WAEC 2014 English Language · Question 44

says — choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the letter(s) underlined

Question

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the letter(s) underlined. says

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

A.end
B.bay
C.rain
D.fern

Answer: A. end

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question: The underlined letters are in "says" (the underlined part is likely "ay" or "ays"). We need the word whose vowel sound matches the vowel sound in "says".

Explain the concept: "Says" is an irregular word. Although it looks like it should rhyme with "days" (/seɪz/), it is actually pronounced /sez/. The vowel sound is the short "e" sound, /e/, as in "bed" or "pen".

Solution:

says → /sez/ → vowel sound /e/
A. end → /end/ → vowel sound /e/ ✔
B. bay → /beɪ/ → vowel sound /eɪ/ ✘ (this is the trap, since the spelling "ay" looks the same)
C. rain → /reɪn/ → vowel sound /eɪ/ ✘
D. fern → /fɜːn/ → vowel sound /ɜː/ ✘

Only end has the short /e/ sound, which matches "says".

Correct answer: A (end)

Tip: Watch for irregular words like says (/sez/), said (/sed/), and again (/əɡen/). Do not trust the spelling. Say the word aloud in your head and compare the actual sounds. Examiners like to set traps with "bay" and "rain" because they share the "ay"/"ai" spelling pattern but have a different sound.

AI can make mistakes. Report anything that looks wrong.