Week 1 English Practice Test
Week 1 English Practice Test
Week 1 English Practice Test
Structure
Directions: Questions 1-15 are incomplete sentences. Beneath each sentence you will see
four words or phrases, marked (A), (B), (C), and (D). Choose the one word or phrase that best
completes the sentence. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill
in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen. Fill in the space so
that the letter inside the oval cannot be seen.
Look at the following examples.
Example I
The president the election by a landslide. Sample answer
(A) won
(B) he won
(C) yesterday
(D) fortunately
The sentence should read, "The president won the election by a landslide." Therefore, you
should choose (A).
Example II
When the conference? Sample answer
The sentence should read, "When did the doctor attend the conference?" Therefore, you
should choose (B).
Now begin work on the questions.
1. , the outermost layer of skin, is 6. Conditions required for seed
about as thick as a sheet of paper over germination include abundant water, an
most of the skin. adequate supply of oxygen, and
WRITTEN EXPRESSION
Directions: In questions 16-40, each sentence has four underlined words or phrases. The four
underlined parts of the sentence are marked (A), (B), (C), and (D). Identify the one underlined
word or phrase that must be changed in order for the sentence to be correct. Then, on your
answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill in the space that corresponds to the
letter of the answer you have chosen.
Look at the following examples.
in fifths.
The sentence should read, "The four strings on a violin are tuned in fifths.” Therefore, you
should choose (B).
The sentence should read, “The research for the book Roots took Alex Haley twelve years.”
Therefore, you should choose (C).
Now begin work on the questions.
16. Mosquitoes will accepts the malaria parasite at only one stage of the parasite’s
A B C
complex life cycle.
D
17. The counterpart of a negative electrons is the positive proton.
A B C D
18. The ankle joint occur where the lower ends of the tibia and fibula slot neatly around
A B C D
the talus.
19. In the United States and Canada, motor vehicle laws affect the operate of
A B C
motorcycles as well as automobiles.
D
20. The neocortex is, in evolutionary terms, most recent layer of the brain.
A B C D
21. There are more than eighty-four million specimens in the National Museum of
A B
Natural History’s collection of biological, geological, archeological, and
C
anthropology treasures.
D
22. After George Washington married widow Martha Custis, the couple came to resides
A B C D
at Mount Vernon.
23. At this stage in their development, rubberized asphalt can hardly be classified as
A B C D
cutting edge.
24. Rhesus monkeys exhibit patterns of shy similar to those in humans.
A B C D
25. In space, with no gravity for muscles to work against, the body becomes weakly.
A B C D
26. Fort Jefferson, in the Dry Tortugas off the southern tip of Florida, can be reach
A B C
29. The Betataken House Ruins at Navajo National Monument is among the largest and
A B
most elaborate cliff dwellings in the country.
C D
30. It is a common observation that liquids will soak through some materials but not
A B C
through other.
D
31. The number of wild horses on Assateague are increasing lately, resulting in
A B C
overgrazed marsh and dune grasses.
D
32. The newsreels of Hearst Metronome News, which formed part of every moviegoers
A
experience in the era before television, offer an unique record of the events of the
B C D
1930s.
33. Unlikely gas sport balloons, hot air balloons do not have nets.
A B C D
34. Born in Massachusetts in 1852, Albert Farbanks has begun making banjos in Boston
A B C
in the late 1870s.
D
35. Dwight David Eisenhower, military officer and thirty-fourth president of the United
A
States, lived in the White House and of least thirty-seven other residences.
B C D
36. Methane in wetlands comes from soil bacteria that consumes organic plant matter.
A B C D
37. Alois Alzheimer made the first observers of the telltale signs of the disease that today
A B
bears his name.
C D
38. Edward MacDowell remembers as the composer of such perennial favorites as “To a
 B C D
Wild Rose" and “To a Water Lily."
39. Animism is the belief that objects and natural phenomena such as rivers, rocks, and
A B
wind are live and have feelings.
