Read the text and decide which answer best fits each gap.
Mountain climbing
One of the most difficult but rewarding of pastimes is mountain climbing. The modern climber must many different skills. Rock climbing requires a combination of gymnastic ability, imagination and observation, but perhaps the most necessary skill is being able to out how much weight a particular rock will . Mountaineers climb in groups of three or four, each climber at a distance of approximately six metres from the next. Usually, one person climbs while the other climbers hold of the rope. The most experienced climber goes first and shows the other climbers which way to go, making the rope secure so that it is safe for the others to follow.
With much mountain climbing, snow skills a very important part. Ice axes are used for breaking steps into the snow and for testing the ground. Climbers always tie themselves together so that, if the leader falls, he or she can be held by the others and back to safety. The number of dangers by climbers is almost endless. And the of oxygen at high altitudes makes life even more difficult for mountaineers.
Read the text and think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only ONE word in each gap.
DICTIONARIES
Dictionaries are among the most important tools of self-education. Samuel Johnson wrote his influential English dictionary in the eighteenth century, the work kept him busy for seven years. At the end of that period, he had written the meanings of over forty thousand words. Most modern dictionaries require a deal less time and effort to write because writers often use earlier dictionaries as a source of reference.
Nowadays, most dictionaries are put together by teams of writers, or lexicographers. Sometimes they need to work together in meetings; at other times they work independently of other, on different parts of the dictionary.
At one time, the starting point for deciding on which words to include used to be the lexicographer’s own knowledge. These days, teams use of a large collection of examples of only writing but also everyday speech, which is known as a corpus. Teams also refer books and articles about language as as asking experts in particular subjects about the more specialized words. Finally, ordinary people are asked to say what they think about the way the words are defined and they find the examples provided helpfully or not.
Read the text and use the word given in capitals at each gap to form a word that fits in each gap.
NEW WATERPROOF CLOTHING
There are few experiences as unpleasant as being bitterly cold and dripping wet on board a boat. The (KNOW) that you may be several hours away from warm, dry clothing is enough to slow down even the (TOUGH) sailor.
However, recent scientific developments in the types of material used to make waterproof clothes have, hopefully, put an end to the (SUFFER) of the sailor. New suits, trousers and jackets have been designed which allow people to stay warm and dry at sea and can be worn (COMFORT) for days on end.
The new clothing is by no means cheap, but that will not stop it from selling well, and not just in the sailing market. (LIKE) previous types of waterproof clothing, which tended to leave the wearer hot, sweaty and sticky even after a (RELATIVE) short burst of (ENERGY) activity, these new clothes are manufactured with an additional inner layer. This is made of special material which allows the clothes to 'breathe' - in other words, body heat can escape so that the body stays dry, but still maintains its (WARM) in all weathers.
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
Travelling by car is becoming increasingly expensive. (GETTING)
=> Travelling by car expensive.
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
The flight to the islands took fifteen hours. (WAS)
=> It flight to the islands.
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
Would you mind helping me move this sofa? (HAND)
=> Would you mind this sofa?
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
People say the couple will marry next month. (RUMOURED)
=> The couple married next month.
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
The police were there to make sure that the crowd did not invade the football pitch. (PREVENT)
=> The police were there to the football pitch.
Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and five words, including the word given.
To make progress in life, you have to make plans. (GET)
=> To in life, you have to make plans.
Read the passage then choose the best answer to each question.
Thirty-five years ago, Malcolm Burwell was a very successful young actor appearing in a number of series on British television. He was lucky, he'd made it to the top quite quickly and had plenty of work. Hollywood directors had even begun to suggest that he might like to think of making his fortune across the Atlantic. But two things made Malcolm think twice about these offers. He didn't want to move his young family to the USA, and a mystery illness was beginning to throw his whole future into doubt.
Malcolm had a problem with his voice. It began to grow steadily weaker and weaker until hospital treatment became necessary. Before this finally took effect, however, he found he could hardly talk. As he remembers, "When you are in danger of losing something central to your career, it makes you think very hard. I have to say I learned a lot from the experience."
"My voice recovered, but it taught me the importance of getting the best out of what you've got. As it got better and stronger, I started doing things like public readings of poetry and pieces of literature, just to use it professionally again." This turned out to be the start of a whole new direction for his career. So popular have these readings become, that Malcolm is now extremely familiar to people as the voice on a number of readings of best-selling books which have been recorded on to tape. Instantly recognizable, his voice is now a much sought-after commodity.
Malcolm first approached publishers with the idea of selling books on tape all those years ago. At first, they said that only blind people listened to books on tape. But times were changing and when he did eventually convince one of them to try it, instant success followed. Now the market for such tapes in Britain is worth £25 million a year.
Although Malcolm continues to work in television and theatre, it is his readings of literature that have really made his name. When he is recording, Malcolm uses his voice to give an impression of the different characters. "I don't try to convince the audience that I am an 11-year-old boy at one moment and his grandfather the next," he says, "but I use my voice to try and make the listener believe that I've really got a story to tell them rather than just a book to read out."
Malcolm carefully does his homework on any book he has agreed to record, although he knows that some actors do not. He tells the story of one well-known British actor whose enthusiastic producer commented on what a great thriller it was they were about to record, "Is it?" said the actor, opening the script for the first time. "Oh good." All very well, says Malcolm, until you discover on page two hundred that the character you've given a Scottish accent to is supposed to come from Wales!
Why did Malcolm not go to the USA thirty-five years ago?
When recording, Malcolm is keen to convince his listeners that _____
Malcolm relates the story about the other actor in order to show how _____
You are going to read a magazine article about letter writing. Six sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A - G the one which fits each gap. There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.
