JAMB UTME - Use of English - 2025

According to the novel, the Ikogosi Warm Springs was discovered in 1852. The Ikogosi Warm Springs, located in Ikogosi, Ekiti State, Nigeria, is a remarkable natural phenomenon where warm and cold springs meet and flow side by side without mixing.

This detail appears in the novel during discussions about Nigerian natural heritage and tourist destinations. The Ikogosi Warm Springs is one of Nigeria's notable natural attractions, and its mention in the novel contributes to the broader narrative theme of appreciating Nigeria's unique natural and cultural resources. By embedding such factual details about Nigerian landmarks, the author enriches the educational dimension of the story and reinforces the argument that Nigeria has much to offer its citizens beyond the economic opportunities that drive emigration.

In The Lekki Headmaster, the banner displayed at Bepo's send-off event bears the inscription "For He Gave Stardom His Very Best." This message acknowledges and celebrates Bepo's years of dedicated service to Stardom Schools.

The inscription is significant because it reflects the genuine respect and appreciation that Bepo's colleagues and students have for him, despite the many frustrations and challenges he faced at the institution. The wording recognises that Bepo gave his best efforts to the school - his teaching, his leadership, his care for students - even when the school's management did not always reciprocate with fair treatment or adequate compensation.

The other inscriptions offered - "A Principal Like No Other," "Goodbye to our Mentor," and "We Will Miss You, Mr Bepo!" - are plausible sentiments for a farewell event, but they are not the specific words the novel places on the send-off banner. The chosen inscription is particularly fitting because it frames the farewell in terms of Bepo's contribution rather than just the sadness of his departure.

In The Lekki Headmaster, the passport office that Bepo plans to visit in Ibadan to renew his passport is the Agodi-Gate Passport Office. Bepo chooses to travel to Ibadan specifically to avoid the long queues and bureaucratic delays at the Lagos passport offices, and Agodi-Gate is the location of the Nigeria Immigration Service office in Ibadan where passport services are provided.

Agodi-Gate is a well-known area in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State. The Nigeria Immigration Service maintains passport offices in various cities across the country, and the Ibadan office at Agodi-Gate is the one the novel identifies as Bepo's destination.

The other names - Mokola Passport Centre, Dugbe Immigration Office, and Bodija Passport Centre - are not the passport office identified in the novel. While Mokola, Dugbe, and Bodija are all real areas within Ibadan, the novel specifically names the Agodi-Gate location as where Bepo intends to process his passport renewal.

A simile is a figure of speech that makes an explicit comparison between two unlike things using the words "like" or "as." In the expression "He brought his palms together like a supplicant," the character's gesture of pressing his palms together is compared to that of a supplicant - a person who humbly and earnestly begs or prays for something.

The word "like" is the marker that identifies this as a simile. The comparison creates a clear visual image: the reader can picture someone bringing their hands together in a gesture of pleading or prayer. A supplicant typically presses their palms together and may bow or kneel, conveying desperation, humility, or sincere appeal.

This is not hyperbole because the description does not exaggerate. It is not irony because there is no contradiction between what is said and what is meant. It is not euphemism because the expression does not substitute a mild term for something harsh. The presence of the comparison word "like" makes this a straightforward example of simile.

For examinations, always look for "like" or "as" to distinguish a simile from a metaphor. If the comparison is direct (without "like" or "as"), it is a metaphor.

This cloze test question requires selecting the word that correctly fills gap 7. The passage discusses the United Nations Security Council and its responsibilities. The standard phrase used in the UN Charter to describe the Council's core mandate is the maintenance of international peace and security.

The correct word is peace. "International peace and security" is a fixed collocation drawn directly from Article 1 of the UN Charter, which states that one of the purposes of the United Nations is to maintain international peace and security. The subsequent gap (gap 8) is filled by "security" to complete this well-known phrase.

The other options do not form the correct collocation:

• "International relation" (singular) is grammatically awkward and not the standard phrase.
• "International affairs" is a valid collocation in general English but does not match the specific UN Charter language about the Security Council's mandate.
• "International relationship" is not the standard diplomatic or legal term used in this context.

This question tests the student's recall of the etymology of the name "Badagry" as presented in the novel.

According to the novel, the name "Badagry" was derived from "Agbadarigi." This is the local historical account of how the town got its name. Over time, the original name "Agbadarigi" was corrupted or anglicised into the shorter and more widely recognised form "Badagry."

Badagry is a historically significant town in Lagos State, known for its role in the transatlantic slave trade, and the students visit it as part of their excursion to learn about Nigerian and African history. The name was not derived from a river, a European explorer, or a nearby slave market. The novel specifically traces the origin to the indigenous name "Agbadarigi."

