PRACTICE TEST 5

I: VOCABULARY
Choose a word or a phrase that best completes each sentence.
1. There is large effort _____ to rebuild arts education in the New York City public schools.
A. under way B. in the way C. out of way D. over the way
2. After living together for six years, Janet and Matt have finally decided to _____.
A. feel the pinch B. pull a few strings C. tie the knot D. be up and about
3. The party was already _____ by the time we arrived. Everyone was singing and dancing.
A. in full swing B. up in the air C. over the moon D. under a cloud
4. His strange behaviour aroused the _____ of police.
A. doubt B. suspicion C. disbelief D. notice
5. Media reports on the outcome of military intervention often _____ the true facts.
A. divert B. detract C. depose D. distort
6. The day their first child was born, the new parents were _____ with joy.
A. overthrown B. overpowered C. overtaken D. overcome
7. We may win, we may lose – it’s just the luck of the _____.
A. chance B. draw C. odds D. fate
8. They’re having serious problems. Their relationship is on the _____.
A. cliffs B. rocks C. stones D. grass
9. The renewed interest in Elizabethan times is evident in a _____ of new Hollywood films set during that period.
A. spate B. hypocrisy C. transience D. demise
10. The car was _____ speed.
A. gathering B. collecting C. consuming D. firing
KEY TO QUESTION 2:
1. A 2. C 3. A 4. B 5. D
6. A 7. B 8. B 9. A 10. A
II: GRAMMAR AND STRUCTURES
Choose a word or a phrase that best completes each sentence.
1. It was the impact of the rail road _________agriculture in the West .
A. expanding B. that expanded C. what expanded D. which expanded
2. _________his brother, Jim exercises every day.
A. Alike B. Dislike C. Unlike D. Liking
3. I propose the report _________ sent in..
A. would be B. be C. must be D. was
4. The Second World War was so terrible, _______ time a large number of families were separated.
A. during the B. during which C. at the D. on which
5. My car, _________, was very expensive
A. which imported from Japan B. that was imported from Japan
C. imported from that Japan D. was imported from that Japan
6. Relative humidity is the amount of water vapor the air at a certain temperature _______ with the amount it could hold at
that temperature.
A. to compare B. comparing C. compared D. compares
7 . _______ by the policeman, his face went pale with fear.
A. For being tied B. Having been tied C. What he did was seen D. His hands tied
8. Price continued to rise while wages remained low _______ the government became increasingly unpopular.
A. Provided that B. in order that C. on condition that D. with the result that
9. We hire our bicycle _______.
A. by the hour B. by hours C. by an hour D. for hours
10. You can try asking Jim for help, but _______ any good.
A. it won’t do you B. it’s not doing you C. it won’t be doing you D. it will do you
KEY TO QUESTION 3:
1. C 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. C 6. D 7. D 8. D 9. A 10. A
III: IDIOMS AND PHRASAL VERBS
Fill in each of the blanks with an appropriate WORD.
1. The school examination for eleven-year-olds was done_________ with some years ago.
2. He keeps trying to get it published but I think he's flogging a dead __________.

3. We'll have to leave at the _________ of dawn.

4. We just jumped in a car ________ the spur of the moment and drove to the seaside.
5. I was worried that they wouldn't like each other but in fact they're getting _______ like a house on fire.
6. I don’t like to make friends with the person who always runs_________ his old friends.
7. They always close at six o’clock ________the dot.
8. She's really good at taking people ________ .

