KS3 Alliteration | Learn Words that Start with Same Sounds

English Quiz - Alliteration 01 (Questions)

This KS3 English quiz asks questions about alliteration. Alliteration is when two or more words start with the same letter or sound. An example would be "crawling caterpillars". Tongue twisters are often good examples of this way of writing - try saying "Fred's friends fried Fritos for Friday's food"! The technique can be used in writing and speech to interest your audience, or to bring some humour to your sentences.

Alliteration can also be used to create certain effects: sounds such as "c/k", "d" or "g" produce harsh effects, while everyone knows that sibilance, caused by repeated "s" or "z" sounds, creates a rather different, somewhat sinister, effect. You should be aware that alliteration can also occur at the beginnings of stressed syllables, too. So a phrase such as "nobody nodded unknowingly" alliterates on the "n" sound, including the -kn- of "unknowingly".

The ....... ....... are in the middle aisle next to the vegetables.

[ ]	boxed fish
[ ]	frozen fish
[ ]	large fish
[ ]	pre-cooked fish

Are you hungry? Let's find a café for ....... ....... and .......

[ ]	cakes, coffee, cola
[ ]	cakes, coffee, tea
[ ]	egg, chips, cola
[ ]	fish, chips, coffee

The art gallery displayed hundreds of ....... ....... and .......

[ ]	books pots pans
[ ]	pots pans cups
[ ]	precious pictures paintings
[ ]	prints cups pans

The sound of ....... ....... created a quiet, calm atmosphere.

[ ]	intermittent shrieks
[ ]	loud shouts
[ ]	murmuring music
[ ]	frenzied chattering

Many ....... and ....... ....... on the river.

[ ]	boats, barges, bobbed
[ ]	boats, barges, sailed
[ ]	boats, ducks, floated
[ ]	ducks, barges, floated

A ....... ....... ....... took the friends to the party.

[ ]	broken, down, lorry
[ ]	lovely, long, limousine
[ ]	rusty, old, car
[ ]	red, old, car

Mrs. Purple drove a ....... ....... .......

[ ]	red, Mercedes, quickly
[ ]	violet, van, violently
[ ]	white, bus, slowly
[ ]	gruesome, dented, van

Peter piper picked a peck of ....... .......

[ ]	new, potatoes
[ ]	pickled, herring
[ ]	pickled, pepper
[ ]	rosy, apples

"What a ....... ....... " is a famous song.

[ ]	Wonderful Day
[ ]	Wonderful Thing
[ ]	Wonderful Time
[ ]	Wonderful World

10.

He folded the invitations and put each one in an ....... .......

[ ]	brown, envelope
[ ]	empty, envelope
[ ]	long, envelope
[ ]	white, envelope

English Quiz - Alliteration 01 (Answers)

The ....... ....... are in the middle aisle next to the vegetables.

[ ]	boxed fish
[x]	frozen fish
[ ]	large fish
[ ]	pre-cooked fish

Two "f" sounds form the alliteration here: "frozen fish"

Are you hungry? Let's find a café for ....... ....... and .......

[x]	cakes, coffee, cola
[ ]	cakes, coffee, tea
[ ]	egg, chips, cola
[ ]	fish, chips, coffee

The three "c" sounds of "cakes/coffee/cola" = alliteration

The art gallery displayed hundreds of ....... ....... and .......

[ ]	books pots pans
[ ]	pots pans cups
[x]	precious pictures paintings
[ ]	prints cups pans

Three "p" sounds form the alliteration here

The sound of ....... ....... created a quiet, calm atmosphere.

[ ]	intermittent shrieks
[ ]	loud shouts
[x]	murmuring music
[ ]	frenzied chattering

"Murmuring music" also alliterates on the internal m of "murmur"

Many ....... and ....... ....... on the river.

[x]	boats, barges, bobbed
[ ]	boats, barges, sailed
[ ]	boats, ducks, floated
[ ]	ducks, barges, floated

Use alliteration in writing to make phrases memorable

A ....... ....... ....... took the friends to the party.

[ ]	broken, down, lorry
[x]	lovely, long, limousine
[ ]	rusty, old, car
[ ]	red, old, car

The repeated "l" sound elongates the phrase to some extent, creating a lingering impression

Mrs. Purple drove a ....... ....... .......

[ ]	red, Mercedes, quickly
[x]	violet, van, violently
[ ]	white, bus, slowly
[ ]	gruesome, dented, van

The overuse of alliteration can be jarring. Use the technique selectively

Peter piper picked a peck of ....... .......

[ ]	new, potatoes
[ ]	pickled, herring
[x]	pickled, pepper
[ ]	rosy, apples

Alliteration makes words easy to remember!

"What a ....... ....... " is a famous song.

[ ]	Wonderful Day
[ ]	Wonderful Thing
[ ]	Wonderful Time
[x]	Wonderful World

"Wonderful" and "world" both begin with "w", creating alliteration

10.

He folded the invitations and put each one in an ....... .......

[ ]	brown, envelope
[x]	empty, envelope
[ ]	long, envelope
[ ]	white, envelope

"E" sounds begin words and make the alliteration here. The alliteration of vowel sounds is also known as "assonance"