C D
40. Newtonian physics accounts for the observing orbits of the planets and the moons.
A B C D
SECTION 3
READING COMPREHENSION
Time—55 minutes
(including the reading of the directions)
Example I
To what did John Quincy Adams devote his life? Sample answer
(A) Improving his personal life
Questions 1-10
The hippopotamus is the third largest land animal, smaller only than the elephant and
the rhinoceros. Its name comes from two Greek words which mean "river horse." The long
name of this animal is often shortened to the easier to handle term "hippo."
The hippo has a natural affinity for the water. It does not float on top of the water;
instead, it can easily walk along the bottom of a body of water. The hippo commonly remains
underwater for three to five minutes and has been known to stay under for up to half an hour
before coming up for air.
In spite of its name, the hippo has relatively little in common with the horse and
instead has a number of interesting similarities in common with the whale. When a hippo
comes up after a stay at the bottom of a lake or river, it releases air through a blowhole, just
like a whale. In addition, the hippo resembles the whale in that they both have thick layers of
blubber for protection and they are almost completely hairless.
1. The topic of this passage is 4. It can be inferred from the passage
that the hippopotamus is commonly called
(A) the largest land animals a hippo because the word “hippo” is
(B) the derivations of animal names (A) simpler to pronounce
(C) the characteristics of the hippo (B) scientifically more accurate
(D) the relation between the hippo and (C) the original name
the whale (D) easier for the animal to recognize
2. It can be inferred from the passage 5. The word "float” in line 4 is closest
that the rhinoceros is in meaning to
(A) smaller than the hippo (A) sink
(B) equal in size to the elephant (B) drift
(C) a hybrid of the hippo and the (C) eat
elephant (D) flap
(D) one of the two largest types of land 6. According to the passage, what is
the maximum time that hippos have been
animals
known to stay underwater?
3. The possessive “Its” in line 2 refers
(A) Three minutes
to
(B) Five minutes
(A) hippopotamus
(C) Thirty minutes
(B) elephant
(D) Ninety minutes
(C) rhinoceros
(D) horse
7. The expression “has relatively little (D) they both breathe underwater
in common” in line 7 could best be
replaced by 9. The word “blubber” in line 10 is
closest in meaning to
(A) has few interactions
(A) fat
(B) is not normally found
(B) metal
(C) has minimal experience
(C) water
(D) shares few similarities
(D) skin
8. The passage states that one way in
which a hippo is similar to a whale is that 10. The passage states that the hippo
does not
(A) they both live on the bottoms of
rivers (A) like water
(C) they are both named after horses (C) have a protective coating
(D) have much hair
Questions 11-19
John Janies Audubon, nineteenth-century artist and naturalist, is known as one of the
foremost authorities on North American birds. Bom in Les Cayes, Haiti, in 1785, Audubon
was raised in France and studied art under French artist Jacques-Louis David. After settling
on his father’s Line Pennsylvania estate at the age of eighteen, he first began to study and
paint birds.
In his young adulthood, Audubon undertook numerous enterprises, generally without a
tremendous amount of success; at various times during his life he was involved in a
mercantile business, a lumber and grist mill, a taxidermy business, and a school. His general
mode of operating a business was to leave it either unattended or in the hands of a partner and
take off on excursions through the wilds to paint the natural life that he saw. His business
career came to end in 1819 when he was jailed for debt and forced to file for bankruptcy.
It was at that time that Audubon began seriously to pursue the dream of publishing a
collection of his paintings of birds. For the next six years he painted birds in their natural
habitats while his wife worked as a teacher to support the family. His Birds of America,
which included engravings of 435 of his colorful and lifelike water colors, was published in
parts during the period from 1826 to 1838 in England. After the success of the English
editions, American editions of his work were published in 1839, and his fame and fortune
were ensured.
11. This passage is mainly about (D) Audubon's preference for travel in
14. The word “mode” in line 7 could 18. The word "support" in line 13
best be replaced by could best be replaced by
15. Audubon decided not to continue to 19. It can be inferred from the passage
pursue business when that after 1839 Audubon
Questions 20-29
Schizophrenia is often confused with multiple personality disorder yet is quite distinct
from it. Schizophrenia is one of the more common mental disorders, considerably more
common than multiple personality disorder. The term “schizophrenia” is composed of roots
which mean “a splitting of the mind," but it does not refer to a division into separate and
distinct personalities, as occurs in multiple personality disorder. Instead, schizophrenic
behavior is generally characterized by illogical thought patterns and withdrawal from reality.