The novel uses the term Japa Syndrome to discuss the effects of migration. "Japa" is a Yoruba word meaning "to run" or "to flee," and in contemporary Nigerian usage, it refers to the mass emigration of Nigerians, especially skilled professionals, to countries perceived to offer better opportunities.

By framing the migration phenomenon as the Japa Syndrome, the novel situates Bepo's personal dilemma within a wider national crisis. The term implies not just movement but urgency and desperation, capturing the sense that professionals feel compelled to leave rather than choosing freely. The novel explores how this syndrome affects institutions like schools, families, and communities, showing that when individuals like Bepo consider leaving, the consequences ripple outward far beyond the individual. The use of a distinctly Nigerian term also grounds the discussion in local context rather than treating migration as an abstract global issue.

In The Lekki Headmaster, the statement "It's like hanging a snake in the roof and going to bed" is a vivid proverb used to describe the danger of ignoring a known threat. A snake hanging in the roof poses an immediate risk to anyone sleeping below, so going to bed without dealing with it would be reckless.

This statement is made by the Chairman during a discussion about a pressing issue. The Chairman uses this proverbial language to convey urgency and to argue that the matter at hand cannot be left unresolved. The use of proverbs and figurative language is characteristic of dialogue among senior figures in the novel, and this particular statement reflects the Chairman's concern and authority in pressing for action.

According to The Lekki Headmaster, the Gurara Waterfall was discovered in 1745. This detail comes up during one of the educational excursions or classroom discussions in the novel, where historical and geographical facts about Nigeria are shared with the students.

The Gurara Waterfall is a real landmark located in Niger State, Nigeria. It is one of the largest waterfalls in the country and has historical significance as a natural wonder that has been known to local communities for centuries. The novel uses this factual detail as part of its broader engagement with Nigerian heritage and geography, which is consistent with Bepo's teaching philosophy of connecting students with their country's history and natural landmarks.

The other years offered - 1845, 1925, and 1625 - are not the date the novel associates with the discovery of the Gurara Waterfall.

This question tests vocabulary comprehension within the context of the passage. The word roforofos is a Nigerian Pidgin English expression, and the question asks what it means based on how Mr Audu uses it when discussing Mr Bepo.

In Nigerian Pidgin, roforofo refers to petty disagreements and conflicts - minor, often messy quarrels or squabbles that are typically undignified or trivial in nature. The word carries a connotation of messiness and pettiness, suggesting disputes that are more irritating than consequential. When Mr Audu uses this term in relation to Mr Bepo, he is referring to the small-scale conflicts and disagreements that Mr Bepo has encountered or been involved in.

The word does not mean friendly greetings, school projects, or mismanagement issues. Understanding its meaning requires either prior familiarity with Nigerian Pidgin or the ability to infer meaning from the context in which Mr Audu uses it in the passage. The use of Pidgin vocabulary in the novel reflects the everyday language of the Nigerian setting in which the story takes place.

This can be page 12 of the novel where it is revealed that Bepo, amongst other things, has thought of establishing his own school after having garnered a lot of experience in teaching and school management. His only fear was if he would have enough money to "float a standard school, given the taste he had already imbibed at Stardom." 

He had initially built a school - "Fruitful Future" but it had crumbled due to socio-economic challenges in the location. 

This question tests the ability to identify mood and atmosphere in a narrative. Mood refers to the emotional atmosphere that a writer creates in a scene, shaped by word choice, setting, pacing, and the behaviour of characters.

At the beginning of the story, when the principal walks to the podium, the mood is tense and uncertain. The way the scene is set up conveys a sense of apprehension among the audience - students and staff do not know what the principal is about to announce or how it will affect them. This unease establishes early dramatic tension in the narrative and draws readers into the story by creating an atmosphere of anticipation.

The mood is not joyful or uplifting because there is no celebration. It is not calm and indifferent because the scene conveys emotional engagement from the audience. It is not merely hopeful and eager because the dominant note is anxiety rather than optimism.

The sentence "The teacher asked the students to submit their assignments before the end of ______ week" describes a teacher setting a deadline for assignment submission. The blank requires a determiner that specifies which week the teacher means.

The correct answer is next. "Before the end of next week" establishes a definite, upcoming deadline that students can work toward. Since the teacher is giving an instruction about future action (submitting assignments), a forward-looking time reference is needed.

The other options do not fit:

• "Last" refers to the previous week, making the deadline already past. A teacher cannot instruct students to submit work before a deadline that has already expired.
• "Any" is too vague and indefinite to serve as a meaningful deadline. A submission instruction requires a specific timeframe.
• "These" is a plural demonstrative pronoun and does not agree with the singular noun "week." The correct singular form would be "this," but that is not among the options.

