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English Language: High School: 9th and 10th Grade Quiz - How Writers Achieve Effects (Questions)

This English Language quiz is called 'How Writers Achieve Effects' and it has been written by teachers to help you if you are studying the subject at high school. Playing educational quizzes is a user-friendly way to learn if you are in the 9th or 10th grade - aged 14 to 16.

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Style, tone, grammar, punctuation, genre, rhetorical devices - an excellent writer must master these 'tools of the trade' to achieve the desired effect in any piece of writing. Consider the types of writing you most enjoy reading - what makes them good? What if they were written by other authors - how would they be different? Take time to notice the techniques used by writers and try to achieve similar effects in your own writing by experimenting with them.

Here's a quiz on the subject to get you started.

An author who is aware of audience and purpose will take care in choosing his or her...

[ ]	tone
[ ]	style
[ ]	format
[ ]	All of the above

Which of the following best describes 'tone' in a piece of writing?

[ ]	The level of formality in a piece of writing
[ ]	The type of text being written
[ ]	The expected readership of a piece of writing
[ ]	The mood the writer conveys, as well as the writer's attitude toward the subject and the reader

Which of the following would be written to inform?

[ ]	An advertisement
[ ]	A school prospectus
[ ]	A letter to a company complaining about its customer relations policy
[ ]	A speech promoting a charity

Which of the following could reasonably be expected to entertain its readers?

[ ]	A newspaper report
[ ]	An autobiography
[ ]	A business report
[ ]	A manual for a new washing machine

What does 'register' mean?

[ ]	Language style in speech only
[ ]	Language style in writing only
[ ]	Level of formality only
[ ]	Language style and level of formality used in speech or writing

Which of the following texts would be most likely to contain interrogative sentences?

[ ]	An explanation of the sleeping habits of the sloth
[ ]	A postcard from the dentist informing the recipient that a check-up is due
[ ]	An advert for a new brand of detergent
[ ]	A dictionary entry

Which of the following texts would be most likely to contain exclamatory sentences?

[ ]	A letter to a prospective employer
[ ]	An e-mail to your best friend
[ ]	A book review
[ ]	A leaflet explaining how to look after braces

What is the effect created by the use of rhetorical questions?

[ ]	To draw the audience in by presuming its members will agree with you
[ ]	To make the audience feel unsure
[ ]	To make members of the audience question their most deeply-held beliefs
[ ]	To cause confusion as the writer/speaker waits for a response

What effect is created by the use of anecdotes?

[ ]	To make serious subjects appear funny
[ ]	To trick people into listening to you
[ ]	To draw in the reader by making them more interested and by making you seem trustworthy
[ ]	None of the above

10.

What effect is created by the use of short paragraphs and sentences?

[ ]	A sense of suspense
[ ]	A sense of urgency
[ ]	A feeling of action
[ ]	All of the above

English Language: High School: 9th and 10th Grade Quiz - How Writers Achieve Effects (Answers)

An author who is aware of audience and purpose will take care in choosing his or her...

[ ]	tone
[ ]	style
[ ]	format
[x]	All of the above

Which of the following best describes 'tone' in a piece of writing?

[ ]	The level of formality in a piece of writing
[ ]	The type of text being written
[ ]	The expected readership of a piece of writing
[x]	The mood the writer conveys, as well as the writer's attitude toward the subject and the reader

Which of the following would be written to inform?

[ ]	An advertisement
[x]	A school prospectus
[ ]	A letter to a company complaining about its customer relations policy
[ ]	A speech promoting a charity

Many types of writing include elements which are informative. Some types of writing (such as a school prospectus) aim to portray the facts fairly without seeking to influence people by using biased language

Which of the following could reasonably be expected to entertain its readers?

[ ]	A newspaper report
[x]	An autobiography
[ ]	A business report
[ ]	A manual for a new washing machine

Not all autobiographies are entertaining, of course, but many authors do try to tell entertaining stories about their past

What does 'register' mean?

[ ]	Language style in speech only
[ ]	Language style in writing only
[ ]	Level of formality only
[x]	Language style and level of formality used in speech or writing

Which of the following texts would be most likely to contain interrogative sentences?

[ ]	An explanation of the sleeping habits of the sloth
[ ]	A postcard from the dentist informing the recipient that a check-up is due
[x]	An advert for a new brand of detergent
[ ]	A dictionary entry

Interrogative sentences end in question marks. Adverts often use questions - 'Are you tired of clothes coming out of the wash almost as dirty as they went in? Then try....'

Which of the following texts would be most likely to contain exclamatory sentences?

[ ]	A letter to a prospective employer
[x]	An e-mail to your best friend
[ ]	A book review
[ ]	A leaflet explaining how to look after braces

Exclamatory sentences end in exclamation marks - people tend to use these more frequently in less formal / personal writing, such as e-mail

What is the effect created by the use of rhetorical questions?

[x]	To draw the audience in by presuming its members will agree with you
[ ]	To make the audience feel unsure
[ ]	To make members of the audience question their most deeply-held beliefs
[ ]	To cause confusion as the writer/speaker waits for a response

Rhetorical questions presume, very cleverly, that all reasonable people would agree and that there is no need, therefore, to state the answer

What effect is created by the use of anecdotes?

[ ]	To make serious subjects appear funny
[ ]	To trick people into listening to you
[x]	To draw in the reader by making them more interested and by making you seem trustworthy
[ ]	None of the above

10.

What effect is created by the use of short paragraphs and sentences?

[ ]	A sense of suspense
[ ]	A sense of urgency
[ ]	A feeling of action
[x]	All of the above

Journalists often use short sentences and paragraphs, as well, to make their writing easier to understand quickly