Sharing music with friends

Brenda is a nineteen-year old full-time college student, and she earns money working part time as a waitress. Brenda loves to listen to music like most young people, but she can’t 1 _____ the high CD prices that record companies 2 _____ for popular CDs. Brenda says that the prices of CDs are ridiculously high at $17 to $20 each and there are only two or three good songs on each CD.She 3 _____ an apartment with three other roommates. She pays her own 4 _____ and she also pays most of her 5 _____. Her solution to expensive CDs is to download or copy music from the Internet. Brenda and millions of other people are CALLED “downloaders” because they download free file-sharing software and music. When Brenda later gives, shares, or trades her music files free over the Internet, she is also an uploader. She considers herself an active music uploader, but the music industry considers her a 6 _____. From 2001 on, the Recording Industry Association of America has sued and fined dozens of file-sharing services, for uploading music files, and hundreds of people, for 7 _____ the law by downloading music.

1. А) provide Б) supply В) afford Г) allow

2. А) offer Б) charge В) suggest Г) propose

3. А) leases Б) lends В) hires Г) rents

4. А) lessons Б) classes В) tuition Г) education

5. А) costs Б) fees В) expenses Г) payments

6. А) thief Б) cheater В) burglar Г) bandit

7. А) undermining Б) disobeying В) breaking Г) ruining

BRITISH THEATRE

The theatre has always been very strong in Britain. Its centre is, of course, London, where successful plays can 1 ____ without a break for many years. London has several dozens of theatres, most of them not 2 ____ from Trafalgar Square. 3 _____ London even some quite big towns have no public theatre at all, but every town has its private theatres. British theatre is much admired. There you can 4 ____ the best of everything – an excellent orchestra, famous conductors, celebrated actors and a well-dressed 5 ____.

Choose a good play, and you’ll enjoy yourself throughout from the moment the curtain 6 ____to the end of the last act. Get your seats beforehand, either at the box-office or at the theatre itself. You’ll probably want to sit as near to the 7 ____ as possible.

1. А) show Б) perform В) run Г) produce

2. А) far Б) remote В) distant Г) close

3. А) Inside Б) Outside В) In Г) Out

4. А) take Б) give В) hold Г) get

5. А) audience Б) auditorium В) authority Г) publicity

6. А) puts up Б) sets up В) makes up Г) goes up

7. А) scene Б) stage В) scenery Г) performance

A CHINESE VASE

When I was a child I loved visiting my grandmother. I thought her house was as beautiful as a palace. As I grew older the house and garden seemed smaller, but I still loved visiting the old lady. There were so many lovely things to look 1 _____ in the house.

I loved her paintings and the old clock, but 2 _____ all I loved a big Chinese vase which stood in the hall. It was 3 _____ than me, and I couldn’t see 4 _____ it. I walked round and round it looking at the beautiful ladies and the birds and flowers and trees, and Grandmother often 5 _____ me stories about these ladies. She said that her grandfather had brought the vase with him when he returned from a long 6 _____ to China.

We live in a modern house, and I’m afraid my husband and I often nag at the children. “Don’t make the new carpet dirty, Paul!” “Be careful with the new table, Philip!”

Before she died, Grandmother gave me the vase I loved so much. It 7 _____ beautiful in our modern hall.

One day I came home from the shop. The boys met me at the door. “I’m as strong as George Bes, Mummy,” said Paul. “I got a goal and I broke the vase.” Philip tried to be more diplomatic than Paul, “It doesn’t really matter, does it? You told us it wasn’t new. You aren’t cross, are you?”

1. А) out Б) at В) into Г) about

2. А) mostly Б) great of В) greatly Г) most of

3. А) higher Б) larger В) taller Г) greater

4. А) about Б) around В) inside Г) outside

5. А) said Б) spoke В) talked Г) told

6. А) voyage Б) tour В) hike Г) excursion

7. А) looked Б) viewed В) appeared Г) seemed

A QUIET HOUSE

It was April and John Moore was studying for an important examination. As the date of the exam 1 _______ nearer, he decided to go somewhere and read by himself.

