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JAMB UTME Syllabus

Use of English Syllabus

Covers comprehension and summary, lexis and structure, and oral forms, with emphasis on reading passages, grammar and vocabulary, and pronunciation.

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Source: Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) — Integrated Brochure & Syllabus System (IBASS). Official document at ibass.jamb.gov.ng · Download PDF.

Structure of the Examination

SECTION A: Comprehension and Summary

  • 1 comprehension passage — 5 questions
  • 1 summary passage — 5 questions
  • 1 cloze passage — 10 questions
  • 1 reading text — 5 questions

SECTION B: Lexis and Structure

  • Sentence interpretation — 5 questions
  • Antonyms — 5 questions
  • Synonyms — 5 questions
  • Basic Grammar — 10 questions

SECTION C: Oral Forms

  • Vowels — 2 questions
  • Consonants — 2 questions
  • Rhymes — 2 questions
  • Word Stress — 2 questions
  • Emphatic Stress — 2 questions

Use of English

Comprehension and Summary

  • •description
  • •narration
  • •exposition
  • •argumentation/persuasion
  • •Each of the three passages to be set (one will be a cloze test) should reflect various disciplines and be about 200 words long
  • •Questions on the passages will test: comprehension of the whole or part of each passage; comprehension of words, phrases, clauses, sentences, figures of speech and idioms as used in the passages; coherence and logical reasoning (deductions, inferences, etc.); approved reading text; synthesis of ideas from the passages

Objectives — candidates should be able to:

  • ✓identify main points/topic sentences in passages
  • ✓determine implied meanings
  • ✓identify the grammatical functions of words, phrases, clauses and figurative/idiomatic expressions
  • ✓deduce or infer the writers’ intentions including mood, attitude to the subject matter and opinion
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Lexis and Structure

  • •synonyms
  • •antonyms
  • •clause and sentence patterns
  • •word classes and their functions
  • •mood, tense, aspect, number, agreement/concord, degree (positive, comparative and superlative) and question tags
  • •mechanics
  • •ordinary usage, figurative usage and idiomatic usage
  • •Idioms to be tested are those that are formal and expressed in Standard British English (SBE)

Objectives — candidates should be able to:

  • ✓identify words and expressions in their ordinary, figurative and idiomatic contexts
  • ✓determine similar and opposite meanings of words
  • ✓differentiate between correct and incorrect spellings
  • ✓identify various grammatical patterns in use
  • ✓interpret information conveyed in sentences
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Oral Forms

  • •Vowels (monothongs, diphthongs and triphthongs)
  • •Consonants (including clusters)
  • •Rhymes (including homophones)
  • •Word stress (monosyllabic and polysyllabic)
  • •Emphatic stress (in connected speech)
  • •Emphatic stress involves the placement of stress on words in an utterance for the purpose of emphasis

Objectives — candidates should be able to:

  • ✓make distinctions among vowel types
  • ✓differentiate among consonant types
  • ✓identify correct pronunciation of individual words and articulation of connected speech
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