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English · Reading: inference from evidence

Behind the sound

A thunderclap rolled through the rehearsal room. At our first rehearsal I had ducked under the table; today I merely lifted my script away from the rattling cups. On the staircase, Len was shaking a thin sheet of metal. A painted forest might fool an audience’s eyes, but our radio play had only sounds with which to build its world.

Beside me, Nisha was absorbed in her script. She whispered the opening line again, testing where to pause. When Len stopped, she looked up. “That storm is splendid,” she said, “but if it stays that loud, nobody will hear the traveller ask for shelter.” Len lowered the sheet. We began again, this time with the thunder farther away and the traveller’s voice clear enough to sound uncertain.

What best explains the narrator’s different reaction to the thunder at this rehearsal?

Choose one answer.

AThe narrator now recognises how the thunder sound is produced.
BNisha has already asked Len to reduce the sound before the narrator reacts.
CLen has moved to a different room since the first rehearsal.
DThe narrator has been told that this scene no longer contains a storm.
EThe narrator is so focused on the script that the thunder goes unnoticed.

Show answer and explanation

A: The narrator now recognises how the thunder sound is produced.

The narrator contrasts ducking at the first rehearsal with calmly moving the script today, then identifies Len shaking a metal sheet. This supports familiarity with the effect. The rattling cups show the sound is still noticeable.

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What this paper practises

Retrieval: setting and rolesCharacter through stage directionsDrama: audience informationLanguage: wordplayInference: practical limitationInference: expectationsEvidence selection: considerate behaviourRetrieval: request detailsInference: practical distinctionVocabulary in contextCharacter through actionInference: evidence shown to a characterLanguage: humorous understatementRetrieval: booking conflictDrama: emotion through movementComparison: responses to a problemInference: overlooked informationEvidence selection: proposed accessInference: expectation and individual differenceEvidence selection: conditionsLanguage: humorous contrastInference: careful consentDrama: suspense and releaseLanguage: interrupted speechStructure: visual endingForm: dramatic writingStructure: actual conflictSpelling: -ough letter patternSpelling: prefix with double letterSpelling: changing y before suffixSpelling: -ous suffixSpelling: unstressed vowelsSpelling: homophones in contextSpelling: doubled consonants in suffixesSpelling: -naut endingPunctuation: question boundaryPunctuation: distinguishing possessionPunctuation: parenthetical dashesPunctuation: separating list items with internal commasPunctuation: apostrophe-free pluralPunctuation: clause boundary and meaningPunctuation: possessive time expressionGrammar: identifying a prepositionGrammar: verb and collective subjectGrammar: adjective and adverb choiceGrammar: pronoun versus determinerGrammar: coordinating conjunctionGrammar: perfect tense choicesGrammar: form of a command

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INDEPENDENT HBS-RELATED SUBJECT SKILLS PRACTICE. This original English paper focuses on reading, spelling, punctuation and grammar skills relevant to first-round English, with transferable KS2 literacy practice. It is an Exam Quay MCQ paper with 50 questions and our own 50-minute timer INCLUDING reading. These question counts and timings are not an official HBS first-round specification. It does not assess written composition or simulate the full first or second admissions round. NVR is not included. Choose exactly ONE answer unless the question explicitly asks for TWO. Each question earns one mark only for the complete correct set, otherwise zero, with no partial credit or negative marking; this is Exam Quay’s own scoring rule.

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HBS English Skills Paper 3