Choose the letter A, B, C or D to complete the passage below

An allergy is an immune system response __________ (1) a foreign substance that’s not typically harmful to your body. These foreign substances are called allergens. They can __________ (2) certain foods, pollen, or pet dander.

Your immune system’s job is to keep you healthy by fighting harmful pathogens. It does this by attacking anything it thinks could put your body in danger. Depending on the allergen, this response may involve inflammation, sneezing, or a host of __________ (3) symptoms.

Your immune __________ (4) normally adjusts to your environment. For __________ (5), when your body encounters something like pet dander, it should realize it’s harmless. In people with dander allergies, the immune system perceives it as an outside invader threatening the body and attacks it. Allergies are common. Several treatments can help you avoid your symptoms.

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D of the correct answers. 
Ragtime, developed primarily by black pianists, is a style of composed piano music that was popular from the 1890s to about 1915. It is a style of jazz characterized by an elaborately syncopated rhythm in the melody and a steadily accented accompaniment. Ragtime quickly gained popularity after its first appearances, reaching millions on a national scale through sheet music, player pianos, ragtime songs, and arrangements for dance and marching bands. The leading ragtime composer was Scott Joplin, known as the "King of Ragtime," whose most famous piano piece, "Maple Leaf Rag," was published in 1899.
Ragtime piano music has a generally standard form, duple meter (2/4, or two beats per measure) performed at a moderate march tempo. The pianist's right hand plays a highly syncopated melody, while the left hand steadily maintains the beat with an "oom-pah" accompanishment. A ragtime piece usually consists of several similar melodies that take such forms as AA BB A CC DD or Introduction AA BB CC DD EE, where each letter represents a melodic phrase. "Maple Leaf Rag" is a classic example of ragtime.
The forms of ragtime derive from European marches and dances, but the rhythms are rooted in African-American folk music.

Ragtime became popular________.

Read the following passage carefully, and then select the best option A, B, C or D to complete it:

"Music, artful arrangement of sounds (1) _______ time. This definition is obviously very broad, but a narrower one would exclude (2) _______ much. Music is part of virtually every culture on (3) _______, but it varies widely among cultures in style and structure. Definitions of music can (4) _______ dramatically over a short time, as they have across the world during the 20th (5)_________. Can music exist without (6) _______? Some philosophers argue that music should be defined as a kind of “mental(7) _______” and that the physical aspects of sound are simply by-products of this image. If you (8) _______ you can have a musical experience by imagining the sound of a piece of music, then you think (9) _______ can exist without sound. But most musical experiences involve producing or (10) _______ to physical characteristics of sound such as pitch and timbre (quality comparable to texture or color in sight).
Is the tape-recorded sound of a large metal-stamping machine music? Are 4 minutes (11) _______ 33 seconds of silence music? Is the activity of reading a (12) _______ of hundreds of seemingly unrelated objects, activities, and states of mind music? Each of these “(13) _______”, as well as many other sounds (or nonsounds), has been copyrighted (14) _______ a musical composition, performed, and recorded in the 20th century. One of the legacies of 20th century music is to have blurred the definition of music as (15) _______ before."

3. Music is part of virtually every culture on (3) _______, but it varies widely among cultures in style and structure.

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to complete the sentences with given words

The restaurant/ turn/ out/ be/ surprisingly cheap.

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D of the correct answers.
London is the place where the historic past and the present come alive. A blend of history, architecture and culture has created an amazingly and constantly developing city.
Not surprisingly the capital has become a wonderful place for visitors and a great place to live with countless museums, galleries and entertainment places throughout the city. Whatever you want to buy, you can surely find out in London.
London has a population of 7.2 million people and it is one of Europe's most densely populated areas.
Throughout history, a lot of immigrants and refugees have been arriving in London. London has more women than men and its population is younger when compared to the rest of the country. The capital is housing over 306,000 students in higher education.

The population of London is_____when compared to the rest of the country.