9. He was___________ all accounts a very kind and gentle man.

10. Since I changed washing powders, my clothes have looked whiter and felt softer _______the touch.
KEY TO QUESTION 4:
1. away 2.horse 3.crack 4.on 5.on 6.down 7. on 8.off 9.by 10.to
IV: READING
A. PASSAGE 1
Read the following passage carefully and choose the best answers to the questions
The composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s remarkable musical talent was apparent even before most children can sing a
simple nursery rhyme. Wolfgang’s older sister Maria Anna (who the family called Nannerl) was learning the clavier, an early
keyboard instrument, when her three-year-old brother took an interest in playing. As Nannerl later recalled, Wolfgang “often
spent much time at the clavier picking out thirds, which he was always striking, and his pleasure showed that it sounded good.”
Their father Leopold, an assistant concertmaster at the Salzburg Court, recognized his children’s unique gifts and soon devoted
himself to their musical education.
Born in Salzburg, Austria, on January 27, 1756, Wolfgang had composed his first original work by age five. Leopold planned to
take Nannerl and Wolfgang on tour to play before the European courts. Their first venture was to nearby Munich where the
children played for Maximillian III Joseph, elector of Bavaria. Leopold soon set his sights on the capital of the Hapsburg Empire,
Vienna. On their way to Vienna, the family stopped in Linz, where Wolfgang gave his first public concert. By this time,
Wolfgang was not only a virtuoso harpsichord player, but he had also mastered the violin. The audience at Linz was stunned by
the six-year-old, and word of his genius soon traveled to Vienna. In a much anticipated concert, the Mozart children appeared
at the Schonbrunn Palace on October 13, 1762. They utterly charmed the emperor and empress.
Following this success, Leopold was inundated with invitations for the children to play, for a fee. Leopold seized the opportunity
and booked as many concerts as possible at courts throughout Europe. A concert could last three hours, and the children
played at least two per day. Today, Leopold might be considered the worst kind of stage parent, but at the time, it was
uncommon for prodigies to make extensive concert courts. Even so, it was an exhausting schedule for a child who was just
past the age of needing an afternoon nap.
1. A good title for this passage would be _____.
A. Classical Music in the Eighteenth Century: An Overview.
B. Stage parents: A historical Perspective.
C. Mozart: The Early Life of a Musical Prodigy.
D. Mozart: The Short Career of a Musical Genius.
2. According to the passage, Wolfgang became interested in music because _____.
A. His father thought it would be profitable.
B. He had a natural talent.
C. He saw his sister learning to play an instrument.
D. He came from a musical family.
3. The word virtuoso in paragraph 2 mostly means _________.
A. avid B. skilled C. young D. famous
4. What was the consequence of Wolfgang’s first public appearance?
A. He charmed the emperor and empress of Hapsburg.
B. Word of Wolfgang’s genius spread to the capital.
C. Leopold set his sights on Vienna.
D. Invitations for the miracle children to play poured in.
5. The word anticipated in paragraph 2 can be best replaced by _________.
A. awaited B. crowded C. foreseen D. interesting
6. Each of the following statements about Wolfgang Mozart is directly supported by the passage except
A. Mozart’s father, Leopold, was instrumental in shaping his career.
B. Maria Anna was a talented musician in her own right.
C. Wolfgang’s childhood was devoted to his musical career.
D. Wolfgang preferred the clavier to other instruments.
7. The word inundated in paragraph 3 is synonymous with _________.
A. overexcited B. spoiled C. reluctant D. overwhelmed
8. The word prodigies in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to _________.
A. children B. professors C. geniuses D. musicians
9. According to the passage, during Wolfgang’s early years, child prodigies were _____.
A. few and far between.
B. accustomed to extensive concert tours.
C. expected to spend at least six hours per day practicing their music.
D. expected to play for courts throughout Europe.
10. Based on information found in the passage, Mozart can be best described as _____.
 A. a child prodigy.
B. a workaholic.
C. the greatest composer of the eighteenth century.
D. a victim of his father’s ambition.
KEY TO QUESTION 5
PASSAGE 1
1. C 2. C 3. B 4. B 5. A 6. D 7. D 8. C 9. B 10. A
B. PASSAGE 2
Read this magazine article and choose the correct answers to the questions that follow.
My life as a human speed bump
Giving up a car has not been quite the liberating experience that George Monbiot had hoped.
Seventeen years after giving up my car, I still feel like a second-class citizen. I am trying to do the right thing, but the United
Kingdom just isn’t run for people like me. Take our bus services. My home city, Oxford, has invested massively in a park-and-
ride scheme: buses shuttle people into the center from car parks on the periphery. At first I thought this was a great idea.
Now, having stood for what must amount to weeks at bus stops, watching the full double deckers go by every couple of
minutes without stopping, I realize it’s not just the roads which have been monopolised by drivers, but also the public transport
system.
Or take the bike lane. Most consist of lines painted on the road where it is wide and safe, which disappear as soon as it
