GCSE English LanguageWriting
30 questions on writing to persuade and inform. Pick your answer, then tap to see if you were right and why. Every question comes from the Show Working English Language bank, and every line quoted from a book is checked word for word against a public-domain copy.
Writing to persuade, argue and inform turns up in the non-fiction writing task on every board: an article, a letter, a speech. These questions test the methods that make an argument land, from rhetorical questions and direct address to counter-arguments and the right register.
01 / Quiz yourselfTry it, then tap to check
Choose your answer before you open it. Then read why, so it sticks.
01 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Answer: C Rule of three
Listing three groups is the rule of three, which sounds complete and draws everyone in. “Lend me your ears” is an imperative: a polite command to listen.
02 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Answer: D Antithesis
Antithesis sets opposite ideas against each other in a balanced sentence (some call it juxtaposition). The neat balance makes Brutus sound fair and reasonable: he did not stop loving Caesar, he simply put his country first.
03 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Who is here so base, that would be a bondman? If any, speak; for him have I offended.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Answer: D Rhetorical question
Brutus asks a question he does not expect anyone to answer, a rhetorical question. A “bondman” is a slave, and no proud citizen will say they would rather be one, so the silence seems to agree with him.
04 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“For Brutus is an honourable man,”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Answer: A It turns ironic and makes the crowd doubt Brutus
Each time Antony shows Caesar was good and Brutus killed him, he repeats that Brutus is “honourable”. The repetition becomes ironic: the crowd starts to hear that Brutus is anything but honourable.
05 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“If you have tears, prepare to shed them now.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Answer: A Imperative
“Prepare” is a command, so this is an imperative. Telling the crowd to get ready to cry is also emotive: it tells them how to feel before Antony shows them Caesar’s body.
06 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more,”
William Shakespeare, Henry V
Answer: B Repetition
“Once more” comes at the start and the end, a repetition that drives the soldiers forward. Calling them “dear friends” rather than giving orders as a distant king makes them want to fight for him.
07 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.”
William Shakespeare, Henry V
Answer: A It unites him and his soldiers as one group
“We” is an inclusive pronoun: it puts the king alongside his soldiers. Calling them a “band of brothers” suggests a family bond, so being few becomes something to be proud of, not afraid of.
08 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Cry, “God for Harry! England and Saint George!””
William Shakespeare, Henry V
Answer: A An imperative verb
“Cry” tells the soldiers what to do, so it is an imperative verb: a command. Giving them a battle cry to shout together makes them feel united and ready to charge.
09 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation”
Abraham Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address
Answer: D It includes the listeners in a shared history
“Our” is an inclusive pronoun. By calling the nation’s founders “our fathers”, Lincoln makes everyone listening feel part of one family with a shared past and a shared duty.
10 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.”
Abraham Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address
Answer: A To honour the soldiers above the speakers
The sentence balances words against deeds. Lincoln humbly says speeches will be forgotten but the soldiers’ sacrifice never will, which honours the dead and makes the listeners feel they must carry on their work.
11 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“I do not wish them to have power over men; but over themselves.”
Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
Answer: D Control over their own lives
She answers an objection before it is made: she is not asking for women to rule men, only to rule themselves. Contrasting “over men” with “over themselves” makes her claim sound modest and fair.
12 / Writing to persuade and informA line from a book
“You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man.”
Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Answer: D He will win back his sense of himself
The second half mirrors the first in reverse, which makes it memorable. Slavery took away his humanity; now, Douglass tells us, he will show how he took it back.
13 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Do we really want our children breathing poisoned air?
Answer: D Rhetorical question
The writer does not expect an answer, because the answer is obviously no. A rhetorical question makes the reader agree in their own head, and “poisoned air” adds emotive force.
14 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Nine out of ten pupils say they are too tired to learn before nine o’clock.
Answer: B A statistic
A statistic is a fact given as a number. It makes an argument sound proven and objective, even when, as here, the writer has not said where the figure came from.