Arduous means requiring a great deal of effort, endurance, or stamina; extremely difficult and tiring. The sentence acknowledges that parenting is demanding despite being enjoyable.

The word nearest in meaning is strenuous, which means requiring or involving great exertion or effort. Both arduous and strenuous emphasise the demanding, physically or mentally exhausting nature of an activity.

The other options are close but not the best fit:

• troublesome means causing difficulty or annoyance; it focuses on problems caused rather than effort required.
• hectic means full of frantic activity and rushed pace; it describes a busy tempo rather than the difficulty of a task.
• severe means strict, harsh, or intense; it does not capture the sense of requiring sustained effort that arduous conveys.

Strenuous is the closest synonym because, like arduous, it specifically describes something that demands sustained physical or mental effort.

The board decides that staff loans from the cooperative cannot exceed N250,000. This cap is introduced as a safeguard after the board discovers the cooperative's large fund and the risks associated with unlimited lending. By setting a maximum loan amount, the board aims to prevent any single staff member from taking on an excessively large debt that they might fail to repay, as happened with Mr. Nku's N2 million loan.

In addition to the loan cap, the board also requires that all loan requests be approved by the MD and that management be informed about the cooperative's elections. These measures collectively tighten oversight of the cooperative's operations and reduce the financial risk to both the school and its staff members.

The other options do not accurately reflect the board's decision. The board did not ban loans entirely, nor did it require staff union approval for loans, nor did it order the cooperative to stop lending immediately. The approach was to impose a reasonable limit of N250,000 rather than to shut down the cooperative's lending function altogether.

Mr Egi Meko is the founder of Beesway Group of School, the school that Mr Bepo worked in before he came to Stardom. He was the one who laughed off Bepo's correction of the phrase "Group of School" and refused to change the school's name. This can be found on page 34 of the novel. 

This question tests comprehension of a supporting character's experience in the novel. Akindele is an older Nigerian migrant who had moved to the United States. According to the text, when he first arrived in the US, he worked in freight loading.

Freight loading is a physically demanding, low-skilled job that involves loading and unloading goods at warehouses, docks, or distribution centres. The fact that Akindele - presumably an educated Nigerian professional - had to take on this kind of work upon arrival illustrates a harsh reality of the immigrant experience: qualifications earned in one country are not always recognised or valued in another.

This detail serves the novel's broader theme of brain drain and its consequences. It shows that migration does not automatically lead to professional advancement and that many Nigerian migrants must accept work far below their qualifications, at least initially. The contrast between what Akindele was trained to do in Nigeria and what he had to do in America underscores the personal cost of the diaspora experience.

Odious means extremely unpleasant, hateful, or deserving of strong dislike. Something described as odious provokes feelings of disgust or revulsion.

The word nearest in meaning is horrible, which means causing or likely to cause horror; extremely unpleasant. Both odious and horrible describe things that provoke strong negative reactions.

The other options do not match:

• great means excellent or impressive - the opposite of odious.
• strange means unusual or unexpected; something can be strange without being hateful or repulsive.
• pleasant means giving a sense of happy satisfaction - again, the opposite of odious.

The central physical setting of The Lekki Headmaster is Stardom Schools, Lagos. This is the school where Mr Bepo serves as headmaster and where the majority of the novel's action takes place. Located in the Lekki area of Lagos, Stardom Schools is the hub of daily interactions among staff and students, the site of major events like assemblies, excursions, and the send-off, and the institution whose fate hangs in the balance as Bepo contemplates emigration.

While the novel features other locations, including Badagry, Bauchi (Yankari Games Reserve), and the airport, these are secondary settings visited during specific episodes. Stardom Schools remains the constant backdrop throughout the narrative. The school is more than a physical location; it represents Bepo's life work, the community he has fostered, and the tangible contribution he has made to Nigerian education. As the central setting, it anchors the novel's themes and gives the reader a concrete sense of what is at stake in Bepo's migration decision.

Astonishing means extremely surprising or impressive; causing great wonder. When something astonishes you, it takes you by surprise in a remarkable way.

The word nearest in meaning is amazing, which means causing great surprise or wonder. Both astonishing and amazing describe something that produces a strong reaction of surprise and admiration. "The scientist made an amazing discovery" carries the same meaning as the original sentence.

The other options express the opposite idea:

• common means occurring frequently or being ordinary - something common would not cause astonishment.
• expected means anticipated or predicted - something expected is by definition not surprising.
• ordinary means with no special or distinctive features - the opposite of remarkable or astonishing.

The founder, Chief Aje, hired Bepo personally after a one-on-one discussion, unlike many others who faced the school's interview panels. This can be found on page 56 of the novel. 