Read the following passage, then choose the correct answer to questions 31 - 35.
Smoking causes lung cancer, which is the number one cancer among men. Ninety percent of the people who get lung cancer die. Smoking is also the leading cause of mouth cancer, tongue cancer, and throat cancer. Many smokers have heart disease and pneumonia. Smoking causes one million early deaths in the world every year.
Smokers not only harm themselves but also harm others. Smokers breathe smoke out into the air. They breathe it out on their children and their wives or husbands. Children whose parents smoke have more breathing and lung problems than other children. Women who are married to smokers are more likely to have lung cancer than those married to non-smokers.
We are all aware that smoking is bad. So why do people smoke?

Who are more likely to have lung cancer and lung problems?

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to complete the passage below

Education plays a vital role ____________ (1) shaping successful people. It gives us the opportunity to become a productive member of a civilized society by acquiring all the necessary skills. We learn ____________ (2) to meet challenges and overcome obstacles. We learn how to become an integrated personality and maintain the perpetuation of our culture. People learn basic norms, rules, regulations, ____________ (3) values of society through education. Moreover, high quality education enables us to ____________ (4) a successful life, enhances our intelligence, skills, knowledge, and brings positive changes in our life.

Education lays the foundation stone for our future. An illiterate person can find ____________ (5) very difficult to cope ____________ (6) some aspects of life. Education expands our vision and creates awareness. It helps us develop a disciplined life and provides us with better earning opportunities. It enables us ____________ (7) the world beyond our own surroundings. Education ____________ (8) also a prerequisite of the prosperity and modernization of any country.

Modern education is liberal, open, and exoteric. It is the premise of progress, in every family and in every society. It teaches people to reason. It is based ____________ (9) the humanism, freedom, equality, democracy, and human rights. The content of education keeps pace with the needs of modern society and is a mirror of its goals, values, and priorities. So, education is a necessary means of eradicating the unemployment problem. It is able to reduce poverty in a number of ____________ (10). But we have to remember that there is a great need for the growth of the vocational education so that every person could pursue a fulfilling career that ensures a satisfied life.

(8).......................

Rewrite sentences without changing the meaning

My younger sister will be ten on her next birthday.

Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

The Buddha of the Poor

More than 26,000 children now have bright (23)…………………..faces after receiving free operations. About 173,000 poor people received free treatment to regain their vision, and nearly 3,400 deaf children were given hearing aids. These are part of the (24)………………………..of the Ho Chi Minh Association for Support of Poor Patients, launched and run by Mr. Nguyen Vinh Nghiep. Mr Nghiep, the former Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, retired in 1992, and (25)……………………his Association two years later. Together with his former colleagues, Mr Nghiep has (26)……………………… billions of VND from individual (27)……………….and organizations to support more than a million poor people nationwide through seven major (28)………………….programmes, such as “ For the children’s smile”, “Bringing light to poor blind people from birth”., “ Sound and Vouce for Deaf and Dumb Children”, : Wheelchairs for people with disabilities and paralysed children”.

The “ Free meals for patients and their relatives” programme has offered over 2.6 million free meals to poor people in 10 hospitals. Mr Nghiep said, “Helping one person to gain their (29)………means bringing happiness to him or herself, freeing two or three more people from (30)………………of the patient, and more importantly, building (31)…………………..for poor patients in society.”

In 2002, Mr Nghiep, (32)……………. “The Buddha of the Poor”, was given the national title of Labor Hero in the Reneval Process, and his Association received the title in 2005.

Question 28....................

Fill in each numbered blank with one suitable word or phrase

Stop Pollution Now!

Pollution is a really big problem on our planet and it must (1) ........…. immediately. It must be stopped before our planet goes extinct. There are three main reasons, in my opinion, why pollution should be stopped.

The first reason why we should stop pollution is that pollution is destroying the environment we live in. Carbon dioxide is a big (2) ……….. to pollution. Carbon dioxide affects our climate in many different ways. The way it works is that certain ‘greenhouse gases’ can't escape (3) …….. our atmosphere because they get trapped. The second reason why we should stop pollution is that it also has an influence on us – (4) ……….. Pollution also influences human life and that is a big problem. According to the World Health Organization, indoor air pollution from the burning of coal or biomass fuels like wood risks lives of millions of people. Air pollution causes two million deaths per year, mostly from heart disease and respiratory disorders (5) …….. infections and lung cancer.

