Lesson P1-R3

P1-R3 Narrative and descriptive passages Quiz: AQA English Language, Unit 1

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson P1-R3, Narrative and descriptive passages: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA GCSE English Language (8700), Unit 1: Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What is the main purpose of a descriptive passage?

    • To give step-by-step instructions that the reader can follow to complete a task
    • To present a formal argument supported by evidence drawn from several sources
    • To build a vivid picture of a person, place or object for the reader
    • To move events forward at a fast and steady pace so the plot can reach its climax

  2. What does 'zoom technique' mean in descriptive writing?

    • Repeating the same noun in every line of the paragraph to build up a strong pattern
    • Shortening every sentence in the passage to a single word to speed up the rhythm
    • Using a camera lens to photograph the scene itself, with the lens set to close focus
    • Moving the focus from a wide view to a close detail, or the reverse

  3. Which feature creates a sense of pace in a narrative passage?

    • Long lists of adjectives with no verbs at all
    • Footnotes explaining each character in the scene
    • Short, rapid sentences built around action verbs
    • Numbered subheadings every few lines of text

  4. What is a flashback?

    • A scene that jumps ahead in time to show an event that has not yet happened
    • A passage in which the narrator apologises to the reader for the length of the story
    • A list of memories printed in a footnote at the end of the chapter for reference
    • A scene that interrupts the present to show earlier events

  5. What is a flash-forward?

    • A scene set inside a dream with no clear time
    • A scene that repeats the previous paragraph word for word
    • A scene that jumps ahead in time to show a future event
    • A scene told entirely in the present tense throughout

  6. Which sentence type is most likely to create a slow, reflective pace?

    • A fragment set out as a bullet point with no verb and no connecting words
    • A question printed in capital letters across the page for emphasis and drama
    • A long, complex sentence with several linked clauses
    • A single one-word command shouted at the reader in the middle of an action scene

  7. Which detail best uses the senses to describe a kitchen?

    • The kitchen had been decorated in the year it was built
    • The sharp smell of burnt toast hanging in the warm air
    • The kitchen had a table, four chairs and one sink
    • The kitchen was located on the second floor of the building

  8. A passage repeats the word 'grey' several times. What is the most likely effect?

    • It shows the writer has a limited vocabulary of colours and keeps returning to one
    • It makes the passage shorter and quicker to read through in a single sitting
    • It builds a bleak mood and reinforces the emptiness of the setting
    • It turns the passage into a rhyming poem with set verses and a regular metre

  9. What is a minor sentence?

    • A sentence that ends with an exclamation mark and includes a direct question
    • A sentence printed in a smaller font in the margin beside the main text
    • A sentence with more than three clauses joined by commas and linking words
    • A sentence without a main verb, used for emphasis or effect

  10. What does a narrative passage usually rely on most?

    • Statistical tables and numbered data sets that record the events in a single column
    • Long strings of abstract nouns with no action or movement anywhere in the paragraph
    • Verbs of action and sequencing words that show events happening in order
    • Headings and captions used to organise the sections of the text in a clear layout

  11. Which device is a list of three parallel items, often used in description?

    • A chiasmus that reverses a pair of phrases
    • A zeugma that links two different verbs
    • A pun that uses a single word with two meanings
    • A tricolon

  12. A narrative moves quickly through action, then slows to describe one moment in detail. What is the purpose of the slowing?

    • To signal that the passage is about to end abruptly with a sudden and final line
    • To heighten the significance of that moment and make the reader linger on it
    • To show the narrator has forgotten the earlier action and is trying to recall it
    • To make the passage fit a word limit more easily without losing any important detail

  13. Which judgement best evaluates a long descriptive passage in the middle of a fast-moving story?

    • It must always be cut because description is never useful in a narrative passage
    • It always improves a story by adding detail to every paragraph of the narrative
    • It can slow the action effectively, though too much may lose the reader's momentum
    • It makes the story non-fiction because description is factual rather than invented

  14. What does dialogue do in a narrative passage?

    • It reveals character and moves the story forward through speech
    • It replaces the need for any narrator in the story, so the speech tells everything
    • It lists facts that the reader must memorise for a later test on the whole text
    • It gives the time and date of each event in turn across the whole of the story

  15. Which example best shows a time shift used for dramatic effect?

    • A scene ends on a shock, then the next section opens three years later
    • A scene ends, and the next section repeats the same sentence word for word again
    • A scene describes the weather in a neutral and steady tone with no real change
    • A scene ends on a list of items with no verb in it, set out as a plain column

  16. Which feature of a descriptive passage is most likely to be analysed for effect?

    • The total number of paragraphs in the whole book, counted across all of its chapters
    • The page number printed at the foot of each page, which helps readers find their place
    • The publisher's address printed on the back cover of the paperback edition
    • Word choice, such as verbs and adjectives, that creates a particular mood

  17. Which technique gives direct access to a character's inner thoughts within a narrative?

    • Bullet points that summarise the plot for the reader at the end of each part
    • Numbered sections listing the dates of events through the whole story
    • Interior monologue, which shows the character's thoughts directly
    • Long lists of place names in chronological order across the whole journey

  18. Which detail shows a descriptive passage is using a simile?

    • A list of the nouns used in the paragraph above
    • A plain statement that it was early in the morning
    • The sky was like a bruise over the hills
    • A date written as a number at the top of the page

  19. What does a narrative time shift change?

    • The font size used in the printed text to mark a change of scene
    • The time frame of the story, moving the reader backward or forward
    • The form, changing from prose to verse at a point in the story
    • The narrator, changing from one person to another in the middle of the text

  20. A narrator describes the sound of a door creaking open. Which device imitates a sound in words?

    • Assonance repeating a long vowel sound in a phrase
    • Sibilance repeating the soft s sound across a line
    • Onomatopoeia, such as creak or hiss
    • Alliteration on the opening consonant of each word

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