PRACTICE TEST 8

Listening
You will hear part of a radio talk about how to organize a wedding. For questions 1- 10,
complete the notes.
WEDDING ADVICE

One year ahead

 Choose (1)…date……..for wedding
 Choose best man and bridesmaids
 Decide on location for the (2)……….and reception, and make bookings.
 Make a (3)……guests list………..
Six months ahead
 Choose bride’s and bridesmaids’ dresses.
 Choose (4)……flowers………….( according to what will be in season)
 Choose (5)………………for reception ( according to budget)
 Reserve (6)……accommodations…………. for guests.
 Finalise arrangements for the (7)……honeymoon……….
Three months ahead.
 check (8)…passports……is valid
 organize (9) ……photograph……….
 Think about the (10)……speeches…….. ( e. g by bridegroom or possibly by bride)
Most important thing- enjoy the wedding.

Ex 2:
Listen and do the tasks that follow.
Question 1-3: Choose the correct letter A, B or C
1. Which year of study is the student in?
A. first B. second D. third
2. What course is the student studying?
A. social science B. sociology C. sports science
3. What is the student number?
A. 07-26523-821 B. 07-26523-911 C. 07-26523-921
Questions 4- 5.
Choose TWO letters, A- E
Which TWO hall facilities are mentioned?
A. a gym
B. a games room
C. a launderette
D. Internet access
E. a shop
Questions 6-10
Complete the table. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS OR/AND A NUMBER for
each answer.

Types of room Rent for 40 weeks Additional Accommodation How to get a room
available payments office web address
6 ........ 7. ...........3000........ 8. 9. .............................. 10. ....apply
.single............. ............ no .......................... ........ quickly......................
....... ...

Part II: LEXICO- GRAMMAR.

Exercise 1: Choose the best answer to complete the following sentences.
1. Harry doesn’t……. to great fame and fortune, he just wants to make a decent living.
A. crave B. hanker C. yearn D. aspire
2. A lot of people are ………..to the damage that is being done to the environment.
A. ignorant B. uninitiated C. blind D. unacquainted
3. She showed little ……………of the problems we were facing.
A. affinity B. appreciation C. regard D. sensitivity
4. After a few weeks in the job, he ……..himself to be a valuable employee.
A. established B. vindicated C. verified D. proved
5. This is the ………timetable for the conference. It may change later
A. conditional B. indefinite C. provisional D. indeterminate
6. They worked for six ………hours without a break.
A. constant B. incessant C. solid D. perpetual
7. I wrote to them a fortnight ago but ……….I haven’t had a reply
A. as yet B. these days C. so long D. just now
8. I couldn’t stop myself from ………..with boredom during the lecture.
A. sighing B. gasping C. panting D. blowing
9. Sam has always taken the ………..that there is more to life than money.
A. outlook B. view C. belief D. opinion
10. She didn’t show even a ………of emotion when the court found her guilty.
A. gleam B. wink C. flicker D. flash.
11. Why do you always ask me a favour when I have got my ……….full?
A. palms B. brains C. hands D. arms
12. I wouldn’t go so far as to …………my professional career on the unsafe enterprise.
A. venture B. stake C. dare D. expose
13. They said I’d be on …………..for the first two or three weeks as they want to find out
about my skills.
A. testing B. examination C. inspection D. probation
14. We thank the host for their generous………..and got under way.
A. hostility B. honesty C. hospitality D. hostage
15. It was …………to Mark that he had better withdraw from the game in case his knee
injury got worse
A. argumented B. recommended C. insisted D. appealed
16. Thousands of newcomers imagine this place to be their El Dorado where they can easily
make a ……….start in life.
A. plain B. fresh C. clean D. first
17. The silly gossip………to a panic among the private entrepreneurs who began closing their
accounts in the National Bank.
A. led B. prompted C. resulted D. aroused
18. The authorities probably want to be tough and won’t ……….to the hijackers’ absurd
demands.
A. abandon B. resign C. yield D. collapse
19. The Stetsons’ son must be ……….his family a lot of trouble and worry with his wild
ideas.
A. making B. developing C. providing D. giving
20. Pasta in its various forms is the ……….diet in Italy.
A. common B. staple C. usual D. obvious

Exercise 2: Supply the correct form of the word in brackets.

