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Difficulty: Very hardEmphatic Stress

In the sentence below, one word is printed in FULL CAPITAL LETTERS to show emphatic stress:

The defense attorney UNEXPECTEDLY cross-examined the key witness during the trial yesterday.

Which of the following contrastive questions correctly elicits this statement?

  1. A
    Did the lead prosecutor unexpectedly cross-examine the key witness during the trial yesterday?
  2. Did the defense attorney predictably cross-examine the key witness during the trial yesterday?Answer
  3. C
    Did the defense attorney unexpectedly interview the key witness during the trial yesterday?
  4. D
    Did the defense attorney unexpectedly cross-examine the main defendant during the trial yesterday?

Answer

Did the defense attorney predictably cross-examine the key witness during the trial yesterday?
Emphatic stress is used to highlight or correct a specific piece of contrastive information. In the given sentence, 'UNEXPECTEDLY' carries the emphatic stress. The correct contrastive question must present an assertion that contradicts 'UNEXPECTEDLY' (such as 'predictably') while leaving every other syntactic element identical. Answering that question with emphatic stress on 'UNEXPECTEDLY' correctly resolves the contrast.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the word carrying emphatic stress in the given statement.
The word printed in full capital letters is 'UNEXPECTEDLY', an adverb of manner.
Emphatic stress highlights specific contrastive focus within a sentence.
2
Determine the required contrastive question structure for emphatic stress items.
The correct response question must contradict ONLY the stressed word ('UNEXPECTEDLY') by supplying an opposing or alternative word ('predictably' or 'routinely'), while keeping every other element identical.
In English oral communication and JAMB examination standards, emphatic stress corrects an erroneous assumption made by the speaker asking the question.
3
Evaluate the options against the target contrastive focus.
The option asking whether the attorney 'predictably' cross-examined the witness is the only question whose false premise ('predictably') is directly corrected by emphasizing 'UNEXPECTEDLY'.
All other options erroneously alter the subject, the main verb, or the direct object.

Key Concept

Emphatic Stress and Contrastive Focus
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Topics

Emphatic Stress

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