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1. Woman: I heard that the award ceremony was wonderful.
Man: Yes, John broke down when he won the humanitarian award.
What does the man mean?
(A) John's award was broken.
(B) John got emotional when he won.
(C) John only received one award.
(D) The award was humanitarian.
2. Man: Will you help me clean the kitchen?
Woman: Sure. You clear away the dishes and I'll wash the pots.
What does the woman want the man to do?
(A) Wipe off the dishes.
(B) Take the dishes off the table.
(C) Take the pots away.
(D) Put the dishes away.
3. Man: It's so sad that Harvey isn't feeling well.
Woman: What a bad time for him to come down with the chicken pox!
What does the woman mean?
(A) Harvey was coming with chicken.
(B) Harvey has chicken pox.
(C) Harvey fell down.
(D) Harvey is having a bad time.
4. Woman: When did the new movie house open up?
Man: I don't know - it seems like it went up last week!
What does the man suggest?
(A) The movie house was built quickly.
(B) The movie house is very tall.
(C) He doesn't understand the woman's question.
(D) It opened a week ago.
5. Woman: Have you heard about the principal's new plan to make the school day longer?
Man: She'll never go through with it!
What does the man mean?
(A) He likes the principal's plan.
(B) The principal went through the school.
(C) Her plan is possible.
(D) The principal will not carry out her plan.
6. Man: How long have you been working on that paper?
Woman: Three hours - I give up!
What does the woman want to do?
(A) Give the man the paper.
(B) Stop working on the paper.
(C) Throw the paper up in the air.
(D) Work longer.
7. Man: Did you see John's new haircut?
Woman: I don't know if that crazy style will fit in with his conservative friends.
What does the woman suggest?
(A) John's haircut is not like any of his friends' haircuts.
(B) John's hair won't fit his head.
(C) John's friends are too conservative.
(D) She hasn't seen John's haircut.
8. Woman: What time do you want to wake up?
Man: Well I'll set the alarm to go off at eight in the morning.
What does the man want to do?
(A) Put off the alarm.
(B) Eat in the morning.
(C) Wake up at eight in the morning.
(D) Get a new alarm.
9. Man: Did you hear about the new vaccine?
Woman: What a breakthrough for people with that sickness!
What does the woman mean?
(A) It's good news for people with that sickness.
(B) People with that sickness will get sicker.
(C) The vaccine is broken.
(D) Scientists are not through with their study.
10. Man: What do you want to do today?
Woman: It's hot - let's just hang around.
What does the woman suggest?
(A) That they do nothing.
(B) That they go home.
(C) That they walk around.
(D) That they hang pictures.
Idiom Drill #2 - Conversational English
Match the idiom with the definition.
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1. pushover
(A) to stay in communication with
(B) restricted
(C) someone easily taken advantage of
(D) to be sick in bed
(E) finished
2. pull off
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to bear an embarrassment
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
3. pass up
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to bear an embarrassment
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
4. pass by
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to bear an embarrassment
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
5. over with
(A) to stay in communication with
(B) restricted
(C) someone easily taken advantage of
(D) to be sick in bed
(E) finished
6. off limits
(A) to stay in communication with
(B) restricted
(C) someone easily taken advantage of
(D) to be sick in bed
(E) finished
7. live down
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to bear an embarrassment
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
8. lay up
(A) to stay in communication with
(B) restricted
(C) someone easily taken advantage of
(D) to be sick in bed
(E) finished
9. lay off
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to bear an embarrassment
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
10. keep in touch with
(A) to refuse
(B) to overlook
(C) to stay in communication with
(D) to do in spite of problems
(E) to terminate someone's employment
Idiom Drill #3 - Conversational English
Read the sentence and then choose the answer that best completes the sentence.
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1. "Work hard and __________it for success."
(A) steep in
(B) step on one's toes in
(C) stick to
(D) pull out of
2. "I'm in a real rush;_________later and I'll have more time to talk".
(A) stop by
(B) drop out
(C) turn over
(D) turn off
3. Jane was _______ with work and couldn't be here.
(A) up to date
(B) tied up
(C) filled up
(D) touched up
4. Smitty felt that people who were rude were a real________.
(A) turnoff
(B) turn down
(C) turn over
(D) stop up
5. Patty always sets her alarm so that she can ________ at 8.
(A) think over
(B) write down
(C) think through
(D) wake up
6. The beginning of the sequel to that book brings the reader__________ with what
happened in the first book.
(A) up over
(B) up to date
(C) up against
(D) think over
7. At our school no one would even think to ________ against the administration for fear
of getting in trouble.
(A) step in
(B) sign in
(C) speak out
(D) step up
8. Due to the great fury about what little he had done, Mayor Pete was forced to
_________to satisfy the people.
(A) speed up
(B) step down
(C) speak up
(D) step in
9. "Why don't you _________; I'm sure that Mr. Smith will be here any second.
(A) step up
(B) sign in
(C) stick around
(D) think better of
10. Americans _________ being able to buy anything they want in a large convenience
store -- in Russia, it is not always so easy.
(A) think over
(B) think through
(C) think better of
(D) think nothing of
This is a drill on adjectives and adverbs. Read each sentence, and then click on the
answer you think is best.
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1. Martha performed _______ on the exam.
(A) good
(B) well
2. The car moves _________.
(A) quick
(B) quickly
3. The ground was _________ after the night's frost.
(A) firm
(B) firmly
4. Paul scored the test __________.
(A) accurate
(B) accurately
5. The winner of the contest is certainly __________.
(A) beautiful
(B) beautifully
6. My new car runs so __________.
(A) smooth
(B) smoothly
7. The color of my house is __________ yellow.
(A) bright
(B) brightly
8. The old computer runs so __________ .
(A) slow
(B) slowly
9. After going to the dance, Mary was __________ tired.
(A) real
(B) really
10. The meal was ___________.
(A) delicious
(B) deliciously
Sentence Completion
Drill 1
The following sentences do not have main verbs. Read each sentence, and then click on
the answer you think is best.
