Inside Reading Midterm Test

Name: __________________________ Date: _____________

Reading Comprehension: True or False

Mark each statement as T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the reading passage.

Read this passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

As human beings we are able to adapt socially. We have developed to the point where we can
socialize different ways in different situations. For example, the average young professional is
going to act very differently when he or she is at a party with friends than when at a business
conference with coworkers. Mostly, it is the level of professionalism that varies strongly. In a
conversation with friends, due to the friends’ familiarity with each other, most people use more
informal language, casual slang, and plenty of jokes. In a work environment, the pressure of
keeping a job or trying to get a better one keeps the conversations respectful, the language
traditional, and the jokes to a minimum. Both scenarios can be meaningful and enjoyable in
different ways. The fact that so many people are able to function socially in such different
environments shows our ability to adapt.

1. The author of this passage believes that humans are not able to change according to
different social situations.
A) True
B) False

2. Language in a work environment might include many jokes.

A) True
B) False

Reading Comprehension: Multiple Choice

Choose the option that best completes each sentence.

3. All of the following are features of casual language with friends except ___.
A) jokes
B) slang
C) informal language
D) talking on the phone

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 4. Language in the workplace is more respectful because ___.
A) bosses don’t tolerate jokes well
B) there is pressure to keep a job or get a better one
C) the workplace has rules about using slang
D) employers don’t like casual conversation

Reading Comprehension: True or False

Mark each statement as T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the reading passage.

Read this passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

Red tape is a phrase that means you have to take a lot of steps to get permission to do something.
Usually this means filling out paperwork and getting approval from officials. Sometimes it is
used as a negative to express frustration at rules getting in the way, especially those coming from
corporations or government. The expression started because official papers were often bound
with red tape. It is first seen in historical records starting in the 16th century, when Henry VIII
petitioned the pope for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. His petitions were
all sealed and bound with red tape, which was customary at the time. Writers like Thomas
Carlyle and Charles Dickens later popularized the phrase. In the United States, the expression
became popular because the records of American Civil War veterans were bound in red tape, and
it was extremely difficult to gain access to them.

5. The phrase red tape has a long history.

A) True
B) False

6. The phrase red tape is sometimes used when the speaker is frustrated by having to get
permission to do something.
A) True
B) False

Reading Comprehension: Multiple Choice

Choose the option that best completes each sentence.

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 7. The phrase red tape became popular in the United States when ___.
A) Henry VIII tied his messages with red ribbons
B) Charles Dickens used the phrase in his writing
C) Civil War records were tied up in red tape
D) people needed to get permission from officials

Vocabulary: Word Families

Choose the word form that correctly completes each sentence.

8. After years of wearing thick glasses, my sister felt ____ when she finally switched to
contact lenses.
A) liberation
B) liberate
C) liberated

9. When the government changed hands, the new leader decided to ____ the political
prisoners from the previous regime.
A) liberation
B) liberate
C) liberated

10. The investigators found that the company's ____ were not as good as the executives said
they were.
A) finances
B) finance
C) financed

11. In order for the college student to buy a new computer, he had to ____ it through the
computer store and make payments every month.
A) finances
B) finance
C) financed

12. The school ____ computer activity to prevent students from checking their personal
email in the computer lab.
A) monitor
B) monitors
C) monitoring

13. Please ____ the work of the two new employees until you are confident that they can do
their jobs.
A) monitor
B) monitors
C) monitored

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 14. The publishers made an ____ that paid off when the book hit the bestseller list.
A) investment
B) invest
C) investing
D) invested

15. The people with no money in the project did not care as much as those who ____ in it.
A) investment
B) investments
C) investing
D) invested

16. Once the ____ for the evacuation was in place, the firefighters asked for volunteers to
test it.
A) strategy
B) strategize
C) strategized
D) strategizing

17. It is difficult to ____ during an actual emergency, so it is best to have a good plan in
place and practice it beforehand.
A) strategy
B) strategize
C) strategized
D) strategizing

Vocabulary: Multiple Choice

Choose the word that best completes each sentence.

