Kassala University

Faculty of Economic & Managerial Sciences

English Language Basic Exam -Second year
Course: ESP Time: 2 hrs Date: / /2014

Student's Name: ……………………………………............................... Index NO …..

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ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS
Section One

Comprehension:
Our basic needs are simple, but our additional individual wants are often
very complex. Commodities of different kinds satisfy our wants in different
ways. A banana, a bottle of medicine and a text book satisfy very different
wants. The banana can’t satisfy the same wants as the textbook.
This characteristic of satisfying a want is known in economics as its
‘utility’. Utility, however, should not be confused with usefulness.
For example, a submarine may or may not be useful in time of peace, but it
satisfies a want. Many nations want submarines. Economists say that utility
determines ‘the relationship between the consumer and a commodity’.
Utility varies between different people and between different nations.
A vegetarian does not want meat, but may rate the utility of bananas very
highly, while a meat- eater may prefer steak.
A mountain- republic like Switzerland has little interest in submarines, while
maritime nations rate them highly.
Utility varies not only in relation to individual tastes and to geography,
but also in relation to time. In wartime, the utility of bombs is high, and the
utility of pianos is low. Utility is therefore related to our decisions about
priorities in production, particularly in centrally-planned economy.
The production of pianos falls sharply in wartime.
The utility of a commodity is also related to the quantity which is
available to the consumer. If a paper is freely available, people will not be so
interested in buying too much of it. If there is no much excess of paper, the
relative demand for paper will go down. We can say that the utility of a
commodity therefore decreases as the consumer’s stock of that commodity
increases.
A) After reading the passage carefully answer the following questions:
1-What two ways are there of describing utility?

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2-What example is used to show that utility varies from person to person?
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3-What example is used to show that it varies from nation to nation?
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4-What example is used to show that utility is related to quantity?
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5- What can we say about the way in which utility decreases?
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B) Say whether these statements are true {T} or false {F}
1- Usefulness should not be confused with utility. ( )
2- Vegetarian rate the utility of beef very high. ( )
3- In a centrally-planned economy, decisions about priorities are related to
utility. ( )
4- Our wants are satisfied in much the same way by all commodities. ( )
5- The demand for paper goes down if the quality of paper increases. ( )
C) Contrast these pairs of sentences using while.
Example: Switzerland has little interest in submarines. Maritime nations
rate them highly.
→ Switzerland has little interest in submarines, while maritime nations rate
them highly.
→ Switzerland on the one hand has little interest in submarines, while
maritime nations on the other hand rate them highly.
1- In peacetime bombs are not in very great demand.
In wartime their utility is very high.
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2- Bananas may satisfy one kind of want.
Textbook satisfy an entirely different need.
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3- A product’s utility may be very high in a certain part of the world.
In a different part of the world its utility may be very low.
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4- Some people may prefer to save their money and invest it in a secure and
profitable scheme.
Some may prefer to buy a particular commodity which they have wanted
for a long time.
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5- Meat- eaters may enjoy both beef and bananas.
Vegetarians value only the bananas.
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D) Find single words in the text for which these words could be
substituted.
a) extra. ………………………………………………………………………
b) quality. ……………………………………………………………………
c) coastal. …………………………………………………………………….
d) preferences. ………………………………………………………………..
e) likes and dislikes. ………………………………………………………….
f) rapidly. ……………………………………………………………………..
g) amount. …………………………………………………………………….
h) goes down. ………………………………………………………………...
i) able to be obtained. ………………………………………………………...
j) the state of being useful. …………………………………………………...

Section two:
Grammar:

1-Correct the following sentences:

a- I always taking a shower.
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 b-They never goed to the cinema.
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c- It walk to the pool.
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d- He wrote for a living.
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e- She understands English.
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2- Put the verb in the correct form[,-ing or to + infinitive]:
1- Do you mind ………… (travel) such a long way to work every day.
2-Ann loves ……………… (cook) but she hates …………..(wash) Up.
3- I can't stand people …………… (tell) me what to do when I'm driving.
4-I don't like that house. I would hate ………………… (live) there.
5-Do you like ……………………… (drive)?
6-When I have to catch a train, I'm always worried about missing it. So I like
…………………….. (get)to the station in plenty of time.
7-I very much enjoy ………………….. (listen) to classical music.
8-I would love ………… ( come) to your wedding but it just isn't possible.
9-Sometimes I'd like …………………….. ( learn)to play the guitar.
:Transfer the following statements to the passive voice-3
.Nadir is eating an apple now-1
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.Mohamed has already watered the garden-2
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.The government will build a new stadium next year -3
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.The thief broke the window yesterday -4
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.The worker has fed the hens lately -5
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Good Luck

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