PRACTICE TEST

SECTION A: GRAMMAR & VOCABULARY

PART I: Choose the best answer from A, B, C, or D to complete the following sentences.
1. See if you can ______ your father ______ lending us the car tomorrow.
A. talk/ back B. talk/ into C. talk/ over D. talk/ on
2. While southern California is densely populated, _________ live in the northern part of the state.
A. a number people B. a few of people C. many people D. few people
3. Having invented the light bulb, _______________.
A. Edison was going on to make new discoveries B. new discoveries went on to be made by Edison
C. Edison went on to make new discoveries D. new discoveries were gone on to make
by Edison
4. Matt: “Are you thinking of flying business class?" Anne: "________________________ "
A. I'm flying there to attend a party. B. No, I'm just on business.
C. No, I'd like an aisle seat. D. No, economy.
5. I just took it ___________ that he’d always be available.
A. into account B. easy C. for granted D. into consideration
6. There should be no discrimination on ___________ of sex, race or religion.
A. grounds B. fields C. places D. areas
7. Though he was not a professional writer, he became an __________ member of the Writers' Association.
A. honest B. honoured C. honorary D. honourable
8. I won’t change my mind ___________ what you say.
A. whether B. no matter C. because D. although
9. The government __________ a large group of illegal workers last night.
A. expelled B. deported C. displaced D. exported
10. The teacher has a/an ___________ that his student is not telling him the truth about why she was absent
from school yesterday.
A. hunch B. idea C. thought D. notion
YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
PART II: Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that fits in the space
in the same line. There is an example at the beginning (0):
WOMEN ONLY
(0) INCREASINGLY, women are taking their holidays without men. INCREASE
For (1) ________ reasons, camaraderie or just plain fun, a growing SAFE
number of female tourists are signing up for women-only trips.
Twenty-five years or so ago, only a (2) ________of companies offered HAND
such holidays; now there are several hundred. Travel (3) ________Jo CONSULT
Littlewood says that the (4) ________ of higher incomes with delayed COMBINE
marriage, divorce, retirement and widowhood has (5) ________ more ABLE
women to travel, often on their own. They are attracted by the sense
of (6) ________ that a holiday without men affords them. “Women in a FREE
 group tend to feel (7) ________ and speak more openly than when men INHIBIT
are around,” she adds. “It’s also a lot more fun. Women laugh a lot
more (8) ________ than men, probably because they don’t mind READY
laughing at themselves”. Jill Cummings is a regular traveller with
Everywoman Tours, an Oxford-based company whose very name is a DETER
(9)________ to men. “And a good thing too.” She says. “Men simply
cannot resist the (10) ________ to try and take control, wherever they TEMPT
are. Thankfully, there is none of that with Everywoman.”
YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
PART III: The passage below contains 10 mistakes. Identify and correct the mistakes.
Crime preventing is as crucial in the workplace as it is in the home or neighborhood. Reducing crime is as
much a part of good management as prompt deliver, good staff relations, and other accepted
management functions. Losses from shops through shoplifting are extreme high and ultimately, those
losses are payment for by all of us in high prices. There are many opportunities for shopkeepers
themselves to reduce shoplifting. As with all types of criminal, prevention is better than cure. The best
deterrent is the present of staff properly trained in how to identify potential shoplifters. There are also
many secure devices now available. Video camera surveillance is a popular system, even with quite small
retailers. In clothes shopping, magnetic tag marking systems that set off an alarm if they are taken out of
the shop have proved their worthless. However, there are many simpler measures that retailers should
consider. Better lighting and ceiling-hung mirrors can help staff to watch all parts of the display area.
Similarly, simply arranging shelves and display units to allow clear fields of visible is a good deterrent.
YOUR ANSWERS:

Mistake Line Correction Mistake Line Correction

1. 6.
2. 7.
3. 8.
4. 9.
5. 10.
SECTION D: READING
PART I: Read the following passage and choose the best answer from A, B, C or D to indicate the
correct word for each of the blanks.
OXFORD
Some people say that Oxford is the most attractive city in England. Whether this is true or not, it is
certainly worth a visit. It is also ideal for a day (1)______ from London, as there are regular trains and
buses at fifteen- minute (2)_____ which only take about an hour to get there.
You should (3)_____ plenty of time to visit Oxford's unique and varied range of historic attractions. What is
probably of most (4)______ to the visitors is the famous University with its different colleges. You can
(5)______ several of these elegant historic buildings in a day, as the majority of them are (6)_______ walking
distance of one another. Many of the oldest and most remarkable colleges are centrally (7)______, and
most are open to visitors in the afternoon. It is a good idea to check before visiting, (8)_____, as opening
days and times vary.
The two rivers that (9)______ through the city are another major attraction for residents and tourists
(10)______. Both the Thames and the Cherwell rivers are lined with lush green vegetation, and a stroll
along their banks or a leisurely boat ride is the perfect way to round off a day of sightseeing. Different
kinds of boats are available for hire at several central locations from April to September.
1. A. voyage B. travel C. journey D. trip
2. A. gaps B. breaks C. intervals D. spaces
3. A. allow B. permit C. agree D. let
4. A. attention B. interest C. notice D. curiosity
5. A. look round B. see through C. find out D. check up
6. A. inside B. under C. beneath D. within
7. A. placed B. located C. addressed D. positioned
8. A. yet B. despite C. however D. although
9. A. flow B. move C. pour D. lead
10. A. similar B. same C. likely D. alike
YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10
PART II: Read the passage below and choose the best answer from A, B, C or D to each question.
The economic depression in the late-nineteenth-century United States contributed significantly to
a growing movement in literature toward realism and naturalism. After the 1870’s, a number of
important authors began to reject the romanticism that had prevailed immediately following the Civil
War of 1861-1865 and turned instead to realism. Determined to portray life as it was, with fidelity to real
life and accurate representation without idealization, they studied local dialects, wrote stories which
focused on life in specific regions of the country, and emphasized the "true" relationships between
people. In doing so, they reflected broader trends in the society, such as industrialization, evolutionary
theory which emphasized the effect of the environment on humans, and the influence of science.
Realists such as Joel Chandler Harris and Ellen Glasgow depicted life in the South; Hamlin Garland
described life on the Great Plains; and Sarah One Jewett wrote about everyday life in rural New England.
Another realist, Bret Harte, achieved fame with stories that portrayed local life in the California mining
camps. Samuel Clemens, who adopted the pen name Mark Twain, became the country's most outstanding
realist author, observing life around him with a humorous and skeptical eye. In his stories and novels,
Twain drew on his own experiences and used dialect and common speech instead of literary language,
touching off a major change in American prose style.
Other writers became impatient even with realism. Pushing evolutionary theory to its limits, they
wrote of a world in which a cruel and merciless environment determined human fate. These writers,
called naturalists, often focused on economic hardship, studying people struggling with poverty, and
other aspects of urban and industrial life. Naturalists brought to their writing a passion for direct and
honest experience. Theodore Dreiser, the foremost naturalist writer, in novels such as Sister Carrie,
grimly portrayed a dark world in which human beings were tossed about by forces beyond their
understanding or control. Dreiser thought that writers should tell the truth about human affairs, not
fabricate romance, and Sister Carrie, he said, was "not intended as a piece of literary craftsmanship, but
was a picture of conditions."
1. Which aspect of late-nineteenth-century United States literature does the passage mainly discuss?
A. The emergence of realism and naturalism
B. The effects of industrialization on romanticism
C. The influence of science on literature
D. The importance of dialects for realist writers
2. The word "prevailed" in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.
A. transformed B. dominated C. generalized D. entered
3. The word "they" in the passage refers to ______.
A. people B. stories C. relationships D. authors
4. According to the passage, a highly significant factor in the development of realist and naturalist
literature was ______.
A. the Civil War of 1861-1865 B. a recognition that romanticism was unpopular
C. an economic depression D. an increased interest in the study of common speech
5. Realist writers took an interest in all of the following EXCEPT ______.
A. the idealization of life B. social and historical theories
C. human relationships D. characteristics of different regions
6. Why does the author mention “mining camps” in the passage?
A. As an example of how setting can influence literary style
B. To contrast the themes of realist and naturalist writers
C. To illustrate how Bret Harte differed from other authors
D. As an example of a topic taken up by realist writers
7. Which of the following wrote about life in rural New England?
A. Hamlin Garland B. Ellen Glasgow C. Sarah Orne Jewett D. Mark Twain
8. Mark Twain is considered an important literary figure because he ______.
A. influenced American prose style through his use of common speech
B. rejected romanticism as a literary approach
C. wrote humorous stories and novels