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A. Most of the letters from home contained just everyday events concerning my parents and their friends. B. We had been corresponding for 29 years but had never met. C. It didn't matter how short or untidy they were as long as they were letters. D. Notes are appreciated, but how much better to have a year's supply of news! E. Poor handwriting can spoil your enjoyment of a letter. F. More important, if she hadn't replied, we would be the poorer for it. G. She and my son have penfriends of their own in Texas, organised by my penfriend. |
Drop me a line!
In our fast world of phones, emails, and computers, the old-fashioned art of letter writing is at risk of disappearing altogether. Yet, to me, there is something about receiving a letter that cannot be matched by any other form of communication. There is the excitement of its arrival, the pleasure of seeing who it is from, and, finally, the enjoyment of the contents.
Letter writing has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. It probably began with the little notes I would write to my mother. My mother also always insisted I write my own thank-you letters for Christmas and birthday presents.
When I left home at 18 to train as a doctor in London, I would write once a week, and so would my mother. Occasionally, my father would write, and it was always a joy to receive his long, amusing letters. Of course, we also made phone calls, but it is the letters I remember most.
There were also letters from my boyfriends. In my youth, I seemed to attract people who had to work or study away at times, and I was only able to stay in touch by correspondence. But instead of harming the relationships, letter writing seemed to improve them. I found that I could often express myself more easily in writing than by talking.
I love the letters that come with birthday or Christmas cards. And it's even nicer when it's an airmail envelope with beautiful stamps. My overseas letters arrive from Mangala in Sri Lanka, from someone I trained with over 20 years ago, and I have a penfriend in Australia and another in Vancouver.
Then there's the lady who writes to me from France. If we hadn't started talking in a restaurant on the way home from holiday, if my husband hadn't taken her photo, and if I hadn't asked her for her address, I would never have been able to write to her. As it is, we now have a regular correspondence. I can improve my French (she speaks no English); we have stayed at her home twice, and she has stayed with us.
My biggest letter-writing success, however, came this summer, when my family and I stayed with my American penfriend in Texas. Everyone was amazed that a correspondence could last so long. The local press even considered the correspondence worth reporting on the front page.
I am pleased that my children are carrying on the tradition. Like my mother before me, I insist they write their own thank-you letters. My daughter writes me little letters, just as I did to my mother. However convenient communicating by email may appear to be, I strongly urge readers not to allow letter writing to become another 'lost art'.
You are going to read an article in which four people talk about their experiences of learning languages. Choose the section that contains the information in each question. The sections may be chosen more than once.
Language learning
A. Laura
I was living with an English-speaking family and the idea was that I'd pick up a lot of language by being there with them, but it just wasn’t happening. Everyone watched television all the time and rarely spoke to me, so I might as well have been at home watching the same channels on satellite TV. After a week, I left and moved in with a couple who had young children, and that was much better. They were all very friendly and I could chat with them anytime, really. When I got things wrong they would often correct me and I think that helped me improve my speaking a lot. They didn’t know much about grammar, though, so it was probably a mistake not to go to a language school every day and actually be taught it. I would also have liked to be nearer the city centre, because the house was so far out of town that I couldn’t get to the kinds of places where other teenagers went in the evenings. Although often I was so tired after playing with the kids, I was happy just to have an early night.
B. Chloe
I really want to learn Polish so I bought a course of language lessons as an MP3 to play on my iPod. That meant I could work on it anywhere I went, particularly at those times when you’ve got nothing to do, like standing at the bus stop, or in cinema queues. Once I was concentrating so hard on getting a grammar point right that I completely forgot I was on the bus and I started repeating restaurant phrases aloud. I felt a bit uncomfortable when I noticed everyone looking at me, so I didn’t do that again. Actually, one problem with learning on my own was not knowing when I was saying words properly and when I wasn’t. I could have done with someone to correct me, really. I don’t mean a teacher, just somebody who spoke Polish well. Overall, though, it was a useful course and I think it was good value for money. After I'd finished the beginner’s level I bought the intermediate level and I'm on that now.
C. Amy
l used the Internet to improve my Spanish. It wasn’t the first time I’d tried this, but I enjoyed it much more this time, probably because I’m in my mid-teens now. It cost nothing, of course, and although at first I didn’t know quite where to look, in the end I came across some great websites where I could practise reading and listening and do grammar exercises. At the same time, I was joining social networking sites like MySpace and getting in touch with Spanish-speaking teenagers from various parts of the world. I was careful, though, not to give out my personal details because when you're online you can never be quite sure who is contacting you, whatever the language is. I also tried online chat in Spanish, but I couldn’t keep up with people. All the time I was thinking about my grammar and it was taking me so long to reply to each sentence after I’d read it that I didn’t think it was fair on them, so I gave up. I'll try again sometime, though.
D. Stacey
I had lessons in Hindi at a local language school. Our teacher was great and I really liked the book we were using, too, but unfortunately the only class available at my level was late in the evening. So after a long day at school, and then all the written homework we have to do, I didn’t have a lot of energy left for language learning. Also, some of my classmates were much older than me and I didn’t really get to know them. But that didn’t matter because whenever we did group activities, which I'd never done before, but took to straight away, I made sure I was with the younger ones. I was having lessons every evening and that was costing my parents quite a lot, but we'd booked to go to India later that year so there was no time to lose. It was really important to me that I could communicate with people there in their own language.
Which person had tried the same method of study when she was younger?
Which person thought her chosen form of study was reasonably priced?