Many countries no longer have … punishment as the penalty for murder

Analyze the question: The sentence is about the penalty for murder that many countries have abolished. We need an adjective that correctly collocates with "punishment" to mean the death penalty.

Explain the concept: This is a question on collocation (words that naturally go together). Let's look at each option:

• Mortal: means subject to death, or deadly (e.g., "mortal danger," "mortal wound"). It is not used with "punishment" for the death sentence.
• Corporal: relates to the body. Corporal punishment means physical punishment such as caning or flogging. It is often used in schools, not as the penalty for murder.
• Capital: from the Latin caput ("head"). Capital punishment is the legal term for punishment by death, imposed for serious crimes like murder.
• Fatal: means causing death (e.g., "a fatal accident"). It describes things that cause death, not a legal punishment.

Solution:

1. The sentence refers to the penalty for murder, which is the ultimate legal penalty: death.
2. The correct phrase for a death sentence imposed by law is "capital punishment."
3. So the sentence reads: Many countries no longer have capital punishment as the penalty for murder.

Answer: C. capital

Tip: Remember the pairs:

• Capital punishment = death penalty
• Corporal punishment = physical beating (think corpse/body, but only the body is hurt, not killed)

Also, a "fatal" thing causes death, but a "capital" punishment is a legal sentence of death. This distinction often appears in JAMB English.