 Feng Shui is the ancient Chinese art of bringing balance to one’s immediate surroundings.
It aims to harness energy flow within the home to make it a nice, healthy place in which to
live. Although in the west, it has only recently gain acceptance, in China it is considered
(1- DISPENSE)…………..to consult a Feng Shui (2- PRACTICE)………….before
moving house or establishing a business. On a mundane level, it is the art of furniture
placement, but on deeper examination (3- MEAN)………….philosophical and religious
roots are found (4- PIN)…………..this venerable art form. The Taoist philosophy out of
which it grew sees the world as made up of potent but invisible energy which it calls
“chi”. Feng Shui aims to divert this hidden flow to create a (5- HARMONY)
………..environment. Although this is an unfamiliar concept to the Western world, the
rise of Feng Shui continues (6- ABATE)…………. Feng Shui offers some basic rules with
which to augment the potential of one’s environment. (7- REMOVE)……………of clutter
is said to promote feelings of (8- LUCID)…………..and calmness. The utilization of
plants (9-ACT)……….the detrimental effect of machinery, computers and so on. Finally
because chi energy enters through the front door, it is provident to keep one’s door in
perfect condition to remove any (10- IMPEDE)………to the passage of entering chi
energy.

Exercise 3: Fill in the gap with a suitable particle.

1. We were making ………London but we turned off at Banbury by mistake.
2. Personally, I would put no faith ……….him- he’s the most unreliable person I know.
3. They ran ………….economic problems about half way through the season.
4. The board of directors has tried to put the case……….his removal from the team.
5. The management has put their declining popularity ……….to poor results.
6. Norwich was 3-1 down with only 2 minutes to go and there was little they could do to
come ………..
7. The entire team have put ………..a good performance.
8. She worked as a nurse ………one time, but she’s been a pharmacist for 20 years now.
9. Most athletes are………the peak of their abilities between the age of 24 and 28.
10. They had four-day holiday, then began work ……earnest.

Exercise 4: The passage below contains 10 mistakes. Underline the mistakes and write their
correct forms in the space provided in the column on the right. An example has been done
for you. Feminine – feminist

A feminine is a person, usually a woman, who believes that women should be regarded as
equally to men. She, or he, deplores discrimination against women in the home, place of work
or anywhere, and her principle enemy is the male chauvinist, who believes that men are
naturally super. Tired of being referred to as “the weaker sex”, women are becoming more and
more militancy and are winning the age-old battle of the sexes. They are sick to death of sexy
jokes which poke fun at women. They are no longer content to be regarded as second-class
citizens in terms of economic, political and social status. They criticize beauty contests and
the use of glamour female models in advertisements which they describe as the exploit of
female beauty, since women in these situations were represented as mere sex objects. We no
longer live in the male-dominate societies of the past. Let us hope, moreover, that the
revolution stops before we have a boring world in which sex doesn’t make much difference.
We already have unisex hairdressers and fashions. What next?

Part III. READING

Ex1: Choose the answer A, B, C or D to complete the following passage
DUTCH CHILDREN ENJOY FREEDOM.
 “Let them be free” is the golden rule for child-rearing in the Netherlands. No wonder
Dutch kids have been (1)………Europe’s most fortunate by a recent UNICEF survey.
From a tender age, their opinions are (2)………, their wishes respected, and there is no
homework until their last year in preparatory school. Some would (3)………that the
tendency of Dutch society to encourage infants to experience whatever they please has (4)
…………. a whole generation into spoilt, undisciplined brats. Others says family
members are remarkably (5)………..with one another, feeling free to say anything, and
that the way parents (6)……….with their children’s anxieties means that the children are
well-adjusted, which is (7)………..up by the results of the survey.
Dr Gerrit Breeusma, head of department psychology at the University of Groningen says
the survey’s results came as no surprise. “Children have always played a very important
role in Holland but there were (8)………..within families during the Sixties, usually over
matters of discipline and conformity. As a result, the generation growing up at that time
have made sure they (9)……..on better with their kids,” he added.
However, in several Dutch police precincts, such liberalism is not viewed positively. In an
attempt to (10) ……….underage heavy drinking, police have taken to bring home
teenagers and threatening parents with obligatory attendance at courses on excessive
alcohol problems or hefty fines unless they keep their children under control.

1. A. compared B. put C. rated D. assessed

2. A. regarded B. valued C. recognized D. measured
3. A. argue B. criticize C. defend D. judge
4. A. resulted B. created C. brought D. turned
5. A. alike B. open C. true D. careful
6. A. empathize B. understand C. analyze D. handle
7. A. shown B. held C. made D. backed
8. A. beliefs B. conflicts C. decisions D. contradictions
9. A. follow B. carry C. get D. continue
10. A. tackle B. supervise C. extinguish D. dispose.
Exercise 2 : Fill in the gap with a suitable word.
BREAKING THE SILENCE

Experts have perfected a quick and relatively straightforward (1) ……….to restore hearing to
profoundly deaf children. It has been possible for some time to restore hearing by inserting an
implant (2) ……….a part of the ear called the cochlea. But now doctors at Qeen’s Medical
Center insert the implant (3) ……… keyhole surgery. The procedure involves a technique
which only (4) …….minimal scarring and significantly reduces the risk of infection. The
child’s hair (5) ……simply be pinned back while the operation takes (6) ….…..with the
additional benefits that there are no stitches to remove afterwards. Previously the operation
was (7)… …….possible through a larger incision in the skull, which meant there was a
noticeable scar.
According to doctors at the Qeen’s Medical Center, new technology (8) ……allows them to
operate on (9) ……younger children. At the same time, this technique reduces the
psychological effects as well as the physical scarring, both of which used to deter children and
parents (10)… ……. considering implantation as an option.

