Q1 · Difficulty 1/3
The people in a story are called the:
- headings
- characters
- captions
- footnotes
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — characters
Characters are the people (or beings) in a story.
CXC · CSEC · English Language
Free CXC CSEC English Language
Practice Paper
8 mixed-difficulty practice questions in the style of real CXC CSEC papers — answers, mark-scheme-style explanations, and the official exam structure all on one page.
Take a Mini Mock →What the real CXC CSEC English Language paper looks like
Paper 1 (Section A)
60 multiple-choice questions, 1 mark each. 75 minutes. Tests knowledge across the whole syllabus.
Paper 2
Structured short-answer + 1 extended response question. Section A is compulsory; Section B has a choice. Approximately 2 hours 10 minutes.
School-Based Assessment (SBA)
Coursework component graded by the teacher, externally moderated. Worth ~20-30% of the final grade depending on subject.
Total exam time: ~3.5 hours across Paper 1 and Paper 2 sittings.
Grading: Grades: I (highest) to VI (lowest). A grade of III or above is typically required for further study.
Grading: Grades: I (highest) to VI (lowest). A grade of III or above is typically required for further study.
Mini practice paper: 8 questions
Mixed-difficulty questions from across the English Language syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.
Q2 · Difficulty 1/3
A student wrote: 'The old wooden chattel house stood at the corner of the village, its faded blue paint peeling like sunburnt skin.' Which literary device is used in the phrase 'peeling like sunburnt skin'?
- Metaphor
- Simile
- Personification
- Alliteration
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Simile
Award 1 mark. Similes compare two unlike things using 'like' or 'as'. Metaphor is not the answer, because a metaphor states that one thing is another without such a signal word. Personification is not the answer either, since that gives human qualities to something non-human. Alliteration is different again, depending on the repetition of consonant sounds.
Q3 · Difficulty 1/3
The 'setting' of a story is its:
- title only
- page count
- price
- time and place
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — time and place
The setting is where and when the story happens.
Q4 · Difficulty 1/3
Which of these is an object pronoun?
- they
- we
- him
- she
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — him
'Him' receives the action, as in 'The teacher praised him.' 'She', 'they' and 'we' are subject pronouns.
Q5 · Difficulty 1/3
Imaginative writing often uses figurative language such as:
- only numbers
- legal terms
- bullet lists
- similes and metaphors
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — similes and metaphors
Similes and metaphors enrich imaginative writing.
Q6 · Difficulty 1/3
A student writes the following sentence in an essay about hurricane preparedness in Barbados: 'Residents should stock up on water. They should also purchase batteries and canned food.' Which cohesive device links these two sentences?
- A lexical chain
- A pronoun reference
- A conjunction
- An adverb of addition
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — An adverb of addition
Award 1 mark for identifying 'also' as an adverb of addition that creates cohesion by signalling additional information. B is incorrect because 'They' is a pronoun but it is not the device linking the ideas. C is incorrect because no conjunction joins the sentences. A is incorrect because a lexical chain refers to related vocabulary, not a single linking word.
Q7 · Difficulty 1/3
Read the following excerpt from a Jamaican tourism brochure: 'Dunn's River Falls is 180 feet tall and is undoubtedly the most beautiful waterfall in the Caribbean.' Which word signals that the second part of the sentence is an OPINION?
- waterfall
- Caribbean
- tall
- undoubtedly
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — undoubtedly
Award 1 mark for identifying 'undoubtedly' as a word that introduces a subjective judgement. C is incorrect because 'tall' relates to the measurable height. A is incorrect because 'waterfall' is a factual noun. B is incorrect because 'Caribbean' is a geographical fact.
Q8 · Difficulty 1/3
A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in:
- Size
- Spelling only
- Tense
- Number and gender
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — Number and gender
Pronouns agree with the noun they refer to in number and gender.
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CXC CSEC English Language FAQ
What does the CXC CSEC English Language exam look like?
The CXC CSEC English Language exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1 (Section A): 60 multiple-choice questions, 1 mark each. 75 minutes. Tests knowledge across the whole syllabus. Paper 2: Structured short-answer + 1 extended response question. Section A is compulsory; Section B has a choice. Approximately 2 hours 10 minutes. School-Based Assessment (SBA): Coursework component graded by the teacher, externally moderated. Worth ~20-30% of the final grade depending on subject. Total exam time: ~3.5 hours across Paper 1 and Paper 2 sittings.
Can I download a free CXC CSEC English Language past paper?
Real CXC past papers are published directly by CXC on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is CXC CSEC English Language graded?
Grades: I (highest) to VI (lowest). A grade of III or above is typically required for further study. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.