15 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Last winter, my grandmother waited four hours in the cold for a bus that never came.
Answer: C An anecdote
An anecdote is a short personal story. It makes a problem feel real and human, so the reader cares about it rather than just knowing about it.
16 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Dr Amina Shah, who has studied sleep for twenty years, says teenagers need more rest.
Answer: A Expert opinion
Quoting someone with special knowledge is using expert opinion. It borrows their authority, so the argument seems more trustworthy than the writer’s view alone.
17 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Some people argue that school uniform saves families money. However, the cost of a blazer alone can be over fifty pounds.
Answer: D Answering a counter-argument
A counter-argument is the other side’s view. Raising it and then knocking it down (here with “However” and a fact) shows you have thought it through, which makes your own case stronger.
18 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
You must act now, before it is too late.
Answer: D must
Modal verbs (must, should, could, will, might) show how certain or necessary an action is. “Must” is the strongest: it tells the reader there is no choice, which adds urgency.
19 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Sign the petition today.
Answer: B Imperative
An imperative is a command that starts with a verb, here “Sign”. It tells the reader exactly what to do, so it often ends a persuasive piece as a call to action.
20 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
This is the worst decision in the history of the world.
Answer: D Hyperbole
It cannot really be the worst decision ever made, so this is hyperbole: deliberate exaggeration. Used sparingly, it shows strength of feeling; used too often, it makes a writer seem less believable.
21 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Our parks should be safe, clean and free.
Answer: C Rule of three
Three linked words or ideas in a row are a rule of three. Groups of three sound balanced and complete, so they stick in the reader’s mind.
22 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Together, we can make our town greener.
Answer: C we
“We” (and “our” and “us”) include the reader with the writer. It suggests everyone is on the same side, working towards the same goal.
23 / Writing to persuade and informOur own example
Defenceless puppies are being left to starve in freezing sheds.
Answer: A Emotive language
Words like “defenceless”, “starve” and “freezing” are chosen to make the reader feel pity and anger. Emotive language persuades through feelings rather than facts.
24 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: C Yours faithfully
The British rule: if you do not know the person’s name (“Dear Sir or Madam”), end “Yours faithfully”. If you use their name (“Dear Ms Okafor”), end “Yours sincerely”.
25 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: C Formal
A letter to someone in authority needs a formal register and Standard English: “we were”, not “we was”, and no slang such as “gonna”. Accurate, formal writing makes you sound serious and credible.
26 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: D A headline
Articles open with a headline to catch the reader’s eye. Leaflets use subheadings (and often bullet points) so a reader can scan and find the part they need.
27 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: B The library opens at nine on Saturdays.
Writing to inform gives clear facts without trying to change your mind. The opening time is plain information; the others use an imperative, insults, flattery or a rhetorical question to persuade.
28 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: A A clear call to action
A call to action tells the audience exactly what to do next, such as sign, vote or change a habit. Ending this way turns agreement into action, and leaves your main message ringing in their ears.
29 / Writing to persuade and inform
The right order:
A formal letter starts with your address and the date, then the greeting. The first paragraph gives your reason for writing, the next ones make your points, and it ends with the sign-off and your name.
30 / Writing to persuade and inform
Answer: C Talking directly to the audience as “you”
Listeners cannot reread, so speeches talk straight to the audience, repeat key ideas and keep sentences clear. Footnotes, tables and bullet points only work on a page.
02 / Where marks slipOne thing to watch
Piling up rhetorical questions and lists of three. A few methods, each used for a reason, beat a checklist of all of them.
03 / In the appComing to Show Working
In the app, Writing to persuade and inform gives you ten questions at a time, picked from all 43, with the reason after every answer. English Language is built, but it isn’t on phones yet: it will arrive in an update.
Coming soon to the App StoreOur own questions, written for every board. Lines from books are from authors who died long enough ago that their words are free to quote. Show Working is independent and not affiliated with any exam board.
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