The third reason why we should stop pollution is that (6) …………. we do, we can live longer on this planet. If we don’t stop pollution and global warming, something really bad will happen (7) …............. us. Humans have destroyed the planet so quickly. We can live longer and extent our existence on this planet so that our children’s children can live in a planet without worries. In short, pollution must be stopped immediately. The earth is our only home and we must protect it and take care of it as much as we can. Pollution must be stopped before we (8) ………. our planet.

(4) ............

Read the passage and choose the best answer.

Family life is changing. Two-parent households are on the decline in the United States as divorce, remarriage and cohabitation are on the rise. And families are smaller now, both due to the growth of single-parent households and the drop in fertility. Not only are Americans having fewer children, but the circumstances surrounding parenthood have changed. While in the early 1960s babies typically arrived within a marriage, today fully four-in-ten births occur to women who are single or living with a non-marital partner. At the same time that family structures have transformed, so has the role of mothers in the workplace – and in the home. As more moms have entered the labor force, more have become breadwinners – in many cases, primary breadwinners – in their families.

As a result of these changes, there is no longer one dominant family form in the US. Parents today are raising their children against a backdrop of increasingly diverse and, for many, constantly evolving family forms.

Why has the size of families in the US reduced?

Read the following passage and choose A, B, C, or D to fill in the gaps:
Wild animals (and wild plants) and the wild places where they live are seriously threatened almost everywhere. One species has become extinct in each year of this century. But many kinds are now in danger. Lack of attention would lead to the rapid advance of the process of extinction.
Already many kinds of wild animals have been so reduced in number that their role in the ecosystem is forgotten. Animals like the great apes, whales, seals, etc are thought to be in danger of extinction.
But even more important, perhaps, than individuals kinds of animals and plants, whole habitats are in danger of vanishing: marshes are being drained; and the world forests, especially the tropical forests are being cut down to satisfy man's need for timber and paper.

What is more important than individual kinds of animals and plants

Read the following passage and choose A, B, C,  or D to fill in the gaps:
William Shakespeare was the (41) writer in the English language. He was born in 1564 in Stratford- upon- Avon. (42) the age of eighteen he married Anne Hathaway, (43) was eight years (44)  than himself. A few years later he moved to London, (45) he worked as an actor and a playwright. Shakespeare (46) thirty-seven plays and 154 sonnets (a kind of poem). His most famous plays are the four great tragedies - Othello, Macbeth, Hamlet, and King Lear. Shakespeare died in Stratford (47) 23 April 1616, but his plays are still very popular today. They have been translated into different languages, and many of them have been (48) into films, both in English and other languages. Shakespeare's plays are about the great issues of life - love, hatred, jealousy, power, ambition, (49), and so on. So, his plays are just relevant today as they were in the sixteenth (50).

43_______

Choose the best answer:

Nobody has seen him since then.

Read the following passage and choose the best answer

Nowadays, people are destroying the rainforests of the earth seriously. It is  (23) _____ that every year 100,000 square kilometers of rain forests are (24) _____ for the supply of wood paper and fuel as well as for the residence and (25)_____ land. Rain forests are very important for the world’s climate. They receive the rainfall on the earth and produce a large amount of the world’s oxygen. Destroying rain forests,(26)_____, is destroying our environment. Saving rainforests is an international problem. Nations need cooperation to (27) _____ rain forests, if not, it will be late.

Question 25__________

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D of the correct answers.
Disney World was constructed a decade ago on 27,400 acres of partially swamp land in central Florida. Eight thousand of these acres constitute a wildlife sanctuary not accessible to the 130 million people from around the world who have been to Disney World since its opening.
The park opens at 9a.m and shuts down at various hours, depending upon the time of year - six, nine or midnight. On a busy day as many as 90,000 visitors may be in the park, but there are so many activities available that there is plenty of room for everybody. The Magic Kingdom is the main section, but there are hotels, restaurants, a lagoon, and a huge lake with four and a half miles of beaches where visitors swim or paddle around in rented boats. A reasonable estimate of the cost per person daily is about $60, excluding transportation costs to Orlando.
The passage is about______.

