MINISTERUL EDUCAȚIEI NAȚIONALE

OLIMPIADA NAȚIONALĂ DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ – ETAPA JUDEȚEANĂ/PE

MUNICIPIUL BUCUREȘTI
2017-2018

SUBIECTUL A – USE OF ENGLISH

I. Read the following text and put the verbs in brackets in the correct form (10 x1p =
10p)

Hi Anita,
I wish I (1) _________ (say) that I was having a wonderful time here, but that’s far from the
truth. For a start, it was a mistake (2) _________ (come) here at Easter, it’s so crowded you
can’t move. And the second thing is I wish I (3) ___________ (not be) here with my sister.
She (4) _______________ (drive) me mad. She always wants to go shopping and I’d sooner
(5) ___________ (go) for long walks along the cliffs. As you know, we (6) __________ (stay)
in a self-catering cottage and she never lifts a finger. I do all the cooking, cleaning, etc. It’s
time she (7) ______ (grow up) and stopped (8) ___________ (act) like a baby. I don’t know
what to do because I don’t want to have a row with her. (9) ___________(suppose) you were
with us, what would you do? Oh, well, from now on I’m going to do what I like. I’m not
going to have my holiday (10) ______ (ruin) by her.
Hopefully, more cheerful news next time I write.
Lots of love,
Carol

II. Use the word given in brackets to form a word that fits in each sentence (10 x 1p = 10
p)

It is easy to assume that life as a top sports star is both easy and glamorous. But this is to
completely (1) _______ (UNDERSTAND) the reality of what goes on behind the scenes.
From a very early age athletes must be absolutely committed to their sport. But (2) _______
(DETERMINE) on its own is not enough – they need to be very ambitious in order to
succeed, and must never allow themselves to be (3) _______ (COURAGE) by setbacks.
Successful sports stars can, of course, become very (4) _______ (WEALTH), in addition to
being world-famous, but can be at a severe (5) ___________ (ADVANTAGE) in their social
development. It is therefore important to (6) _______ (SURE) that they receive a reasonably
balanced (7) ________ (BRING) and to (8) ___________ (BROAD) their experience beyond
the daily grind of practice and (9) _________ (COMPETE) in order to (10) ________
(ABLE) them to deal with the constant pressures that success can bring.

III. Choose the correct answer A, B, C or D (1 x 10 p = 10 p)

1. „Stau aici de prea multă vreme”, zise duhul. „E timpul ca cineva să deschidă sticla.”
a. ’I have been here for too long’, said the genie. ‘It’s time someone will open the bottle.’
b. ’I was here for too long’, said the genie. ‘It’s time someone had opened the bottle.’
c. ’I have been here for too long’, said the genie. ‘It’s time someone opened the bottle.’
d. ’I am here for too long’, said the genie. ‘It’s time someone opened the bottle.

2. Mă tem că nu te prea distrezi; mai bine du-te acasă.

a. I’m afraid you’re not having much fun; you would better go home.
b. I’m afraid you don’t have much fun; you would rather go home.

CLASA A XI-A, SECȚIUNEA A - MODEL

 MINISTERUL EDUCAȚIEI NAȚIONALE
OLIMPIADA NAȚIONALĂ DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ – ETAPA JUDEȚEANĂ/PE
MUNICIPIUL BUCUREȘTI
2017-2018

c. I’m afraid you’re not having much fun; you had rather go home.
d. I’m afraid you’re not having much fun; you had better go home.

3. The passive form of ‘Nobody has heard from Tim for a long time’ is:
a. It hasn’t been heard from Tim for a long time.
b. Tim hasn’t been heard from by nobody for a long time.
c. Tim hasn’t been heard from for a long time.
d. Anybody hasn’t been heard from Tim for a long time.

4. Complete the following sentence: ‘As we did not know his language, we could not
………….. what the foreigner wanted to tell us.’
a. make out
b. make of
c. make up
d. make about

5. It is the first time that our president has been to Russia, ……………?
a. isn’t he?
b. hasn’t he?
c. isn’t it?
d. hasn’t it?

6. Unlike Romanians, the French……….. tomato salad before the actual meal nowadays.
a. used to eat
b. used to eating
c. are used to eat
d. are used to eating

7. ‘People speak English all over the world’ means:

a. English is being spoken all over the world.
b. English is spoken all over the world.
c. Spoken English is used all over the world.
d. Spoken English is being used all over the world.