Exercise 3: Read the passage and choose the best answer

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, an acute febrile illness, is transmitted to man by ticks.
Prevention is attained primarily by avoidance of tick-infested areas. When this impractical,
personal prophylactic measures include the wearing of clothing which interferes with
attachment of ticks, i.e., boots and a one-piece outer garment, preferably impregnated
with a tick repellent, and daily inspection of the entire body, including the hairy parts, to
detect and remove attached ticks.
In removing attached ticks, great care should be taken to avoid crushing the arthropod,
with resultant contamination of the bite wound. Touching the tick with gasoline or whisky
encourages detachment, but gentle fraction with tweezers applied close to the mouth parts
may be necessary. The skin area should be disinfected with soap and water or other
antiseptics. Similarly, precautions should be employed in removing engorged ticks from dogs
and other animals, since infection through minor abrasions on the hands is possible. Vaccines are
available commercially and should be used for those exposed to great risk, viz., persons frequenting
highly endemic areas and laboratory workers exposed to the agent. Since the broad-spectrum
antibiotics were shown to be such excellent therapeutic agents in Spotted Fever, there has been less
impetus for vaccination of persons who run only a minor risk of infection.
1. What is the main purpose of the passage?
A. To describe the symptoms of Spotted Fever.
B. To explain how to treat Spotted Fever.
C. To warn of the danger of Spotted Fever.
D. To outline the types of Spotted Fever.
2. The word “acute” in line 1 is closet in meaning to
A. fatal B. violent C. serious D. incurable.
3. From the passage, it can be inferred that ticks are
A. prickly plants B. biting animals
C. poisonous reptiles D. blood-sucking insects.
4. The word “this” refers to
A. prevention B. avoidance C. attachment D. clothing
5. The author suggests all of the following as preventative measures against Spotted Fever
EXCEPT
A. removing hair from body C. staying away from infested areas.
B. dressing in suitable clothes D. using appropriate sprays.
6. The word “fraction” could be replaced by
A. dissection B. examination C. investigation D. removal
7. The author states that most people become ill with Spotted Fever through
A. squeezing the body of a tick B. playing with dogs
C. working in laboratories D. not washing with soap and water.
8. According to the passage, if whisky is applied to a tick, it
A. attaches itself to the mouth B. becomes very confused
C. bites the person D. falls off the body
9. The word “impetus” is closest in meaning to
A. haste B. need C. chance D. thought
10. The passage supports which of the following conclusions?
A. There is no known cure for Spotted Fever.
B. All people in the Rocky Mountains should vaccinated
C. Most medicines are ineffectual against Spotted Fever.
D. Spotted Fever is controllable with the use of suitable antibiotics.
.
Exercise 4: The reading passage has five sections A-E
Choose the correct heading for sections A-E from the list of headings below
Write the correct number, i-viii, in boxes 1-5 in your answer sheet.
1. Section A
2. Section B
3. Section C
4. Section D
5. Section E
List of Headings
(i) How the problems of land scarcity has been overcome in the past.
(ii) Various predictions about future solutions to a lack of space
(iii) The effects of population growth on land availability
(iv) The importance of the new British Library
(v) An expanding population
(vi) A description of a mega-city
(vii) A firm belief that human habitation of outer space will occur
(viii) The importance of having an international space station.
Section A
The world has changed dramatically since Thomas Malthus’s work An Essay on the
principle of Population, first published in 1798, argued that by the mid-1800s the
unrestricted expansion of the human population would outgrow the agricultural land
available to supply humanity with food. Over 150 years have passed since this theoretical
milestone but mankind, admittedly somewhat more cramped, is still expanding and will
continue to do so.
Section B
The impact of unfettered population growth is clear for all to see. Urbanization is now
a more evident worldwide phenomenon than previously as even greater numbers of people
drift from rural areas to vast cities all over the world like Tokyo, Mexico City and
Mumbai in their quest for a better life. These mega-cities are spring up in every continent.
Now teaming with humanity, they are hungry for one increasingly valuable resource: land
While developments in agricultural technology ensure humanity may be able, by and
large, to feed the people flocking to these great metropolises, the expansion of the human
race is fuelling an unprecedented appetite for real estate. Space, whether it be for personal
or public use, corporate or national, human or flora/ fauna, is now at a premium as we
move into a new century. Not only is more land required for accommodation, but also for
a wide range of infrastructure facilities. Transport systems including roads within and
between cities need to be constructed or upgraded to create motorways; green fields are
turned into airports; virgin forest is stripped to provide food and firewood. In poorer
regions, this newly exposed land becomes desert, completing the cycle of destruction
Section C
Hitherto, the most common practice for the utilization of expensive space for living
and working has been to build upwards; hence, the demand for ever higher buildings, both
apartment and commercial, in major cities like New York, Shanghai and Singapore all
vying with each other for the tallest buildings. There has also been a tradition for building
underground, not just for transport systems, but for the storage of waste, depositories for
books etc. as in London, where the British Library housing millions of books has been
built largely underground.
Recent years have seen more novel construction developments around the world. In the
past, in many countries, Holland and the UK included, marshes and flood plains have been
reclaimed from the sea. Like the city of Venice in Italy, housing complexes and even
airports have now been constructed off-shore to amazing effect. In Japan, Kansai
International Airport has been built off-shore on a man-made island at vast expense and in
Dubai a very imaginative and expensive housing complex in the shape of a palm tree is being
built just off the coast on land created by a construction company. However, these and other
developments are at risk from rising sea levels as a consequence of global warming.
 Section D
But where will the human race when planet earth is full? There have been many
theories put forward about the human population moving to outer space. Marshall Savage
(1992, 1994), for example, has projected that the human population will reach five
quintillion throughout the solar system by the year 3000, with the majority living in the
asteroid belt. Arthur C Clarke, a fervent supporter of Savage, now argues that by the year
2057 there will be humans on the Moon, Mars, Europa, Ganymede, Titan, and in orbit
around Venus, Neptune, and Pluto. Feeman Dyson (1999) favors the Kuiper belt as the
future home of humanity, suggesting this could happen within a few centuries.