Read the following passage and choose A, B, C,  or D to fill in the gaps:
William Shakespeare was the (41) writer in the English language. He was born in 1564 in Stratford- upon- Avon. (42) the age of eighteen he married Anne Hathaway, (43) was eight years (44)  than himself. A few years later he moved to London, (45) he worked as an actor and a playwright. Shakespeare (46) thirty-seven plays and 154 sonnets (a kind of poem). His most famous plays are the four great tragedies - Othello, Macbeth, Hamlet, and King Lear. Shakespeare died in Stratford (47) 23 April 1616, but his plays are still very popular today. They have been translated into different languages, and many of them have been (48) into films, both in English and other languages. Shakespeare's plays are about the great issues of life - love, hatred, jealousy, power, ambition, (49), and so on. So, his plays are just relevant today as they were in the sixteenth (50).

42________

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to complete the passage below

An allergy is an immune system response __________ (1) a foreign substance that’s not typically harmful to your body. These foreign substances are called allergens. They can __________ (2) certain foods, pollen, or pet dander.

Your immune system’s job is to keep you healthy by fighting harmful pathogens. It does this by attacking anything it thinks could put your body in danger. Depending on the allergen, this response may involve inflammation, sneezing, or a host of __________ (3) symptoms.

Your immune __________ (4) normally adjusts to your environment. For __________ (5), when your body encounters something like pet dander, it should realize it’s harmless. In people with dander allergies, the immune system perceives it as an outside invader threatening the body and attacks it. Allergies are common. Several treatments can help you avoid your symptoms.

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D of the correct answers. 
Ragtime, developed primarily by black pianists, is a style of composed piano music that was popular from the 1890s to about 1915. It is a style of jazz characterized by an elaborately syncopated rhythm in the melody and a steadily accented accompaniment. Ragtime quickly gained popularity after its first appearances, reaching millions on a national scale through sheet music, player pianos, ragtime songs, and arrangements for dance and marching bands. The leading ragtime composer was Scott Joplin, known as the "King of Ragtime," whose most famous piano piece, "Maple Leaf Rag," was published in 1899.
Ragtime piano music has a generally standard form, duple meter (2/4, or two beats per measure) performed at a moderate march tempo. The pianist's right hand plays a highly syncopated melody, while the left hand steadily maintains the beat with an "oom-pah" accompanishment. A ragtime piece usually consists of several similar melodies that take such forms as AA BB A CC DD or Introduction AA BB CC DD EE, where each letter represents a melodic phrase. "Maple Leaf Rag" is a classic example of ragtime.
The forms of ragtime derive from European marches and dances, but the rhythms are rooted in African-American folk music.

In line 4, the word "maintains" may best be replaced by_______.

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C or D of the correct answers.
It has been said that to turn a corner in Toledo is to enter another century. The city is a rich blend of the cultures that occupied it after a series of invations. Strategically nearly impregnable. Toledo is located in the centre of Spain and is encircled by the Tagus River. Roman rule lasted 300 years and saw the development of the Spanish language. Having defeated the Romans, the Visigoths established their capital at Toledo and brought Christianity to the city's citizens.
It was the conquest of Toledo in the eighth century by the Moors that created the most dramatic and lasting effects upon the city. Moorish arts and architecture embellished the once predominantly military fortress. Mosques, mansions, and towers were built to last, so they remain to impress the visitors to Toledo with their opulence to this day.
Medieval Toledo sheltered a compatible mixture of Christians, Moslems, and Jews. Scholars from all three religious groups collaborated to make the school of Translators famous throughout Europe for its Aristotelian philosophy.

When did the Moors occupy and conquer Toledo?

 Domestic violence and abuse are used for one purpose and one purpose only: __________ (8) and maintain total control over you.