Trinity ISE English Usage Practice — All Questions

This time next week, I ___ on a beach in Portugal. Which choice is correct?

• a.will lie
• b.will be lying✓
• c.have lain
• d.lie

'This time next week' points to an action in progress at a specific future moment, so the future continuous 'will be lying' is correct. The simple future 'will lie' does not stress the action in progress.

The bridge ___ in the nineteenth century and is still in use today. Which choice is correct?

• a.was built✓
• b.was building
• c.has built
• d.built

The bridge received the action, so the passive is needed, and a finished past time ('the nineteenth century') calls for the past simple: 'was built'. 'Has built' is active and present perfect.

I'd rather you ___ me before making such a big decision. Which choice is correct?

• a.had told✓
• b.tell
• c.would tell
• d.told

'I'd rather you' expressing a wish about the past is followed by the past perfect: 'had told'. This structure uses a past form to talk about something the speaker wishes had happened.

She's the most helpful person ___ I have ever worked with. Which choice is correct?

• a.which
• b.that✓
• c.what
• d.who

After a superlative like 'the most helpful person', the relative pronoun 'that' is the natural choice. 'What' is never a relative pronoun here, and 'which' is used for things.

Not only ___ the deadline, but she also improved the design. Which choice is correct?

• a.she met
• b.met she
• c.she did meet
• d.did she meet✓

When a sentence begins with 'Not only', the subject and auxiliary invert: 'did she meet'. This inversion is required after certain negative or limiting phrases at the start of a clause.