Bepo, the protagonist and principal of Stardom Schools, lives at Adeniyi Jones, Ikeja, Lagos. Ikeja is a major commercial and residential area on the mainland of Lagos, and Adeniyi Jones is a well-known street and neighbourhood within Ikeja. This setting places Bepo in a middle-class Lagos neighbourhood, consistent with his status as a school principal.

The novel uses real Lagos locations to ground its story in a recognisable urban landscape. Adeniyi Jones, Ikeja, is distinct from the other options provided. Oniru on Victoria Island and Obalende near Ikoyi are both on Lagos Island, while Yaba is a separate mainland neighbourhood. The novel specifically identifies Bepo's residence as being in the Adeniyi Jones area of Ikeja.

The predominant theme of The Lekki Headmaster is migration and identity. The entire novel is structured around Mr Bepo's personal struggle with the decision to emigrate and the broader social phenomenon of Nigerian professionals leaving the country, a trend popularly called the Japa Syndrome.

The novel examines how migration is not simply a physical relocation but a fundamental question of identity. Bepo must confront who he is: an educator rooted in Nigerian soil, or a man who can reinvent himself abroad. The theme extends beyond the protagonist to encompass his wife's aspirations, his colleagues' reactions, and the impact on the students and school community. Through these multiple perspectives, the novel presents migration and identity as interconnected concerns, showing how the decision to leave reshapes not only the migrant's sense of self but also the community left behind.

Personification is a figure of speech that attributes human characteristics, actions, or qualities to non-human things. In the expression "a rock carrying three other rocks on its head," the rock is described as though it were a person: it "carries" objects and has a "head." Rocks are inanimate geological formations that do not possess heads and cannot carry things in the way people do.

This description draws on the distinctive granite formations of Jos, in Nigeria's Plateau State, where large boulders naturally rest atop one another in seemingly impossible configurations. By describing these formations using human imagery, the writer brings the landscape to life and makes the scene vivid and engaging for the reader.

This is not a simile because no comparison is made using "like" or "as." It is not hyperbole because the description does not exaggerate - the rock formations in Jos genuinely do sit atop one another. It is not irony because there is no contradiction between what is said and what is meant.

The protagonist of The Lekki Headmaster is Mr Adewale Adebepo, commonly referred to as Mr Bepo throughout the novel. He is the headmaster of Stardom Schools in Lekki, Lagos, and the entire narrative revolves around his experiences, professional life, and the personal dilemma he faces regarding migration to the United Kingdom.

Bepo is portrayed as a dedicated, passionate educator who has invested years of effort into building Stardom Schools into a reputable institution. His character embodies the tension between professional fulfilment at home and the allure of opportunities abroad. The novel follows his journey as he navigates this internal conflict while managing the daily realities of running a school, mentoring students, and maintaining relationships with colleagues and family.

The word grammarian has four syllables: gram-MA-ri-an. The primary stress falls on the second syllable: /ɡrəˈmeəriən/.

This follows the common English stress rule for words ending in the suffix "-arian" (like "librarian," "vegetarian," "humanitarian"). In these words, the stress typically falls on the syllable immediately before "-arian" - but since "-arian" itself starts with a stressed syllable in some patterns, the result for "grammarian" is stress on "-MA-."

Stressing the first syllable (GRAmmarian), the third (grammaRIan), or the fourth (grammariAN) would produce unnatural pronunciations that do not match standard English.

The correct stress pattern is graMMArian.

This question tests the use of inversion with negative adverbs. When an adverb with a negative or restrictive meaning (such as scarcely, hardly, no sooner, seldom, rarely) begins a sentence, the subject and auxiliary verb are inverted.

The correlative pattern for scarcely is: Scarcely had + subject + past participle ... when ...

The sentence describes two completed past actions - entering the room and the phone ringing - where one happened immediately before the other. This calls for the past perfect tense (with had) in the scarcely clause, because the past perfect marks the earlier of two past events.

The correct sentence reads: "Scarcely had she entered the room when the phone rang."

The other options fail:

• did would require the base form of the verb ("Scarcely did she enter"), which mismatches the past participle "entered" already present in the sentence.
• has uses the present perfect, but both events are clearly in the past.
• does uses the simple present, which is wrong for narrating completed past events.

Remember: Scarcely...when and Hardly...when always take had + past participle, while No sooner...than follows the same pattern.

Chief Ogba, Tosh's father, demanded that Banky and his parents write separate letters of apology to both him and his son. He also insisted that the letters be published in the school magazine. This was after Banky had called Tosh "the son of an ex-convict" during his speech for the position of Social prefect. This can be found on page 43 of the novel.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Stardom Schools recited the second stanza of the national anthem: "Oh God of creation, direct our noble cause..." This can be found on page 6 of the novel.

