Addis Ababa Science and Technology University

College of Social Science and Humanities

Department of English
Communicative English Final Examination for First Year Regular Students
Name_______________________Department____________Section_____ID.No.________
Time allowed: 1:20 hours
I. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow.
1 Today, bicycles are elegantly simple machines that are common around the world. Many people
ride bicycles for recreation, whereas others use them as a means of transportation. The first
bicycle, called a draisienne, was invented in Germany in 1818 by Baron Karl de Drais de
Sauerbrun. Because it was made of wood, the draisienne wasn’t very durable, nor did it have
pedals. Riders moved it by pushing their feet against the ground.

2 In 1839, Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a Scottish blacksmith, invented a much better bicycle.

Macmillan’s machine had tires with iron rims to keep them from getting worn down. He also
used foot-operated cranks, similar to pedals, so his bicycle could be ridden at a quick pace. It
didn’t look much like the modern bicycle, though, because its back wheel was substantially
larger than its front wheel. Although Macmillan’s bicycles could be ridden easily, they were
never produced in large numbers.

3 In 1861, Frenchman Pierre Michaux and his brother Ernest invented a bicycle with an improved
crank mechanism. They called their bicycle a vélocipède, but most people called it a “bone
shaker” because of the jarring effect of the wood and iron frame. Despite the unflattering
nickname, the vélocipède was a hit. After a few years, the Michaux family was making hundreds
of the machines annually, mostly for fun-seeking young people.

4 Ten years later, James Starley, an English inventor, made several innovations that revolutionized
bicycle design. He made the front wheel many times larger than the back wheel, put a gear on the
pedals to make the bicycle more efficient, and lightened the wheels by using wire spokes.
Although this bicycle was much lighter and less tiring to ride, it was still clumsy, extremely top
heavy, and ridden mostly for entertainment.

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5 It wasn’t until 1874 that the first truly modern bicycle appeared on the scene. Invented by another
Englishman, H.J. Lawson, the safety bicycle would look familiar to today’s cyclists. The safety
bicycle had equal-sized wheels, which made it much less prone to toppling over. Lawson also
attached a chain to the pedals to drive the rear wheel. By 1893, the safety bicycle had been
further improved with air-filled rubber tires, a diamond-shaped frame, and easy braking. With
the improvements provided by Lawson, bicycles became extremely popular and useful for
transportation. Today, they are built, used, and enjoyed all over the world.
(Source: 501 Reading Comprehension Questions, 2006, pp.94-95)

______1. There is enough information in this passage to show that

A. several people contributed to the development of the modern bicycle.
  B. only a few vélocipèdes built by the Michaux family are still in existence.
C. for most of the nineteenth century, few people rode bicycles just for fun.
D. bicycles with wheels of different sizes cannot be ridden easily.
_____2. The first person to use a gear system on bicycles was
A. H.J. Lawson. B. Kirkpatrick Macmillan.
C. Pierre Michaux. D. James Starley.
_____3. This passage was most likely written in order to
A. persuade readers to use bicycles for transportation.
B. describe the problems that bicycle manufacturers encounter.
C. compare bicycles used for fun with bicycles used for transportation.
D. tell readers a little about the history of the bicycle.
_____4. Macmillan added iron rims to the tires of his bicycle to
A. add weight to the bicycle. B. make the tires last longer.
C. make the ride less bumpy. D. make the ride less tiring.
______5. “…… Ten years later, James Starley, an English inventor, made several innovations
that revolutionized bicycle design.”( Par. 5) As it is used in the sentence, the
underlined  word revolutionized most nearly means
A. automatically cancelled. B. changed drastically.
C. became outdated. D. exercised control over.
_____6. “…whereas others use them as a means of transportation.” (Para. 1,), others refers to
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 A. bicycles B. people
C. machines D. means of transportation
______7. “…its back wheel was substantially larger than its front wheel.”(para.1,),
substantially would probably mean
A. to a lesser degree (very less) B. minimally
C. to a greater degree (very much) D. systematically
______8. “…them…” in “Macmillan’s machine had tires with iron rims to keep them from
getting worn down.”(para.2,) refers to
A. rims B. tires
C. cranks D. pedals
_____9. “Although this bicycle was much lighter and less tiring to ride, it was still
clumsy…”(para.20), clumsy means
A. simple to use B. of high quality
C. difficult to move D. faster to ride
_____10. Which one of the following may be the title of the reading passage?
A. Bicycles and Their Different Parts B. Types of Bicycles with Different Sizes
C. The Development of Bicycles D. The Improvement of Bicycles’ Wheels
II. Fill the blank spaces in the following paragraph with appropriate words from the list
below (1 pt each).
Fraters maternal paters fratricide paternal maters

Then and Now

In the old days of our(11)_________________ who were real heroes of the time and
our(12)______________ who breastfed their milk of peace and cooperation, there had not been
greed and corruption among members of a family. However, nowadays, (13)_______________
and(14)______________ love is taken away from sons and daughters of this generation. Instead
of peace and stability, brothers and sisters are frequently quarreling with each other which results
in(15)__________________.
III. Read the following short text and select the appropriate active or passive forms from
the choices given in the parentheses. Underline to indicate your answers. (0.5 point each)

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Although it (16)____________(proves, is proved) that there is a definite link between smoking
and lung cancer, more cigarettes (17)_____________(smoke, are smoked, smoked) now than
ever before. In many western countries, the words ‘Health hazard’ must
(18)_________________(print, be printed, prints) on each packet of cigarettes so that
smokers(19)_______________(know, are known, knows) that they are endangering their health
whenever they smoke. Many cigarette manufacturers are still finding some means of removing
the danger; but it is unlikely that they will be successful in the near future. Pray!

IV. Match each situation with one of the sentences that follow. (1 point each)

______20. I have four sisters. One works in Jimma. She is getting married.

A) My sister who works in Jimma is getting married.

B) My sister, who works in Jimma, is getting married

______21. I have only one brother. He works extremely hard. He has few friends.

A) My brother who works extremely hard has few friends.

B) My brother, who works extremely hard, has few friends

V. Your friends always come to you when they have problems because you usually have
lots of great ideas about what to do. What advice or warning would you give to the people
in the situations below. (1 point each)

______22. Your friend can’t sleep at night. She feels exhausted every morning and doesn’t have
enough     energy to do any thing all day.
__________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

______23. Two of your friends are taking a university class. The professor speaks very fast and
they find it hard to follow the lectures as they want to take each word of his speech.

________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________.

VI. Fill in the blank with the correct form of the verb in parentheses. (1 point each)

24) Degu: I just heard that you were in the hospital for a month. If I had known you
were sick, I__________________ (visit) you. What was wrong?

    Kassa: I lost control of my bike on a curve and fell down a hill. Luckily, I had on a helmet.

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25) Hello, Tigist. Are you still looking for Demeke? If I____________(see) him, I will tell him

you want to speak to him.

26) If you______________ (get) to the top of the hill, you will see a small church. Walk

past it and turn left, and the hotel is right there.

27) It is a beautiful house, and I would buy it if I __________(have) the money, but I can’t

afford it.

VII. Write a paragraph about Awagachew using relative clauses based on the following

medical notes in not more than 100 words. (5 points)

Name: Awgachew

Aged: 28

Condtion: Confined to bed in his house

House: large, untidy and very old.

Village: Chilga, Aykel near Gondar.

Children: 2 aged 3 and 6

Diagnosis: Hepatitis

Symptoms : inflammation of liver, high fever, yellowing the whites of the eyes and skin,
abdominal pain and weakness.

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________________________________________________________________________.

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