picnic.

Accepted Answer

weather

Answer

'Weather' is the correctly spelled word for atmospheric conditions. 'Wheather' is simply a misspelling, 'whether' is a conjunction used to introduce alternatives, and 'wether' is a castrated ram — none of these fit the sentence about going on a picnic.

Question 5

This history test is so difficult as I think I'm going to fail.

Accepted Answer

as I think

Answer

The error is 'as I think' because 'so' requires the conjunction 'that' to complete the result clause — the correct phrasing is 'so difficult that I think I'm going to fail.' Using 'as' breaks the required 'so...that' correlative structure in English.

IEO - International English Olympiad Practice Test

IEO - International English Olympiad Practice Test

Free International English Olympiad Basic Questions and Answers