D. was the first realist writer in the United States
9. The word "foremost" in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.
A. first B. leading C. most focused D. interesting
10. Which of the following statements about Theodore Dreiser is supported by the passage?
A. He believed writers should emphasize the positive aspects of life.
B. He viewed himself more as a social commentator than as a literary artist.
C. His novels often contained elements of humor.
D. He mainly wrote about historical subjects such as the Civil War.
YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10
PART III: Read the following passage and do the tasks below.
Task 1. You are going to read an extract from a magazine article about an attempt to film hippos.
Six paragraphs have been removed from the extract. Choose from the paragraphs A-G the one that
fits each gap (1-6). There is one extra paragraph which you do not need to use.
HIPPO HEAVEN
What happens to a hippo when it sinks beneath the surface? Mzima was the place to find out.
If there’s a ‘must-see’ for a freshwater naturalist in East Africa, then it’s Mzima Spring in Kenya’s Tsavo
West National Park. I first became aware of it as a teenager, when I was enthralled by documentary
makers Alan and Joan Root’s classic film Mzima: Portrait of a Spring with its extraordinary clear
underwater images of hippos. Back then, I would have assumed that there were other sites like it,
scattered throughout the continent.
1…………………………………………
I therefore counted myself fortunate when my partner Vicky and I eventually got the chance to visit
Mzima itself with Alan Root. It was the dry season, and as Alan flew us over Tsavo, I was looking forward
to seeing Mzima for the first time. But when Alan dipped a wing, I was totally unprepared for what leapt
out of the monochrome scorched plains.
2………………………………………..
I knew immediately that we had to make a film there and we believed that if we lived at Mzima for long
enough then something incredible would reveal itself. Our goal was to film the behavior of hippos under
water to get some key sequences about which a story could be told. This meant diving with them so
frequently that we gained their trust or filming them unobserved from an underwater hide.
3……………………………………..
So, after two weeks, we had only spent a total of thirty minutes underwater with no film and one attack to
show for it. The chance of spending the thousands of hours underwater that we would normally do when
making a film looked slim. Hippos are potentially more dangerous than crocodiles, but the more we
explored the spring, the more numerous the crocodiles we found- and the bolder they became.
4………………………………………
At the same time as trying to film underwater, we erected towers to give us an aerial view of the spring.
From these, we could watch an entire group of hippos and look down through the water. What we saw
was exciting. Female hippos were defending their young against crocodiles, but most their mouths and
having their teeth cleaned by Labeo fish, which swarmed inside their gaping jaws.
5………………………………………
The first time I tried it, this latest hide was secreted in the shallows, in the shade of an overhanging fig
tree. I was there waiting for the hippos to come to close, when a troop of baboons arrived to investigate
and discovered that the tree was in fruit. As they fled, figs started to rain down from above.
6………………………………………
At first it wasn’t too bad but then the baboons realized that the best figs were in the branches directly
above me. All this eating made them thirsty so they descended for a drink before carrying on with the
feast. By the time Vicky came to relieve me, this had been going on for several hours, and the hippos had
fled. There was only one thing for it; we would have to set about filming remotely. We ended up with a
camera fixed to the bed of the spring and it took nine more months for the hippos to get used to that!
 A. I knew only too well what was coming next, but I couldn’t escape. The golden rule about hide work
is always to have someone else with you when you get in and out; any disturbance is then
associated with that person and not the hide. But on this occasion, I was alone.
B. It rapidly became apparent to us that neither method was going to work. Whenever we tried to get
into the water, the hippos would immediately either charge or flee. Meanwhile the local crocodiles
became curious, and on the second or third dive on my way to the hide, I had been forced to fend
one off by vigorously hitting it on the head with the camera.
C. We were determined to film this underwater too, but progress was dismal. In an idea borrowed
from Alan Root, our assistant constructed a new sort of hide, a type of ‘reverse aquarium’,
comprising a large metal ‘coffin’, open on top, with a glass front through which we could film and
stay dry.
D. This may be because hippos can’t see particularly well underwater. They compensate for this by
being sensitive to sound, including the high-pitched sound produced by the camera. Despite our
efforts, we couldn’t muffle it.
E. Nestled far beneath us was an oasis of liquid turquoise, set in a ring of yellow fever trees. We
circled, and each time we passed over; we could see the forms of hippos asleep in the pool.
Through the crystal clear water, we could make out the green shapes of crocodiles and pale blue
fish.
F. With this in mind, we decided to build a tunnel of protective steel mesh to access the hide more
safely. As a solution it seemed obvious, but the hippos found it obvious, too, and moved away. We
then left the hide alone for several months, hoping that the hippos would get used to it, but for
some reason, they never did.
G. However, when I was filming hippos elsewhere in East Africa for a documentary twenty years
later, I discovered that this was not the case. The hippos were swimming in muddy water holes
and coffee-colored rivers, so no matter how exciting the behavior visible above the surface, every
time a hippo’s nostrils pinched together, I knew my subject to disappear from view.

YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Task 2. The following words are all used to describe water in the text:
a freshwater naturalist crystal clear water muddy water holes
Complete the sentences below with an appropriate word from the box. The words are all
collocates of water.
flood salt drinking running sparkling tap

7. A: ‘We’d like to drink water with our meal, please.’

B: ‘Certainly, Madam. Would you prefer still or _________ water?’
A.: ‘Still, please.’
8. Don’t fill your bottles up from that tap – it’s not safe _________ water.
9. He lives in a house with no electricity, no gas and no _________ water.
10. The basement was filled with _________ water after a night of torrential rain.
YOUR ANSWERS:
7. 8. 9. 10.

PART IV: Fill in each numbered space with ONE suitable word.
Sugar was for a long time a luxury and in the opinion of the medical profession it still should be. During
the nineteenth century, however, manufacturers discovered ways of producing it in vast quantities and it
has since become (1)____ of the staple articles of diet, particularly among the lower social classes. It has the
(2) ____ of being comparatively cheap, easily digested, rich in energy and useful for flavoring. Its major
disadvantages are that it lacks every nourishing quality (3) ____ that of giving energy, and because of its
attractive flavor it (4) ____ to displace other much more valuable foods from the diet. Most serious of all
is its adverse (5) ____ on health, since excessive consumption can cause heart (6) ____, obesity and dental
decay. The latter is widespread among the inhabitants of western countries. From the very young to the
very old, (7) ____ anyone escapes. Yet if parents would drastically reduce the amounts of confectionery, they
allow their (8) ____ to eat, the extent of dental decay would soon be checked. And if they (9) ____ to cut down
their own consumption of sugar, they would (10) ____ much less from ailments resulting directly or
indirectly from their being overweight.
YOUR ANSWERS:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6. 7. 8. 9. 10

SECTION E: WRITING
I . 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.
1. This time I didn’t manage to win the first prize. SUCCEED

=> I didn’t ………………………………………………………… the first prize this time.

2. They have discovered some interesting new information. LIGHT

=> Some interesting new information ………………………………………………………

3. He got so angry that no one dared to say anything. MUCH

=> So ……………………………………………………….. no one dared to say anything.

4. She tried really hard, but couldn’t persuade us to go with her. HOW

=> No ……………………………………………, she couldn’t persuade us to go with her.

5. Sandra gets noticed because of her bright orange hair. STANDS

=> Sandra …………………………………………….…………….. has bright orange hair.

 II. You are Tuan and your best friend, Nam, has sent you an email asking you to help him organize
a special surprise birthday party for his younger sister, Phuong Anh. Read Nam’s email and the
notes you have made. Then write an email (about 80-100 words) to Nam using all your notes.

Email
From: Nam
Sent: 5th June
Subject: Birthday party

We must make sure that Phuong Anh has no idea we’re planning such a
great surprise! I’m not sure how many people to invite but our house is
certainly too small. Do you think we should book Phuong Dong Hotel for
the evening and have the party there? Phuong Anh loves music so we could
have a live band.

Sounds good but

expensive I’ve also spent ages thinking about what we could buy her as a present. Do
you have any ideas?
Phuong Anh
Could you come the day before the party to help with the preparations? enjoys reading so
………..….
Sorry – busy There’s a lot to think about so I’d really like your help. And can you suggest
that day something else that will make this party really special?

Best wishes, Karaoke party

Nam

Dear Nam,

I am absolutely excited about Phuong Anh's birthday party now.

I do think that Phuong Dong Hotel would be a greater choice in place of your house, but this hotel
is fairly expensive. So is there another one which is near your house and more reasonably priced?
Then, she fancies reading, right? There have been a series of novels published recently so why
don't we buy her these new ones?

Also, to put it bluntly, I highly recommend to you a karaoke party. Is it fine by you to throw it right
after the performance of the band? It's bound to make the whole party more lively and
exhilarating. However, as my final exam is going to take place on the day before the celebration, so
I am really sorry for not being able to come in advance. Instead, I can arrive at your home in the
early morning on the following day. Is is OK?

I can't wait to attend the party.

Cheers,

Tuan.