becomes narrow and dangerous. One of them, in Oxford, has been gravelled, which shows that the people who designed them
have never ridden a bicycle. When we asked for a bike lane on one of the city’s busiest streets, the council chose instead to
narrow the street and widen the pavements, in the hope that the bicycle would slow down the cars. The cyclists, perversely
reluctant to become human speed bumps, started travelling down the pavement.
Now there is almost nowhere reserved for people like me. Out of political cowardice, councils and the police have given up
enforcing the law. Preventing people from parking on the pavement would mean cutting the number of parking places, as the
streets are otherwise too narrow. Though they cannot complete a sentence without using the words “sustainable
development”, this action seems impossible for our councilors to contemplate. In one part of Oxford they have solved the
problem by painting parking places on the pavement. Since my daughter was born, and I have started pushing the pram, I
have been forced to walk in the middle of the road. In one respect this makes sense: the pavements are so badly maintained
that she will only sleep when she’s being pushed down the smooth grey carpet laid out for the cars.
My problem is that by seeking to reduce my impact on the planet, I joined a political minority that is diminishing every year. As
car ownership increases, its only remaining members are a handful of eccentrics like me, the very poor and those not
competent to drive. None of these groups wield political power. Our demands are counter-aspirational, and therefore of little
interest to either politicians or the media.
Now, to my horror, I find I am beginning to question even the environmental impact of my 17 years of abstinence. It is true
that my own carbon emissions have been suppressed. It is also true that if everyone did the same thing the total saving would
be enormous. The problem is that, in the absence of regulation, traffic expands to fill the available space. By refusing to own a
car I have merely opened up road space for other people, who tend to drive more fuel-hungry models that I would have
chosen. We can do little to reduce our impacts on the environment if the government won’t support us.
There are some compensations, however. About three or four times a year I hire a car. When I stop at motorway service
stations, I am struck by the staggering levels of obesity: it appears to be far more prevalent there than on trains or coaches.
People who take public transport must at least walk to the bus stop. The cyclists among us keep fit without even noticing.
Being without a car in Oxford has forced me to embed myself in my home town. It throws me into contact with far more
people than I would otherwise meet. There are a couple of routes which make cycling a real pleasure: the towpath along the
Thames, for example, takes me most of the way to the station. But overall, as far as self-interest is concerned, I would struggle
to claim that giving up my car was a wholly positive decision.
1. The writer’s view of the Oxford park-and-ride scheme is that _____.
A. the large volume of cars prevents it from operating effectively
B. it has been an unqualified success
C. it has suffered from insufficient investment
D. it has become too popular
2. The writer thinks that cyclists started travelling down the pavement in one of Oxford’s busiest streets because _____.
A. the council put speed bumps in the street
B. the pavement is very wide
C. there is no bike lane in this street
D. in the bike lane cyclists are too close to cars
3. The word “gravelled” in paragraph 2 is best replaced with ___.
A. covered with small stones B. made narrow
C. in bad maintenance D. in bad condition
4. In what way does the writer believe that Oxford city council has shown “political cowardice”?
A. It is reluctant to prevent cars parking on pedestrian areas.
B. It doesn’t want cyclists on the city’s roads.
C. It has narrowed some roads to discourage cyclists from using them.
D. It has a policy of sustainable development.
 5. According to the writer, the “political minority” that he is part of _____.
A. is becoming poorer
B. has little political influence
C. consists of people who can’t drive
D. includes people who act in a strange way
6. The word “abstinence” in paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to ______.
A. indulgence B. self-restraint C. conservation D. fighting
7. In paragraph 5 the writer suggests that the effect of his actions has been to _____.
A. discourage the government from giving support
B. lower maintenance standards for pavements
C. create more room on the road for other cars
D. encourage others to drive bigger cars
8. The word “prevalent” in paragraph 6 is best replaced by _____.
A. accepted B. common C. habitual D. localized
9. The writer’s observations at the motorway service stations suggest to him that _____.
A. car drivers are more overweight than public transport users
B. people who own cars are thinner than people who hire them
C. people who use public transport don’t get enough exercise
D. cyclists ride bikes in order to keep fit
10. According to the writer, being without a car in Oxford _____.
A. has been a completely positive experience
B. has increased the number of people he knows
C. has forced him to stay at home more
D. has been a complete mistake
KEY TO READING PASSAGE 2