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1. Although foot problems increase as people age, women _____________ from them at
a greater rate than men.
(A) suffer
(B) suffering
(C) also
(D) is suffering
2. An aspirin a day ___________shown to be effective for some people in preventing
heart attacks, according to a study in last year's medical journal.
(A) being
(B) has been
(C) to be
(D) though
3. The number of people moving from the East to the West coast __________ over the
past ten years.
(A) increasing
(B) to be increased
(C) been increasing
(D) has increased
4. Fewer than one in five people __________ on a regular basis.
(A) exercise
(B) to exercise
(C) exercising
(D) with exercise
5. Bears, moose, Dall sheep, and many varieties of birds ___________ the area
surrounding the Nahanni River.
(A) which inhabited
(B) from inhabiting
(C) to inhabit
(D) inhabit
6. Rock climbing __________ the new sport of the nineties.
(A) that became
(B) becoming
(C) has become
(D) to become
7. With bioengineering, foods _______ a longer shelf life.
(A) may have
(B) they have
(C) which have
(D) having had
8. In most sports, hand-eye coordination __________ important.
(A) are
(B) is
(C) it is being
(D) being
Example Questions from a reading passage
Read the passage and then answer the questions. In some questions you can click on the
highlighted portion of the question; this will take you to the passage to read; then scroll
back down to answer the question.
(1) The first half of the twentieth century ushered in many drastic changes. Some of the
most far-reaching changes have been brought about by one invention, the
(5) automobile. The increased availability of gasoline- powered cars has affected all
aspects of society, all over the world.
In 1909 Ford's Model T sold for three hundred and fifty dollars. However, with the
(10) invention of the assembly line, which reduced the production time for a car from
fourteen hours to ninety-three minutes, Ford was able to sell the Model T for less than
three hundred dollars by the end of the
(15) decade. In the 1920s General Motors introduced five classes of car, from the
luxurious Cadillac to the economical Chevrolet. By 1929 there was one car on the road
for every five people living in the
(20)United States.
This booming industry helped to support many others, including the steel, chemical,
rubber, petroleum, and glass industries. Americans willingly paid state gasoline taxes
(25) to create the new highways that soon crisscrossed the nation. The automobile also
affected industries not directly involved with production or transportation. For example,
advertising agencies responded to
(30)increased highway traffic with a tremendous surge in roadside billboard advertising.
In all, by the 1930s more than 3.7 million workers in some way owed their jobs to the
popularity of the automobile.
(35) That number of workers continued to grow for the greater part of this century.
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1. What is the main idea of this passage?
(A) Turn-of-the-century automobiles
(B) The effect of the automobile on American industry
(C) The history of the American highway system
(D) The impact of assembly-line technology on American industry
2. All of the following are mentioned as having benefited from the increased popularity
of the automobile EXCEPT
(A) the rubber industry
(B) the tourist industry
(C) the steel industry
(D) highway construction
3. According to the passage, the effect of assembly-line production on the automobile
industry was.
(A) a reduction in the average worker's salary by three hundred
(B) automobiles of better quality
(C) an increase in the popularity of the Chevrolet
(D) a reduction in the price of a Model T
4. The word "booming" in line 21 could best be replaced by
(A) rapidly growing
(B) severely limited
(C) noise-producing
(D) explosive
5. The passage implies that the increase in the number of roadside billboards was
primarily due to
(A) an increase in the number of highway workers
(B) an increase in advertising overall
(C) a new gasoline tax
(D) an increase in the number of cars
6. What will the paragraph following this passage most likely discuss?
(A) recent innovations in automobile design
(B) the lives of workers in the automobile industry
(C) the automobile's current role in world economics
(D) the historical importance of automobiles
Reading Comprehension
Drill 2
Match each phrase to its paraphrase.
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1. determine optimal planting schedules
(A) establishment of democracy
(B) hinder erosion
(C) find a new way to solve the problem
(D) find the best time to sow seeds
(E) almost simultaneously
2. due to comprehensive adjustments
(A) because of drastic changes in
(B) a more traditional approach
(C) a major cause of its success
(D) experience of different feelings
(E) in dire need of
3. a primary reason for the victory
(A) because of drastic changes in
(B) a more traditional approach
(C) a major cause of its success
(D) experience of different feelings
(E) in dire need of
4. improvise a solution
(A) establishment of democracy
(B) hinder erosion
(C) find a new way to solve the problem
(D) find the best time to sow seeds
(E) almost simultaneously
5. introduction of a representative form of government
(A) establishment of democracy
(B) hinder erosion
(C) find a new way to solve the problem
(D) find the best time to sow seeds
(E) almost simultaneously
6. keep topsoil in place
(A) establishment of democracy
(B) hinder erosion
(C) find a new way to solve the problem
(D) find the best time to sow seeds
(E) almost simultaneously
7. a chronic shortage of
(A) because of drastic changes in
(B) a more traditional approach
(C) a major cause of its success
(D) experience of different feelings
(E) in dire need of
8. various emotional responses
(A) because of drastic changes in
(B) a more traditional approach
(C) a major cause of its success
(D) experience of different feelings
(E) in dire need of
9. roughly at the same time
(A) establishment of democracy
(B) hinder erosion
(C) find a new way to solve the problem
(D) find the best time to sow seeds
(E) almost simultaneously
10. a more conservative style
(A) because of drastic changes in
(B) a more traditional approach
(C) a major cause of its success
(D) experience of different feelings
(E) in dire need of