During the prefect election speech at Stardom Schools, the conflict erupted because Banky insulted Tosh's father. This personal attack during what should have been a formal school event escalated tensions between the two students and led to a confrontation that disrupted the election process.

Banky's decision to target Tosh's father rather than focusing on his own qualifications for the prefect position reveals the depth of personal animosity among the students. The incident demonstrates how rivalries and personal grudges can spill over into public events, and it gives the school administration, particularly Bepo, a disciplinary situation to manage. The episode also highlights the responsibilities that come with leadership positions and the importance of maintaining respect and decorum during competitive processes, a lesson that resonates with the novel's broader themes of leadership and integrity.

This question tests question tags. A question tag is a short question added to the end of a statement to seek confirmation. The rule is: the tag must use the same auxiliary verb as the main clause, and if the statement is positive, the tag must be negative (and vice versa).

The main clause is "It had been raining before the party started." The auxiliary verb here is had (part of the past perfect continuous: had been raining). Since the statement is positive, the tag must be negative: hadn't it?

The other options use the wrong auxiliary:

• isn't it? uses the present tense of "to be," which does not match the past perfect.
• wasn't it? uses the simple past of "to be," which would match a statement like "It was raining" but not "It had been raining."
• hasn't it? uses the present perfect auxiliary, which would match "It has been raining" but not the past perfect.

Always identify the auxiliary verb in the main clause first, then form the tag from the same auxiliary in the opposite polarity.

Bepo recalled the story as an example of culture shock for Nigerian teachers abroad. This can be found on page 13 of the novel where Bepo notes that he recalls reading the story of a Nigerian teacher who got settled the first day he walked into a class in a UK school and one of the students asked: "Are you an idiot?". Bepo, however, believes this is an isolated incident, if at all it is true, and should not deter him from relocating abroad to reunite with his family. 

Two words rhyme when they share the same vowel and final consonant sounds. Cat is pronounced /kæt/, so the rhyming word must end with /æt/.

Consider each option:

• call - pronounced /kɔːl/. Different vowel (/ɔː/) and different final consonant (/l/).
• bat - pronounced /bæt/. It ends with /æt/, matching "cat" perfectly.
• back - pronounced /bæk/. The vowel /æ/ matches, but the final consonant is /k/ instead of /t/.
• cut - pronounced /kʌt/. The final consonant /t/ matches, but the vowel is /ʌ/, not /æ/.

The correct answer is bat, because /bæt/ and /kæt/ share the identical ending /æt/.

The expression "a load of crap" is an informal idiom meaning something is nonsensical, worthless, or of extremely poor quality. When the students felt the lecture was "a load of crap," they judged its content to be foolish and without value.

The closest option is that the students thought the lecture was stupid - meaning they found its content to be of no intellectual worth.

Believing the lecture was "too long" addresses duration, not quality. Refusing to listen or not attending the lecture describes actions the students might take, but the idiom specifically expresses their opinion about the quality of the lecture's content, not what they did in response.

The sentence "Each of the answers ______ correct" tests subject-verb agreement with the indefinite pronoun "each." The word each is always grammatically singular, regardless of the plural noun that follows it in the prepositional phrase "of the answers."

Because "each" is singular, it requires the singular verb is. The correct sentence reads: "Each of the answers is correct."

"Are" and "were" are plural verb forms that would agree with "answers" but not with "each," which is the true subject. "Have been" is also plural. A common mistake is to let the plural noun nearest to the verb ("answers") influence the verb choice, but the grammatical subject is "each," and it governs the verb.

Other singular indefinite pronouns that follow the same rule include: every, everyone, everybody, everything, either, neither, nobody, no one, someone, anybody.

This question tests comprehension of a descriptive reference in Ikenna's speech. Jos, the capital of Plateau State in central Nigeria, is described as "acrobatic" because of its terrain and rock formations. The Jos Plateau is famous for its dramatic landscape of large granite boulders and inselbergs - massive rock formations that sit atop one another in precarious, gravity-defying arrangements that look as though they might topple at any moment.

The word "acrobatic" is used figuratively to capture the way these rocks appear to balance on each other in extraordinary positions, much like an acrobat performing a daring physical feat. This vivid description brings the landscape of Jos to life for the audience and highlights the natural beauty of the region.

The other options are not supported by the text. The description is not about native dancers, circus tricks, or student rock climbing - it is a characterisation of the physical geography of Jos itself.

Two words rhyme when they share the same vowel and final consonant sounds from the stressed vowel onward. Home is pronounced /hoʊm/, so a rhyming word must end with the sound /oʊm/.

