163
Suggest lively actions to make these simple scenes more interesting.
This is adapted from an idea in School Certificate English Practice (1933). It draws on a fundamental principle of writing often called ‘Show, Don’t Tell’, which encourages writers to paint lively, attention-grabbing images of something rather than make bald statements of it.
How would you show that a man had long arms? In her Recollections of a Tour Made in Scotland in 1803, Dorothy Wordsworth, sister of poet William, was struck by how Scottish people spoke of Rob Roy’s prodigious reach:
“They told us that he could garter his tartan stockings below the knee without stooping.”
This is so much better than simply saying ‘Rob Roy had long arms’ and leaving it there.
Suggest similar ways to impress the following scenes on the imagination. How would you show that...?
1 A pool was stagnant.
2 A cave was huge.
3 A dog was helpful.
[Huge cave] In the narrow passages we had been noisy, but suddenly we found ourselves talking in whispers, like pilgrims in a cathedral.
For a helpful dog, read our story Manners Makyth Man by Edmund Saul Dixon.
Adapted from an idea in NL Clay’s School Certificate English Practice (1933).
Posted September 20 2024
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164
The Nika Rebellion drew a rising Roman general against some rioting sports fans, and it was a tense game.
Posted September 18 2024
165
Find a single adjective to describe ‘what cannot be’.
What can’t be stopped is unstoppable, what can’t be shaken is unshakeable, and what can’t be divided is indivisible. See if you can continue the pattern with these words.
That which cannot
1 be believed is ...
2 be eaten is ...
3 be wounded is ...
Exercises of this kind were set in School Certificate English Practice (1933) by NL Clay.
Posted September 15 2024
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166
Make as many words as you can from just nine letters. Can you beat our score?
Posted September 14 2024
167
A half-starved cat is recruited by the Allies in the fight against Hitler.
Posted September 14 2024
168
These words have very similar meaning but they are not the same — can you show the difference?
To what extent are these words synonymous? Give examples.
1 Isolated.
2 Lonely.
3 Remote.
Posted September 9 2024
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