JAMB Use of English 2022 past questions

Checked by the Skolra question team · Last updated 23 October 2026

Ten questions from the 2022 JAMB Use of English paper, with answers and explanations. We hold 61 questions from this paper, and the Skolra app has all of them.

JAMB Use of English 2022 questions and answers

1. 1.

   This question is based on the novel, The Life Changer.

   What is the full meaning of the acronym EMAL?

   1. A
      Examination Management
   2. B
      Examination Monitoring
   3. C
      Examination Misconduct
   4. D
      Examination Malpractice
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   In The Life Changer, EMAL is the short form of Examination Malpractice — the name of the official form a student caught cheating is made to fill in.

   So the answer is Examination Malpractice.

2. 2.

   From the options lettered A-D, choose the option that is nearest in meaning to the underlined word.

   It is wise not to depend on mundane things.

   1. A
      Dangerous
   2. B
      Sacred
   3. C
      Forbidden
   4. D
      Extraordinary
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   Mundane means ordinary and everyday. Extraordinary, meaning very unusual or remarkable, is nearest in meaning to mundane in this context where mundane things suggests routine, ordinary matters.

3. 3.

   In each of the following sentences, the word that receives the emphatic stress is written in capital letters. From the options lettered A to D, choose the appropriate answer.

   John's watch is made of GOLD.

   1. A
      Is John's watch made of gold?
   2. B
      Whose watch is made of gold?
   3. C
      Where is the gold?
   4. D
      What is John's watch made of?
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   When 'GOLD' receives emphatic stress in 'John's watch is made of GOLD', it emphasizes the material. The question this answers is 'What is John's watch made of?' The stress indicates emphasis on the substance rather than questioning if it is gold.

4. 4.

   Identify the word that has the stress on the first syllable

   1. A
      Beautiful
      Correct
   2. B
      Alone
   3. C
      Today
   4. D
      Important
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Beautiful has stress on the first syllable: BEAU-ti-ful. The other words have stress on different syllables: Alone (a-LONE), Today (to-DAY), and Important (im-POR-tant).

5. 5.

   This question is based on the novel, The Life Changer.

   What question did Bint ask her teacher?

   1. A
      How to say 'Good morning' in French
   2. B
      How to say 'That is very good' in French
      Correct
   3. C
      Why French was not a compulsory subject in the school
   4. D
      What the word 'Bonjour' means in English
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: B

   This comes from the opening chapter of The Life Changer, where Bint returns home and tells her mother how her day went in class.

6. 6.

   This question is based on the novel, The Life Changer.

   Who was Omar's immediate younger sister?

   1. A
      Teemah
      Correct
   2. B
      Bint
   3. C
      Salma
   4. D
      Jamila
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   This one is straight from the family tree in The Life Changer. Ummi Ahmad has four children, and you should know them in order: Omar (the first child and only son, eighteen years old, just admitted to study Law at ABU Zaria), then Teemah, then Jamila, then Bint.

   Because Teemah is the second child and the first daughter, she is the one who comes immediately after Omar. So Teemah is Omar's immediate younger sister.

7. 7.

   From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that rhymes with the given word.

   Phone

   1. A
      Tone
      Correct
   2. B
      Enough
   3. C
      Tongue
   4. D
      Thing
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Phone ends with the /oʊn/ sound and rhymes with words ending in -one. Tone rhymes perfectly with phone, while enough, thing, and tongue have different ending sounds.

8. 8.

   In each of the following sentences, the word that receives the emphatic stress is written in capital letters . From the options lettered A to D, choose the one which the sentence is the appropriate answer.

   She WORKS at the hospital.

   1. A
      Who works at the hospital?
   2. B
      Does she work at the hospital?
   3. C
      Where does she work?
   4. D
      What does she do at the hospital?
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   When 'WORKS' receives emphatic stress in 'She WORKS at the hospital', it emphasizes what she does there. The question is 'What does she do at the hospital?' The stress marks that she definitely works (not just visits).

9. 9.

   Choose the option that has a different vowel sound from the others

   1. A
      Meet
   2. B
      Seat
   3. C
      Beat
   4. D
      Pit
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   Beat, seat, and meet all have the long vowel sound /iː/. Pit has the short vowel sound /ɪ/, making it different from the others.

10. 10.

    From the options lettered A-D, choose the option that is nearest in meaning to the underlined word.

    Now that the company is insolvent , it will shut down.

    1. A
       Dishonest
    2. B
       Irrelevant
    3. C
       Bankrupt
       Correct
    4. D
       Stubborn
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer: C

    Insolvent means unable to pay one's debts or liabilities. Bankrupt has the nearest meaning, referring to legal insolvency. Irrelevant, dishonest, and stubborn are unrelated to financial inability.

The questions come from past JAMB, WAEC and NECO papers. We use software to help write the answer options and explanations, and every answer is checked twice before it goes on the site. How we check

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Practise all 61 questions we hold from the 2022 paper, on a timed CBT screen

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