Consider each option:

• come - pronounced /kʌm/. The vowel is /ʌ/, not /oʊ/, so it does not rhyme despite the similar spelling.
• groan - pronounced /groʊn/. It shares the /oʊ/ vowel but ends in /n/, not /m/.
• comb - pronounced /koʊm/. The "b" is silent, and the word ends with /oʊm/, which matches "home" exactly.
• horn - pronounced /hɔːn/. Different vowel and different final consonant.

The correct answer is comb, because /koʊm/ and /hoʊm/ share the same ending sound /oʊm/.

Exam tip: English spelling is often misleading for rhyme questions. Always compare the sounds of the words, not their spellings. "Come" looks like it should rhyme with "home" but does not, while "comb" (with its silent "b") does.

"Foot-dragging" is an idiomatic expression that means deliberately delaying action or being slow and reluctant to do something that needs to be done. It comes from the image of someone literally dragging their feet while walking, moving as slowly as possible because they do not want to reach their destination.

In the sentence, the character's foot-dragging "pushed his marriage to the brink." This means his reluctance to act promptly on an important matter caused so much damage that his marriage was nearly destroyed. The context makes it clear that the delay was harmful, not thoughtful or productive.

The other options are the opposite of what the idiom means:

• "Quick decision making" is the direct opposite of foot-dragging.
• "Unnecessary excitement" has no connection to delay or reluctance.
• "Thoughtful consideration" might sound similar to taking one's time, but foot-dragging implies unhelpful stalling, not careful reflection. The negative consequence (pushing marriage to the brink) confirms that this was irresponsible delay, not wise caution.

Mrs. Ladele was watching a movie where she was captivated by an "imminent bubble burst." Unknown to the doctor in the film, the doctor's husband was responsible for the pregnancy of the doctor's best friend. Mrs. Ladele was watching this painful truth unfold when she heard Bibi's scream. This can be found on page 22 of the novel.

In this context, "members" refers to the individual seats/countries. "Members" (plural) is grammatically correct following the number fifteen.

In the novel, Mr Bepo's wife is deeply attached to her Nigerian culinary heritage and insists that he pack traditional food items for his trip to the UK. She specifically demands that he take locust beans (iru), egusi (melon seeds), ground crayfish, and dry snail. These are staple ingredients in Nigerian cooking and are not easily obtained abroad.

This detail serves a thematic purpose beyond mere domestic comedy. It reflects the cultural ties that Nigerian migrants carry with them and the anxiety of leaving behind familiar tastes and traditions. Bepo's wife, by insisting on these items, symbolises the desire to preserve Nigerian identity even in a foreign land. This moment also illustrates the practical, everyday dimension of migration that the novel explores alongside its larger social and emotional themes.

This comprehension question asks about the specific concern that makes Mr Bepo cautious about entering the commercial transportation business, another entrepreneurial idea he considers alongside his teaching career.

The factor that makes Mr Bepo cautious is the problem of untrustworthy commercial drivers. In the Nigerian commercial transport sector, vehicle owners who are not drivers themselves must hire drivers to operate their vehicles. Mr Bepo is aware that such drivers can be unreliable - they may mismanage fares, damage vehicles, engage in reckless driving, or even abscond with the vehicle altogether. This well-known risk in the Nigerian transport industry gives him pause about investing in the business.

His hesitation is not due to a lack of startup capital, high operational costs, or a lack of interest in the sector. He has considered the business seriously enough to identify the specific risk that concerns him most: the difficulty of finding and retaining honest and dependable drivers. This practical awareness adds to the portrait of Mr Bepo as a thoughtful, risk-conscious individual.

According to the novel, Owu waterfalls in Kwara is the highest in West Africa, measuring 120 meters above water level and cascading 330 feet down an escarpment. This can be found on page 44 of the novel. 

The expression "it is high time" is a fixed English idiom that signals an action is overdue and should have happened already. Grammatically, it demands the past simple tense (subjunctive mood) in the clause that follows, even though the meaning refers to the present or future.

The correct sentence is: "It is high time you stopped visiting that friend of yours."

This use of the past tense after "it is high time" is an example of the English subjunctive, where the past form expresses an unreal or hypothetical situation rather than actual past time. The speaker means "you should stop now" or "you ought to have stopped already," but the grammar requires the past form.

"Should stop," "stop," and "must stop" might seem logical based on meaning, but they do not follow the grammatical rule for this particular construction. Similar expressions that take the past subjunctive include "it is about time" and "if only" (e.g., "If only I knew").

This question requires the student to make an inference about the character Tai based on evidence from the novel.

