JAMB 2015 English Language · Question 52

Shoe — choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the underlined letters or…

Question

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the underlined letters or letters underlined. Shoe

In the original paper part of this question is underlined. The underline isn't shown here: see the explanation below.

A.full
B.food
C.put
D.blood

Answer: B. food

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question: "Shoe" has the vowel sound /uː/ (a long "oo" sound). We need the option with the same sound.

Explain the concept: English has a long vowel /uː/ (as in moon, blue, shoe) and a short vowel /ʊ/ (as in book, put, full). Spelling can mislead you, so always say the word aloud and listen to its sound.

Solution, step by step:

Shoe: /ʃuː/ → long /uː/
A. full: /fʊl/ → short /ʊ/ ✗
B. food: /fuːd/ → long /uː/ ✓
C. put: /pʊt/ → short /ʊ/ ✗
D. blood: /blʌd/ → /ʌ/ (like "cup") ✗

Only food has the same long /uː/ sound as "shoe".

Tip: Group words by sound, not spelling. "oo" is tricky because it can make three sounds:

/uː/: food, moon, school
/ʊ/: book, foot, good
/ʌ/: blood, flood

Remember that blood and flood are the odd ones out, since they sound like "cup".

Correct answer: B (food)

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