8. ‘The company is making money hand over fist. ‘means:

a. It is making money by using force.
b. It can hardly make money.
c. It is making money quickly.
d. It is making money illegally.

9. ‘They made him admit an imaginary guilt.’ means:

a. An imaginary guilt was admitted to him.
b. An imaginary guilt was made to him.
c. He was made to admit an imaginary guilt.
d. He was admitted an imaginary guilt.

10. ‘Somebody stole his car from the car park yesterday.’ means:
a. He had his car stolen from the car park.

CLASA A XI-A, SECȚIUNEA A - MODEL

 MINISTERUL EDUCAȚIEI NAȚIONALE
OLIMPIADA NAȚIONALĂ DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ – ETAPA JUDEȚEANĂ/PE
MUNICIPIUL BUCUREȘTI
2017-2018

b. His car has been stolen from the car park.

c. His car had been stolen from the car park.
d. They had stolen his car from the car park.

IV. Translate the following text into Romanian (10p)

They were interrupted by Kate, bursting through the door in her usual fashion as
though she had discovered some secret panel in the wall.
"Fried or boiled?" asked her bold voice.
Fried or boiled? Josephine and Catherine were quite surprised for the moment. They
could hardly understand.
"Fried or boiled what Kate?" asked Josephine, trying to begin to concentrate.
Kate said: "Fish."
"Well, why didn't you say so immediately?" Josephine reproached her gently. "How
could you expect us to understand, Kate? There are a great many things in this world, you
know, which are fried or boiled." And after such a show of courage she said quite brightly to
Catherine: "Which do you prefer, Catherine?"
"I think it might be nice to have it fried," said Catherine. "On the other hand, of
course, boiled fish is very nice. I think I prefer both equally well. Unless you... In that case ..."

SUBIECTUL B – INTEGRATED SKILLS

Read the text below and do the tasks that follow.

Mark Twain pointed out that if work were so pleasant, the rich would keep it for themselves.
But however much people may think they dislike work, everyone has a deep psychological
need for it. Everyone wants to be valued, and wages and salaries are the visible proof that we
matter.
Not all kinds of work qualify however. No matter how worthwhile or demanding they might
be, bringing up children, housework and voluntary employment are not usually seen as proper
jobs. The only ‘proper job’ is one that provides paid employment. Being paid for a job in our
society means high personal status.
Of course, we would also prefer work to be useful, pleasant and interesting – and also well
paid. But you don’t really have to enjoy your work to get pleasure from it. The fact that
we have to overcome some difficulties, that we have to deal with doing routine tasks, in some
way gives us pleasure.
For example, having to be in a particular place at a particular time, working as part of a team
towards a common goal, gives us a sense of purpose. The modern work place also provides
somewhere where people can assert their identity or create a new one.
Employment is now changing, however. Information technology has already
significantly altered the world of work. For many, the idea of a job for life is no longer
realistic. Many people fear they will lose their jobs, and some are being persuaded to accept
the possibility of part-time work. Even the workplace itself may become a thing of the past
with more and more people working at home. This means that we may no longer be able to
depend on work to define ourselves and our position in society, and that we will have to find
new ways to give our lives a sense of value and purpose.

CLASA A XI-A, SECȚIUNEA A - MODEL

 MINISTERUL EDUCAȚIEI NAȚIONALE
OLIMPIADA NAȚIONALĂ DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ – ETAPA JUDEȚEANĂ/PE
MUNICIPIUL BUCUREȘTI
2017-2018

I. For each question choose the correct letter A, B, C or D (5 x 2p= 10p)

1. Mark Twain pointed out that

A. the rich should work more.
B. work is not such a pleasurable thing.
C. the rich should keep all the work for themselves.
D. work makes people rich.

2. People have a deep psychological need for work because

A. they want to be rich.
B. they like being told what to do.
C. everyone needs money.
D. they want to be valued and work proves this value.

3. A ‘proper job’ (par. 2) is one that

E. provides a salary.
F. provides useful work.
G. involves bringing up children.
H. serves the community.

4. People don’t have to ‘enjoy their work to get pleasure from it’ (par. 3) because
A. the salary makes them happy.
B. they get used to the routine.
C. coping with problems can be satisfying’.
D. they know their work is still useful.

5. The word ‘one’ (par. 4) refers to

A. the modern workplace.
B. sense of purpose.
C. assertiveness.
D. identity.

II. Read the text again and write a for - and - against essay about doing the same job
throughout one’s life. (220-250 words) (50 p)

CLASA A XI-A, SECȚIUNEA A - MODEL