Schizophrenics often live in a fantasy world where they hear voices that others cannot hear,
often voices of famous people. Schizophrenics tend to withdraw from families and friends and
communicate mainly with the “voices” that they hear in their minds.
It is common for the symptoms of schizophrenia to develop during the late teen years
or early twenties, but the causes of schizophrenia are not well understood. It is believed that
heredity may play a part in the onset of schizophrenia. In addition, abnormal brain chemistry
also seems to have a role; certain brain chemicals, called neurotransmitters, have been found
to be at abnormal levels in some schizophrenics.
20. The paragraph preceding the (B) a mental disease
passage most probably discusses
(C) a personality trait
(A) the causes of schizophrenia
(D) a part of the brain
(B) multiple personality disorder
24. What is NOT true about
(C) the most common mental disorder schizophrenia, according to the passage?
(D) possible cures for schizophrenia (A) It is characterized by separate and
21. Which of the following is true distinct personalities.
about schizophrenia and multiple
personality disorder? (B) It often causes withdrawal from
other. minds.
23. It can be inferred from the passage (D) They communicate openly with
that a. “schism" is their
Questions 30-39
People are often surprised to learn just how long some varieties of trees can live. If
asked to estimate the age of the oldest living trees on Earth, they often come up with guesses
in the neighborhood of two or perhaps three hundred years. The real answer is considerably
larger than that, more than five thousand years.
The tree that wins the prize for its considerable maturity is the bristlecone pine of
California. This venerable pine predates wonders of the ancient world such as the pyramids of
Egypt, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, and the Colossus of Rhodes. It is not nearly as tall as
the giant redwood that is also found in California, and, in fact, it is actually not very tall
compared with many other trees, often little more than five meters in height. This relatively
short height may be one of the factors that aid the bristlecone pine in living to a ripe old age—
high winds and inclement weather cannot easily reach the shorter trees and cause damage. An
additional factor that contributes to the long life of the bristlecone pine is that this type of tree
has a high percentage of resin, which prevents rot from developing in the tree trunk and
branches.
30. The best title for this passage 32. The expression “in the
would be neighborhood of' in lines 2- 3 could best be
replaced by
(A) The Size of the Bristlecone Pine
(A) of approximately
(B) Three-Hundred-Year-Old Forests
(B) on the same block as
(C) The Wonders of the Ancient World
(C) with the friendliness of
(D) An Amazingly Enduring Tree
(D) located close to
31. The word "estimate" in line 2 is
closest in meaning to 33. It can be inferred from the passage
that most people
(A) measure
(A) are quite accurate in their estimates
(B) approximate
of the ages of trees
(C) evaluate
(B) have two to three hundred trees in
(D) view
their neighborhoods (C) extremely tall
(C) do not really have any idea how old (D) known to be old
the oldest trees on Earth are 37. Which of the following is true
about the bristlecone pine?
(D) can name some three-hundred-
year- (A) It is as tall as the great pyramids
(A) Two hundred years old (D) It can be two or three hundred feet
tall.
(B) Three hundred years old
38. The word “inclement" in line 10
(C) Five hundred years old could best be replaced by
(D) Five thousand years old (A) sunny
35. The word “venerable" in line 6 is (B) bad
closest in meaning to which of the
following? (C) unusual
36. The author mentions the Egyptian (C) flows from the branches to the tree
pyramids as an example of something that
is trunk
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Part 2
You should spend about 40 minutes on this part.
Write about the following topic:
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge
or experience. Write at least 250 words.
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SECTION 5
SPEAKING
Instructions:
Part 1: The examiner asks the candidate about him/herself, his/her home, work or studies or
other familiar topics.
Part 2: The examiner asks the candidate to talk about one topic for three or four minutes. The
candidate has one minute to think about what to say and makes some notes if necessary.
Part 3: The examiner and the candidate discuss a few more questions related to the topic in
Part 2.
Ask the candidate to talk about the topic he/she has chosen.