1. D 2. C 3. A 4. A 5. B 6. B 7. C 8. B 9. A 10. B

V: MULTIPLE CHOICE CLOZE

A. MULTIPLE CHOICE CLOZE 1

Aunt Margaret’s kitchen
The kitchen was quite dark because the blinds were (1) ____. There was a smell of (2) ____ cigarette smoke and some
unwashed cups were (3) ____neatly in the sink, but the room was ferociously clean. It was quite a big room. There was a (4)
____ dresser, painted dark brown, loaded with crockery, a flour jar, a bread-bin. There was a larder you could walk into.
Melanie experimentally walked into it and (5) ____ the door to on herself in a cool smell of cheese and mildew. What did they
eat? Tins of things: they seemed particularly (6) ____ of tinned peaches, there was a whole pile of tins of peaches. Tinned
beans, tinned sardines. Aunt Margaret must buy tins in (7) ____. There were a number of cake tins and Melanie opened one
and found last night’s currant cake. She took a ready-cut (8) ____ of it and ate it. It made her feel more at (9) ____, already,
to steal something from the larder. She went back into the kitchen, (10) ____ crumbs.
1. A. installed B. tied C. drawn D. retracted
2. A. stale B. rancid C. ancient D. musty
3. A. erected B. stacked C. ordered D. ranked
4. A. built-up B. cornered C. walled D. built-in
5. A. took B. pulled C. made D. put
6. A. crazy B. loving C. fond D. likeable
7. A. lots B. gross C. mass D. bulk
8. A. slice B. rasher C. shaving D. remnant
9. A. comfort B. place C. home D. rest
10. A. sprinkling B. shedding C. sowing D. scattering
KEY TO MULTIPLE CHOICE CLOZE 1
1. C 2. A 3. B 4. D 5. B 6. C 7. D 8. A 9. C 10. D

B. MULTIPLE CHOICE CLOZE 2

Friends benefit firms
We have all heard tales about difficult people at work, usually managers, but the office is also where many people make
friends, and friends (1) ______ us to feel that bit more enthusiastic about the job we do. Research has found that more than
half of British workers (2) ____ their best friends in the office and more than a third say that they go on holiday with (3) ____
workers.
The changing nature of work with more flexibility and more multi-tasking means that people (4) ____ stability from their
workmates. Friendship bring (5) ____ in a changing world. A collaborative working environment (6) ____ the way for making
job-sharing and expansion of roles more of an (7) ____ for employers and employees.
So fun workplaces where friendships flourish (8) ____workers who can handle changing job roles. This is not (9) ____
surprising since numerous experiments carried out by workplace psychologists over the years have clearly demonstrated that
work is a social (10) ______.
1. A. enliven B. influence C. inspire D. stimulate
2. A. meet B. encounter C. find D. know
3. A. peer B. colleague C. companion D. fellow
4. A. desire B. search C. seek D. wish
5. A. basis B. support C. assistance D. backing
6. A. leads B. finds C. shows D. paves
7. A. option B. opportunity C. opening D. occasion
8. A. appeal B. attract C. lure D. engage
9. A. extremely B. thoroughly C. entirely D. utterly
10. A. affair B. interaction C. environment D. responsibility
KEY TO MULTIPLE CHOICE CLOZE 2
1. C 2. A 3. D 4. C 5. B 6. D 7. A 8. B 9. C 10. A