Section E
Habitation in outer space in huge stations is no longer just a dream, but a reality. A
permanent international space station now orbits the earth. The first commercial tourist
recently went into outer space with more trips planned for the near future. This is only a
beginning, but the development of space hotels is not far-off. There is no knowing where
mankind may end up. But the ideas about off-world habitation are not fanciful and I am
sure I am not alone in fantasizing about summer holidays spent watching the moons rising
in some far-flung planet or on a floating hotel somewhere on the Andromeda nebula.

Questions 6-9: Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS FROM THE PASSAGE for
each answer.
6. The movement of rural people to cities is a ...............................
7. Land is now a very....................., as a result of the growing demand for space.
8. The feeding of the human race will perhaps be guarranteed by changes in .......
9. Besides the demands of accommodation, land is needed for various .................

Question 10: Decide if the following statement is TRUE, FALSE OR NOT GIVEN.
10. The destruction of land for food and firewood is linked to desertification.

Part IV: WRITING

Exercise 1: SUMMARY WRITING
In a cold rainy night last December, more than 125 people gathered to talk about a strip
mine. They came from Blair, Clothier and Sharples to pack the bleachers of an elementary
school gym. Just over the ridge from the school, Arc Coal Inc.had stripped 2,500 acres of
the Longan County hills around Blair Mountain. The compay has applied for a license to
mine 3, 200 more
If state regulators approve the new permit, giant shovels and bulldozers will eventually
lop off mountain peaks of an area as big as 4,500 football fields, creating a veritable
wassteland. Residents of the tiny communities complained Arc Coal’s existing mine makes
a terrible neighbour. Melvin Cook of Blair was the first to walk across the gym the floor to
a microphone and pick up. He complained about the blasting. Arc Coal dynamites rock
formations to loosen them and residents say the blasts toss rock and dust high into the air.
Residents also say explosions shake their homes and crack foundations. “ You can bear
it”, Cook said. “ It has torn my house all into pieces.”

In a paragraph of 30 to 40 words, summarise, according to the text, the negative effects

felt by those living near an area where strip mining occurs.
Exercise 2
 The graph below shows the number of students who got prizes in the National exams
for excellent students from 2008 to 2011 in three provinces. Summarise the information by
selecting and reporting the main features and make relevant comparisons where relevant.

Exercise 3: Essay writing

Many modern films and television programs about past events and people contain a
mixture of fact and fiction. Some people say this distorts the public’s view of history and
should therefore be discouraged.
What are your views? Give reasons for your answers and include any relevant example
from your knowledge and experience.