He did not want the amusements of the seaside, or the beauties of the countryside. He decided to find a quiet, little town and work there undisturbed. He 2 ______ his suitcase with clothes and books. Then he looked in a railway timetable for a town that he did not know. He found one, and bought a ticket to go there. He did not tell anyone where he was going. After all, he did not want to be 3 ______.

That is how Moore arrived at Benchurch. It was a market town, and once a week it was quite busy for a few hours. The rest of the time it was a very quiet and sleepy place. Moore spent his first night at the only hotel in the town. The landlady was very kind and helpful, but the hotel was not really quiet enough for him. The second day he started 4 ______ for a house to rent.

There was only one place that he liked. It was more than quiet – it was deserted and very lonely. It was a big, old seventeenth-century house. It had barred windows like a prison, and a high brick wall all around it. It would be hard to 5 ______ a more unwelcoming place. But it suited Moore perfectly. He went to find the local lawyer, who was responsible for the house.

Mr. Carnford, the lawyer, was very happy to rent the house to him. “I’d be glad to let you have it free,” he said, “. It’s been empty so long that people have started to 6 ______ a lot of foolish stories about it. You’ll be able to prove that the stories are wrong.

Moore didn’t think it was necessary to ask the lawyer for more details of the foolish stories. He paid his rent, and Mr. Carnford gave him the name of an old servant to 7 ______ him. He came away from the lawyer with the keys of the house in his pocket.

1. A) appeared B) drew C) moved D) entered

2. A) wrapped B) laid C) piled D) packed

3. A) bothered B) intervened C) interfered D) helped

4. A) finding B) looking C) skimming D) exploring

5. A) understand B) imagine C) know D) seek

6. A) extend B) promote C) gossip D) spread

7. A) look at B) look about C) look after D) look around

Looking for a job

My new home was a long way from the center of London but it was becoming essential to find a job, so 1 ______ I spent a whole morning getting to town and applying to London Transport for a job on the tube. It turned out that they were looking for guards, not drivers. This 2 ______ me. I couldn’t drive a car but I could probably guard a train and perhaps continue to write poems between stations. “Yes, I would be a tube guard,” I thought. I could see myself being cheerful, useful, a good man in a crisis.

The next day I sat down, with almost a hundred other 3 ______, for the intelligence test. I must have done all right because after half an hour’s wait I was sent into another room for a psychological test. The examiner sat at a desk. You were signaled forward to occupy the seat opposite him when the previous occupant had been 4 ______. Sometimes the person was rejected quickly and sometimes after quite a while. Obviously the longer interviews were the most successful ones. Mine was the only one that lasted a minute and a half. I can remember the questions now: “Why did you leave your last job, “Why did you leave your job before that? “And the one before?” I can’t 5 ______ my answers, except they were short at first and grew shorter as we continued. His closing statement 6 ______ a lack of sensitivity, which helped to explain why as a psychologist he had risen no higher than the underground railway. “You have failed this test and we are unable to offer you a position.” Failing to get that job was my low point. Or so I thought, believing that the work was easy. Actually, such a job 7 ______ exactly this sort of elementary responsibility a dreamer like me is unlikely to have. But, I was still far short of self-understanding as well as short of cash.

1. A) finally B) at the end C) lastly D) in conclusion

2. A) comforted B) matched C) fitted D) suited

3. A) friends B) members C) candidates D) nominees

4. A) declined B) dismissed C) accepted D) abandoned

5. A) recall B) memorize C) forget D) remind

6. A) discovered B) revealed C) disguised D) opened

7. A) expects B) offers C) demands D) asks

Tracy

Tracy was as excited as a child about her first trip abroad. Early in the morning, she stopped at a 1 ______ agency and reserved a suite on the Signal Deck of the Queen Elizabeth II. The next three days she spent buying clothes and luggage.

On the morning of the sailing, Tracy hired a limousine to drive her to the pier. When she 2 ______ at Pier 90, where the Queen Elizabeth II was docked, it was crowded with photographers and television reporters, and for a moment Tracy was panic stricken. Then she realized they were interviewing the two men posturing at the foot of the gangplank. The members of the crew were helping the passengers with their luggage. On deck, a steward looked at Tracy’s ticket and 3 ______ her to her stateroom. It was a lovely suite with a private terrace. It had been ridiculously expensive but Tracy 4 ______ it was worth it.