18. Even though everyone has a different vision and the project lacks ___, the manager is
confident that it will be successful in the end.
A) technique
B) environment
C) location
D) structure

19. The surveyor was asked to ___ an area on the top of the hill where the ranger station and
educational center could be built.
A) locate
B) create
C) structure
D) predict

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 20. Although the homes in the neighborhood are very ___, they have subtle differences.
A) notwithstanding
B) structured
C) liberal
D) similar

21. Reduced enrollment due to higher tuition ___ a loss of jobs for several campus
employees.
A) consumes
B) equates to
C) finances
D) registers

22. The online discussion forum provides a ___ for users to talk directly with technical
advisors about the problems they're having with the new software.
A) medium
B) symbol
C) label
D) register

23. If you want the technicians to be able to fix the computers quickly, you must ___ them
with all of the proper tools they will need.
A) anticipate
B) monitor
C) modify
D) equip

24. Pollution, with the ___ damage to crops, has weakened the economy in agricultural
areas of the country.
A) adjacent
B) federal
C) consequent
D) involved

25. The new lab was relocated to the ___ building, so the movers only had to move the
equipment a few feet.
A) adjacent
B) modified
C) federal
D) anticipated

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 26. The publisher did not give any ___ why the manuscript was sent back to the young
writer.
A) accumulation
B) protocol
C) indication
D) investment

27. The high-school teacher was ___, and after two years of working at her goals, she was
able to get computers in her classroom.
A) reluctant
B) persistent
C) adequate
D) debatable

28. His success as writer of historical romance novels was ___ years of writing food
descriptions for menus.
A) preceded by
B) depressed by
C) indicated by
D) persistent about

29. His ___ for surviving the tornado involved crouching under the freeway overpass and
waiting.
A) strategy
B) route
C) interval
D) energy

30. Think back to a(n) ___ achievement, no matter how small, and you will remember that
you have the strength to get through this project, too.
A) previous
B) core
C) energetic
D) incoherent

31. At a conference about ecologically friendly energy sources, Christopher managed a(n)
___ about solar energy and its use in residential housing.
A) route
B) core
C) exhibit
D) phenomenon

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Vocabulary: Fill in the blank
Use the words below to complete the sentences. Use each word one time.

label corporate liberal

ethnic location sustain
conversion analysis ensure
legality reluctance core
author exhibition

32. Because of his _____________ views on a variety of issues, the judge was often made
fun of in conservative publications.

33. The new _____________ for the stadium provided easy access to the downtown area of
the city.

34. The mayor described the various _____________ neighborhoods that have sprung up
due to the increase in immigration in recent years.

35. The _____________ from the old software to the new software was a long, complicated
process. In the end, however, the new procedures were far simpler.

36. Several of the highest executives were suspected of _____________ crimes, like fraud
and stock manipulation.

37. The members of the computer club were given the _____________ of geeks.

38. Your _____________ of the information should be fair and unbiased.

39. The _____________ of the security measures was questionable, so the company decided
to get their lawyers involved in the revision plan.

40. The salary a person makes while working as a part-time professor cannot
_____________ a family of four.

41. His _____________ to allow the police officer to search his car indicated that he had
something to hide.

42. The cover of the basketball player's biography lists himself as the _____________, but
everyone knows it was really written by a ghost writer—someone paid to write
something without getting credit for it.

43. To _____________ the safety of the residents, we evacuated the houses closest to the
fire.

44. The _____________ of the problem is not the lack of money, but the lack of time.

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 45. At the conference on weather tracking, we went to a(n) _____________ that explained
the technology behind radar systems.

Writing Prompts
Read the questions. Write your answers in paragraph form.

46. Some people feel that if everyone could simplify their lives and travel less, all of us
would not have as much pollution or even a need for large transportation projects. For
example, people living in small, isolated villages have cleaner air and no need for a
freeway. Do you feel that the social, cultural, and commercial benefits of expansion
justify the environmental costs?

47. Many people feel that computers are making other forms of entertainment technology
unnecessary. For example, people can watch TV programs and movies on their
computer and listen to music on their iPod. What kind of impact do you think computers
will have on the entertainment industry in the future? For example, will the radio
industry or telephone industry be extinct in a few years?

48. Some people think that security in airports is somewhat useless because any type of
security can be fooled or avoided. Do you feel that security measures in airports are
effective? Why or why not? What security measures do you think are the most
effective?

49. Imagine that your life is a story that someone is reading. If you could go back to one
event in your life and add details to make it more exciting, what event would that be?
What kind of details would you add to engage your readers more? Be creative.

50. Which of the following geological occurrences is most fascinating to you: hurricanes,
tsunamis, tornadoes, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions? Explain.

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