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English Quiz - Alphabetical Sorting 01 (Questions)

This KS3 English quiz is all about alphabetical sorting. To put words into alphabetical order, start with the first letter of each word nearest the letter 'a'. If two words start with the same letter, look at the second letter of each and so on.

Alphabetising seems so straightforward when it is first being taught: A is for Apple, B is for Banana, C is for Cherry.... But it gets more difficult once you begin alphabetising words which begin with the same letter, or letters. What if all of the first letters are the same? Can you alphabetise these: superbly, super, superb? If you compare the first, second, third, fourth and fifth letters of a set of words and they are each the same, the shortest word will come first. So the correct order for these words is super, superb, superbly. Easy, right?

1. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Capitals, commas, colons
[ ] End, exclamation, exit
[ ] Persuade, punctuate, pretend
[ ] Speech, semi-colon, subordinate
2. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Full, follow, flash
[ ] Leave, lesson, letter
[ ] Person, predict, preview
[ ] Separate, single, strong
3. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Add, added, additional
[ ] Decide, deduce, decipher
[ ] Mean, might, map
[ ] Product, people, place
4. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Differ, different, differentiate
[ ] Eat, eaten, eats
[ ] Stop, stopped, stopping
[ ] Understood, understand, understanding
5. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Anger, angered, angry
[ ] Maintain, maintaining, maintained
[ ] Pencil, pen, penned
[ ] Using, used, user
6. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Ice, iced, icy
[ ] Latitude, latter, letter
[ ] Spice, spiced, spicy
[ ] Veto, vet, vetted
7. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Boxing, boxed, box
[ ] Mat, mate, material
[ ] Never, near, nevertheless
[ ] Talking, talk, talked
8. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Rule, ruler, rules
[ ] Slip, slipped, slipping
[ ] Snap, snapped, snapping
[ ] Voiced, voice, voices
9. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Advanced, advancement, advance
[ ] Commonly, common, commoner
[ ] Jig, jiggled, jiggle
[ ] Jog, jogged, jogging
10. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Essence, essential, essentially
[ ] Head, header, headline
[ ] Point, pointed, pointer
[ ] Quotation, quota, quote

 

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English Quiz - Alphabetical Sorting 01 (Answers)
1. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Capitals, commas, colons
[x] End, exclamation, exit
[ ] Persuade, punctuate, pretend
[ ] Speech, semi-colon, subordinate
Third letter of "exclamation" and "exit" decides the order
2. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[x] Full, follow, flash
[ ] Leave, lesson, letter
[ ] Person, predict, preview
[ ] Separate, single, strong
Alphabetical order would be flash/follow/full
3. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[x] Add, added, additional
[ ] Decide, deduce, decipher
[ ] Mean, might, map
[ ] Product, people, place
You have to look at the fourth letter of "added" and "additional" to decide the order
4. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Differ, different, differentiate
[ ] Eat, eaten, eats
[ ] Stop, stopped, stopping
[x] Understood, understand, understanding
The eighth letter of each word decides the order here!
5. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[x] Anger, angered, angry
[ ] Maintain, maintaining, maintained
[ ] Pencil, pen, penned
[ ] Using, used, user
The fourth letter of "angered" and "angry" decides the order
6. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Ice, iced, icy
[ ] Latitude, latter, letter
[ ] Spice, spiced, spicy
[x] Veto, vet, vetted
Vet/veto/vetted is the correct alphabetical order
7. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Boxing, boxed, box
[x] Mat, mate, material
[ ] Never, near, nevertheless
[ ] Talking, talk, talked
Look at the third, then fourth, then fifth letters here
8. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Rule, ruler, rules
[ ] Slip, slipped, slipping
[ ] Snap, snapped, snapping
[x] Voiced, voice, voices
The correct alphabetical order would be voice/voiced/voices
9. Which of the following lists is in alphabetical order?
[ ] Advanced, advancement, advance
[ ] Commonly, common, commoner
[ ] Jig, jiggled, jiggle
[x] Jog, jogged, jogging
The fifth letter of "jogged" and "jogging" decides the order
10. Which of the following lists is not in alphabetical order?
[ ] Essence, essential, essentially
[ ] Head, header, headline
[ ] Point, pointed, pointer
[x] Quotation, quota, quote
Quota/quotation/quote would be the correct alphabetical order