From the events described in the novel, it can be inferred that Tai is a middleman who exploits passport applicants. He positions himself at or near the immigration office, intercepts applicants like Mr Bepo, and charges them inflated fees far above the official government rate. He profits from the desperation and confusion of people who are unfamiliar with the process or who have been frustrated by the bureaucratic obstacles.

Tai is not a legitimate immigration officer since he does not hold an official position. He is not an honest businessman because his dealings involve deception and exploitation. He is also not unaware of the actual renewal process; on the contrary, he knows the system intimately and uses that knowledge to extract money from applicants. The phrase "in cahoots," used elsewhere in the novel, further confirms that Tai works in secret collaboration with immigration staff to exploit the system.

This question tests comprehension of the events leading to the closure of the school that Bepo founded after leaving Beesway.

After departing from Beesway Group of School, Bepo took the initiative to start his own school. However, the school could not sustain itself and eventually closed. The reason for the closure was poor road conditions in the neighbourhood where the school was located. The bad roads made it difficult for parents to bring their children to school regularly and discouraged prospective families from enrolling, leading to a decline in attendance and ultimately forcing the school to shut down.

The closure was not caused by parental dissatisfaction with the curriculum, a failed spiritual ritual, or mismanagement of funds. It was an infrastructure challenge beyond Bepo's control, highlighting how environmental and logistical factors can undermine even well-intentioned educational initiatives in Nigeria.

Meticulous means showing great attention to detail; very careful and precise. A meticulous experiment is one conducted with painstaking accuracy and thoroughness.

The word opposite in meaning is careless, which means not giving sufficient attention or thought to avoiding harm or errors. A careless experiment would be one conducted without proper attention to detail - the direct opposite of a meticulous one.

The other options are synonyms of meticulous, not antonyms:

• detailed means involving many carefully considered parts - similar to meticulous.
• thorough means complete with regard to every detail - similar to meticulous.
• careful means making sure to avoid potential problems or dangers; giving close attention - essentially the same as meticulous.

This question requires recognising that three of the four options actually share the meaning of the italicised word, while only one is its opposite.

Although Mr Fafore lives quite far away, he always prepares his day so that he arrives very early. He wakes up as early as 4:00 am and sets out for school at 4:30 am. He would get to the school premises around 6:00 am, rest his head on his desk and snooze for about an hour before his colleagues arrived. This can be found on page 30 of the novel. 

The guidance counsellor accompanied Mr Bepo home on the day of the crying incident, as instructed by the MD. This can be found on page 9 of the novel.

Two words rhyme when they share the same vowel and final consonant sounds from the stressed vowel onward. Time is pronounced /taɪm/, so the rhyming word must end with the sound /aɪm/.

Consider each option:

• lime - pronounced /laɪm/. It ends with /aɪm/, which is exactly the same ending as "time."
• nine - pronounced /naɪn/. Although the vowel /aɪ/ matches, the final consonant is /n/, not /m/.
• mine - pronounced /maɪn/. Same situation as "nine": correct vowel but final /n/ instead of /m/.
• mind - pronounced /maɪnd/. Ends in /nd/, which does not match /m/.

The correct answer is lime, because /laɪm/ and /taɪm/ share the identical ending /aɪm/.

A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes an implied comparison between two unlike things without using the words "like" or "as." In the expression "under the world of tears," sadness and sorrow are described as constituting an entire "world." The subject is placed "under" this world, suggesting being overwhelmed, submerged, or engulfed by grief.

This is not a simile because there is no explicit comparison using "like" or "as." It is not personification because no human qualities are attributed to a non-human entity. It is not euphemism, which involves substituting a mild or indirect term for something considered harsh or blunt. Rather than softening the expression, this metaphor intensifies the emotional weight by transforming sadness into an all-encompassing world that presses down on the subject.

For examinations, remember that metaphors identify one thing as another or place it within an imagined context, while similes make the comparison explicit with "like" or "as."

The passage explicitly states, "One of the first things that a child notices is how noisy many kinds of birds are".

Bepo's statement uses a metaphorical contrast between height and eyes. "Beating my height" refers to surpassing him in some physical or external way, while "can't beat my eyes" refers to the impossibility of escaping his watchful gaze and observation.

The underlying message is one of vigilance: even if someone manages to outdo Bepo in certain respects, they cannot deceive him because he sees everything. His "eyes" symbolise his sharp awareness and ability to detect dishonesty or misconduct. He is warning that any attempt at cheating or deception will be caught, because he is always watching.

This makes the correct interpretation that no act of cheating will go uncaught. The other options misread the metaphor: the statement is not about physical strength, the importance of height, or competitive spirit. It is specifically about surveillance and the certainty of being observed.

