WAEC 2020 English Language · Question 78

The president SPOKE to the press yesterday.

Question

the word that receives the emphatic stress is written in capital letters. From the questions lettered A to D, choose the one to which the given sentence is the appropriate answer. The president SPOKE to the press yesterday.

A.Did the minister speak to the press yesterday?
B.Did the president speak to the lecturers yesterday?
C.Did the president wave to the press yesterday?
D.Did the president speak to the press today?

Answer: C. Did the president wave to the press yesterday?

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question

This is an emphatic stress question. The capitalized word in the answer shows the new or corrected information. The question that fits is the one that differs from the answer only in that word, or asks about that exact element.

Concept

Emphatic stress highlights the word that corrects or answers a point in the question. The stressed word in the sentence tells you which part of the question was wrong or being asked about.

Sentence: The president SPOKE to the press yesterday.

The stress falls on the verb "spoke". So the question must have used a different verb, and the answer corrects it: "No, he didn't do something else (e.g. wave); he SPOKE."

Step-by-step check of the options

A. "Did the minister speak...?" This would be answered with stress on PRESIDENT, not on "spoke". ✗
B. "...to the lecturers...?" This would be answered with stress on PRESS. ✗
C. "Did the president wave to the press yesterday?" The only difference is the verb (wave → spoke). The stress on SPOKE corrects it. ✓
D. "...today?" This would be answered with stress on YESTERDAY. ✗

Answer: C

Tip: Find the capitalized word in the answer, then pick the question that has a different word in that same position. That mismatched word is what the stress is correcting.

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