Want help from English native speakers—4 English questions!?

Question

Hello. I am an English teacher in China. I have a few questions just below, which are taken from the China National College Entrance Examination papers over the past years. As answers differ greatly, I particularly want some help form the English native speakers. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot
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1 I used to earn _______than a pound a week when I first started work.
A. a little B. a few C. fewer D. less

C or D? Why?

2 --It's thirty years since we last met.
--But I still remember the story, believe it or not, ______ we got lost on a rainy night.
A. which B. that C. what D. when

B or D? Why?

3 Don’t respond to any e-mails ______ personal information, no matter how official they look.
A．searching B．asking C．requesting D．questioning

B or C? Why?

4 I would like a job which pays more, but ______ I enjoy the work I’m doing at the moment.
A. in other words B. on the other hand C. for one thing D. as a matter of fact

B or D? Why?

Answer 1

1. D. Less: I'm pretty sure that less than is used in the instance only because "pound" is singular. If it was a set amount, say "six pounds", both could work.
2. D. When: It indicates a period of time "on a rainy night" therefore when would be used
3. C. requesting: for ask to be correct it would need to be followed by "for". Request works without "for"
4. B. on the other hand: because it shows an opposition in thoughts. To use D. you would have needed a supporting fact for the first part of the sentence.

Answer 2

1 I used to earn _less_than a pound a week when I first started work.
A. a little B. a few C. fewer D. less
Either C or D could technically be used but less sounds better to me.

2 --It's (been?) thirty years since we last met.
--But I still remember the story, believe it or not, ______ we got lost on a rainy night.
A. which B. that C. what D. when

I think that the question need reworded it doesn't sound right it would be better if it said "But believe it or not, I still remember the story about _____ we got lost on a rainy night." but that is just me i would have to say D would be more correct but the sentance has problems

3 Don’t respond to any e-mails ______ personal information, no matter how official they look.
A．searching B．asking C．requesting D．questioning
C would work best because asking would require you to put "for" after it otherwise it wouldn't work with the context of the sentance.

4 I would like a job which pays more, but ______ I enjoy the work I’m doing at the moment.
A. in other words B. on the other hand C. for one thing D. as a matter of fact
B because D would be used to retort someone like if they said "are you leaving?" --"As a matter of fact i am!"
on the other hand should be used because it shows that you are looking at pros and cons of your job.

Answer 3

Here are the correct answers and some explanations:
1. D - The answer is less because the question deals with monetary and/or mathematic value where "less and more" are used as opposed to few.
2. D - Choosing "that" would be referring to an object - "when" is a place in time which is appropriate to the time reference of the sentence's context.
3. C - "Requesting" is what someone does of you - they request information - you "ask" why they want it.
4. D - To state on the other hand you would need to use the phrase "on the one hand" first - then say "on the other hand." For example - On the one hand I would like a job which pays more, but on the other hand I enjoy the work I'm doing at the moment. Therefore, "as a matter of fact" is the best answer.

Answer 4

Unfortunately, the "rules" about speaking & the way english natives speak are NOT necessarily the same. Yes, 1) I use to earn Less (D) than a pound because there is only 1 pound and fewer is for multiples. But 2) Is probably That (B) we got lost by the "rules" however More person would probably say When (D) we got lost because the conversation relates to 30 years ago and an event . Use of 'that' suggests the story is concocted also, whereas the use of 'when' suggests the person is actually remembering the event. The statement itself is convoluted. 3) All could be used with adding minor prepositions like for but requesting (which means pretty much the same) can be used by itself , but they are quite interchangeable. 4) Because the person wants 2 things that are different, a job with more $$ than his current position but he likes his current work . . . B 'on the other hand' , implies that he is still undecided and weighing the pros & cons of his options. If one used D 'as a matter of fact' , it would imply that he has made the decision to stay and not go for a job with more $$ because enjoying his work is more important to him. This is another case where a speaker could use either B or D depending on the intent of their statement. congratulations, your english is far better than my chinese wo bu shwo jung hwo hwa !

Answer 5

1. D
2. D
3. C
4. B

Answer 6

1. D
2. D
3. C requesting is more formal, especially for the type of wording
4. B because "but" makes it sound like you are considering something else

Answer 7

1. is D

http://www.nutters.org/log/less-fewer

2. is D

3. is C

4. is B

The rest I just did by sound--I am an english major and honest don't know WHY, just that its correct :( So sorry

Hope this helps a little