This question asks about a specific factual detail from the novel concerning the school election at Stardom.

According to the novel, the cost of the form for the position of Head Boy or Head Girl in the school election at Stardom was N50,000. This amount was charged to students who wished to contest for the leadership positions, reflecting the commercialised nature of certain school processes depicted in the story.

The other amounts mentioned are not consistent with what the novel states. The correct figure is N50,000, which the author uses to comment on how even student leadership positions in some schools come with financial barriers that may exclude capable students from less privileged backgrounds.

This question tests the student's recall of which Nigerian festivals the students attended during their excursions in the novel.

According to the novel, the students attended the Calabar Carnival, the Osun Oshogbo Festival, and the Argungu Festival. These three festivals are among the most prominent cultural celebrations in Nigeria: the Calabar Carnival is a major annual event in Cross River State, the Osun Oshogbo Festival is a UNESCO-recognised cultural celebration in Osun State, and the Argungu Festival is a famous fishing and cultural festival in Kebbi State.

The Abuja Carnival is not mentioned among the festivals the students attended. The correct combination is therefore the first three festivals only (Calabar Carnival, Osun Oshogbo Festival, and Argungu Festival), not all four.

The key phrase in this sentence is "as though", which functions exactly like "as if" or "like" to introduce a comparison between two different things. He is compared to someone who had just returned from a dreamy wonderland, but he has not literally been to such a place.

This is a simile. A simile is a figure of speech that makes an explicit comparison between two unlike things using comparison words such as "like", "as", "as if", or "as though". Here, the way the character looks at the ceiling and at faces is compared to the dazed, absent-minded manner of someone returning from a fantasy world.

The other figures of speech do not apply here:

• Personification gives human qualities to non-human things. Nothing non-human is being personified.
• Irony involves a contrast between expectation and reality, or saying the opposite of what is meant. There is no such contrast here.
• Metaphor states that one thing is another without using comparison words. Because "as though" is used, this is a simile rather than a metaphor.

The presence of "as though" is the definitive marker that identifies this as a simile.

In The Lekki Headmaster, Bepo collects electricity tariff money from his fellow tenants in the compound, as he is responsible for gathering the contributions to pay the electricity bill. However, he ends up spending this money on his own needs because he is out of a job and has no savings.

At this point in the novel, Bepo has lost his teaching position and is financially desperate. With no income and no reserves to fall back on, he uses the collected electricity money to survive. This act of desperation - spending money that belongs collectively to his neighbours - leads to serious consequences and public humiliation within the compound.

The other options do not match the novel's account. The money was not spent on school fees, medical expenses, or lost through carelessness. Bepo's action is a direct result of his unemployment and financial hardship, making it a moment that highlights both his personal crisis and the broader theme of how economic deprivation can push otherwise honest people into compromising situations.

This comprehension question explores Mr Bepo's personal motivations for choosing to remain in Nigeria rather than relocating to the United Kingdom, where his wife Seri already works as a nurse.

Mr Bepo is reluctant to relocate to the United Kingdom because he does not want to leave his students. Despite the significant financial advantage of moving abroad (his wife earns far more in the UK than he earns as a school principal in Nigeria), Mr Bepo feels a deep sense of duty and attachment to the students he teaches. His commitment to their education and well-being outweighs the material benefits of emigrating.

His reluctance is not primarily driven by fear of adapting to a new environment, a belief that life in Nigeria is inherently better, or an unwillingness to leave his wife and children behind (since his wife is already in the UK). The passage makes clear that his bond with his students is the decisive factor holding him back. This detail is central to the novel's exploration of the personal costs and moral dimensions of the japa (emigration) trend in Nigeria.

This question tests comprehension of the social dynamics within the novel. Bepo is reluctant to leave Nigeria and relocate abroad, even as many of his colleagues are doing so. The text indicates that most teachers respond to his reluctance with criticism and dismissiveness.

Rather than respecting his choice to remain in Nigeria, the other teachers view his decision as misguided or naive. In a climate where the brain drain is normalised and going abroad is seen as the sensible path, choosing to stay invites scepticism. The teachers who have already decided to leave - or who aspire to leave - dismiss Bepo's attachment to the profession and to his country as impractical.

This attitude creates one of the novel's central tensions: the conflict between loyalty to one's homeland and profession on one hand, and the pursuit of better economic prospects abroad on the other. The dismissiveness Bepo faces underscores the social pressure that contributes to the brain drain phenomenon.

Banky and Tosh are SSS2 students who have a rivalry that dates back to JSS 3. Both students clashed in the Best Dancer category at the end-of-year party but Banky was crowned winner. This led Tosh's to threaten a lawsuit because they felt slighted. This can be found on page 42 of the novel.