WAEC 2021 English Language · Question 53

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 rear

Options

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

A.realm
B.mere
C.reed
D.mare

Answer: B. mere

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question: The word is "rear" with the underlined letters (likely "ear"). We need the word whose vowel sound matches the vowel sound in "rear".

Concept: "rear" is pronounced /rɪə/, which has the centring diphthong /ɪə/ (as in "here", "beer", "deer").

Check each option:

A. realm /relm/ has the vowel /e/ (as in "bed"). Not a match.
B. mere /mɪə/ has the diphthong /ɪə/. This is a match.
C. reed /riːd/ has the long vowel /iː/ (as in "see"). It is close, but it is a pure vowel, not the diphthong.
D. mare /meə/ has the diphthong /eə/ (as in "hair"). Not a match.

Answer: B. "mere" has the same /ɪə/ sound as "rear".

Tip: For vowel-sound questions, say each word aloud and write down its phonetic sound. Be careful with the diphthong pairs that WASSCE likes to test: /ɪə/ (rear, mere, beer) and /eə/ (mare, hair, bear). The spelling "ear" can mislead you, because "bear" has /eə/ while "rear" has /ɪə/.

AI can make mistakes. Report anything that looks wrong.