B. WRITTEN QUESTIONS

QUESTION 1: OPEN CLOZE TESTS

A. TEST 1: Fill in each blank with one suitable word

Celebrity Crossover

It is not surprising that actors want to be pop stars, (0) and vice versa. (1) ______ that is deep in a part of our brain that
most of us manage to keep (2) ______ control, we all want to be pop stars and actors.
Sadly, there's nothing about the former profession that automatically qualifies you for the other, (3) ______, of course, for the
fact that famous actors and singers are already surrounded by people who never say no to them. On the whole, pop stars tend
to fare better on screen than their opposite numbers (4) ______ on CD. Let's face it: not being able to act is (5) ______ big
drawback in Hollywood, whereas not being able to play or sing still tends to count (6) ______ you in the recording studio.
Some stars do display a genuine proficiency in both disciplines, and a few even maintain successful careers in both fields, but
this just (7) ______ a bad example for all the others. For every success, there are two dozen failures. And most of them have
no idea (8) ______ terrible they are.
Just as power tends to corrupt, so celebrity tends to destroy the ability to gauge whether or not you're making a fool of (9)
______.
But perhaps we shouldn't criticize celebrities for trying to expand their horizons in this way. (10) ______ there is one good
thing about actors trying to sing and singers trying to act, it is that it keeps them all too busy to write books.

KEY TO TEST 1:

1. somewhere 5. a 9. yourself

2. under 6. against 10. if

3. except / but 7. sets

4. do 8. how

B. TEST 2
A new television programme in America – Blind Hate – plans to show couples spitting up! The programme is already advertising
in the papers for (1) ______ “contestants”. The makers of the programme have come up with a plan to tempt one partner into
being unfaithful to the other – with them being chatted up by an attractive “stranger” – so that the second partner then has a
good (2) ______ for being able to get rid of the first one! All of this will take place under the observation of a secret camera,
(3) ______ both the partners subsequently being invited into a television studio where the film will be shown to a studio
audience. Only one partner will know what the show is really (4) ______ about, with the unfaithful one suddenly (5) ______
confronted with their own infidelity. The show boasts that it will have special counsellors on (6) ______ to help deal with the
split and its psychological impact. However, it has already (7) ______ in for severe criticism from religious and other bodies
who claim that it is potentially very dangerous as well as in very bad (8) ______. The Church in particular says that it damages
the value of marriage and is highly immoral. Many psychologists too have condemned it (9) ______ some of their colleagues
taking part in the spectacle. Whether the show actually finally gets (10) ______ go ahead remains to be seen, but its makers
are optimistic that it will be a great success!

KEY TO TEST 2:
1. potential 2. excuse 3. with 4. all 5. being
6. hand / call 7. come 8. taste 9. despite 10. the
QUESTION 2: WORD FORMS
A. Give the correct form of each word in brackets to complete the sentence.
1. Joining this project is a _____. Just do it. (NO-BRAINER)
2. There are a lot of _____ articles in this newspaper. Why not read it? (NEWSWORTHY)
3. My cousin is a _____ person. He is aware of all the latest fashions and wanting to follow them. (FASHION-CONSCIOUS)
4. The burglar gained entry to the building after _____ the alarm. (DISABLING)
5. Whatever happens, don't let this failure _____ you. (DISHEARTEN)
6. Your carelessness may do _____ harm to people. (INCALCULABLE)
7. The _____ listed for the pills meant that she couldn't take them because she may be allergic to some of the chemicals in
them. (INDICATE)
8. We were defeated because we were_____. (OUTNUMBERED)
9. It is _____ summer, but it's rather autumnal today. (THEORETICALLY)
10. This type of _____ screen enables drivers to have a clear view even when it is smashed. (SHATTER-PROOF)

KEY TO QUESTION 2A:

1. no-brainer 2. newsworthy 3. fashion-conscious
4. disabling 5. dishearten 6. incalculable
7. contraindications 8. outnumbered 9. theoretically
10. shatter-proof

QUESTION 2: WORD FORMS

B. Use the correct form of the words given to complete the passage.

BECOME - DANGER - SIMPLE - RICH - DIVERSE

GROW - ARRANGE – POPULATE- DEVELOP- EXIST
Not all the creatures on the (1) _________ species list are doomed to extinction, as the story of the giant panda has shown.
Their whole (2) _________ was considered to be in jeopardy some years ago, but now, after (3) __________ the most
influential symbol of nature conservation, things are looking up. Their plight highlights how (4) _________ can impact natural
(5) _________ and should serve as a reminder that the unique habitats of these incredible creatures are (6) _________
irreplaceable. The good news is that whilst there may be an unwillingness to halt development and (7)_________ for the sake of
nature alone, many people are beginning to understand that sustainability can aid (8) _________ by bringing economic benefits,
through eco-tourism for example, to communities that are home to pandas. Such an (9) _________ would not only serve to
protect the pandas, but also (10) _________ the lives of the inhabitants in the local communities.
KEY TO QUESTION 2.B:
1. endangered 2. existence 3. becoming 4. overpopulation 5. diversity
6. simply 7. growth 8. development 9. arrangement 10. enrich

QUESTION 3: ERROR CORRECTION

There are TEN mistakes in the following passage. Write them down and give the correction. Write your answers in the space provided.
I cannot stress too much the importance on watching your opponent, of knowing exactly where he is on the tennis
court and what he is doing. It is usually possible to work on the pattern of his game very early in a match. Test him at the front
of the court. Try hitting one or two balls up high to see how shots are like. The more quickly you discover his weakness, the
easier the match should become.
Again and again it may be a good idea to give your opponent an opportunity of making a mistake. When, early in the
match, it seems that he is a very inaccurate player, but not a forceful one, then you should tempt him to play a winning shot.
Give him the opening, for there are some players who simply cannot hit winners. They will try to play an attacking game but
they can quite finish it off. The way to break down their steady game may be by putting them into the front of the court.
It is obviously wiser to try to decide at the beginning of the match whether your opponent is weaker on his left-hand
or on his right-hand-side, and then play a little more than fifty per cent of your shots down that side. Play a normal attacking
game, or the game you think you will win, but concentrate the weaker side. A number of players experience more trouble than
another in the back corners of the court- always be ready to recognize this weakness. Perhaps an opponent has a favorite
backhand shot, but lacks certainty with his forehand shot. Tempt him to play the forehand shot.
KEY TO QUESTION 3:
1. (importance) on -> of 2. (work) on->out
3. (see) how-> what 4. Again (and again) ->Now
5. When (early) -> If 6. inaccurate -> inaccurate
7. can (quite finish) -> cannot 8. (break) down-> up
9. concentrate -> concentrate on 10. (than) another-> others
QUESTION 4: SENTENCE TRANSFORMATION
For each of the sentences below, write a new sentence as similar as possible in meaning to the original sentence, but using the word given.
This word must not be altered in any way.
1. I really don't like it when you cheated me yesterday. (RIDE)
I'd rather you .............................................
2. Don't make a fuss over such trivial things. (MOUNTAIN)
Don't .........................................................
3. We were amazed to know that he was a liar. (UNTRUTH)
To .............................................................
4. Everyday television viewers witness some sort of violence or crime on their screens. (GOES BY)
Hardly ......................................................
5. Some parents are confident that their children will succeed. (HOPES)
Some parents have ………………………….
6. It is best for you to give up resistance and to co-operate. (INTEREST)
It is in …………………………………………..
7. I can’t stand your stupid remarks any longer. (ENOUGH)
I’ve had ………………………………………..
8. He insisted on absolute obedience and recognition of his right to give orders. (NOTHING)
 He ……………………………………………..
9. She reminds me strongly of someone else that I used to know. (RESEMBLANCE)
She ……………………………………………..
10. You will start to feel better as soon as this drug is effective. (EFFECT)
The moment ……………………………………….
KEYS
1. I'd rather you hadn’t taken me for a ride yesterday.
2. Don't make a mountain out of a mole hill.
3. To our amazement, he told that/an untruth.
4. Hardly a day goes by without television viewers witnessing some sort of violence or
crime on their screens.
5. Some parents have high/great hopes for/of their children / that their children will succeed.
6. It is in your (best) interest(s) to give up resistance and to co-operate.
7. I've had enough of your stupid remarks.
8. He insisted on nothing but his right to give orders.
9. She bears a strong resemblance to somebody else that I used to know.
10. The moment this drug takes effect, you will start to feel better.

THE END