She unpacked and then wandered along the corridor. In almost every cabin there were farewell parties going on, with laughter and champagne and conversation. She felt a sudden ache of loneliness. There was no one to see her 5 ______, no one for her to care about, and no one who cared about her. She was sailing into a completely unknown future.

Suddenly she felt the huge ship shudder as the tugs started to pull it out of the harbor, and she stood 6 ______ the passengers on the boat deck, watching the Statue of Liberty slide out of 7 ______, and then she went exploring.

1.A) journey B) trip C) travel D) tourist

2. A) achieved B) arrived C) entered D) reached

3. A) set B) came C) headed D) directed

4. A) determined B) resolved C) decided D) assured

5. A) in B) off C) of D) after

6. A) among B) along C) between D) besides

7. A) glance B) stare C) sight D) look

Busy Day

Let me tell you what happened once when my dear Uncle Podger decided to hang a picture on the wall. He told us not to 1 ______ and just watch him do it. He said he would do it by himself. Well, he came up to the picture which was waiting to be put up in the dining room and took it. But suddenly it fell down and the glass 2 ______ into pieces and he cut his finger. He started to 3 ______ his handkerchief but couldn’t find it because he had put it in his coat and none of us knew where his coat was.

“Six of you!” Uncle Podger exclaimed, “and you cannot find the coat that I put down only five minutes ago!” But then he got up from his chair and found that he had been sitting on his coat the whole time. “Oh, you can stop your 4 ______. I’ve found it myself!”

Then after an hour was spent in tying up his finger Uncle Podger wondered where the hammer had disappeared to. And while everybody was trying to get the hammer he was standing on the chair saying: “Well, I want to know if you are going to 5 ______ me here all evening!”

Finally the hammer was found, but we noticed that the nail which he had prepared was lost. And, of course, Uncle Podger didn’t keep 6 ______ while he was waiting for another nail to be brought. We heard all he had to say about our habit of losing all the things he needed.

When the picture was hanging on the wall at last, everybody looked very 7 ______, all except Uncle Podger, who was lively as ever. Aunt Maria remarked that if Uncle Podger wanted to do a job like that again, she would spend a week with her mother until it was over.

1. A) scare B) disturb C) worry D) fear

2. A) failed B) broke C) ruined D) fell

3. A) look at B) look to C) look after D) look for

4. A) search B) investigation C) exploration D) study

5. A) stay B) keep C) put D) take

6. A) dumb B) cool C) still D) silent

7. A) dull B) tired C) fresh D) boring

A Storyteller

In my early 20s, after a year and a half in England, and four months in France, I returned to the United States and got a job at a camp in northern Virginia. My 1 ______ that summer was Dan from Mississippi, and I am from Rhode Island. We worked together with a group of boys from 12 to 14 years old. I've always been a bit untidy, but Dan was 2 ______ and clean, even after a night in the woods with our campers. We could not have been more different, but we got on because we shared the same 3 ______ of humor.

At the end of the summer, a few of us went to 4 ______ a cave in West Virginia and got stuck in the cave for the night. It wasn’t as dramatic as it sounds. The park rangers had told us to stay there if anything happened. They knew where we were going, and when we should have been back. Dan hurt his right foot badly. So we had to 5 ______ the night in the cave. Food and water were not a problem, but we turned off our lights to save power. In the distance, we could hear the sound of running water.

To 6 ______ the time, we told stories. That night in the cave we moved from one family story to another. As the night wore on, I remembered more and more. I was not alone–the cave, the blue light and the flowing water released stories and memories that we had never revealed to anyone. It was as if a river of stories had started flowing in each of us.

When the rangers came the next morning, we didn’t want to 7 ______. "Can't we just tell a few more stories?" In the cave, that night, I became a storyteller.

1. A) friend B) teammate C) partner D) opponent

2. A) clear B) neat C) exact D) careful

3. A) feeling B) emotion C) reason D) sense

4. A) explore B) analyze C) teach D) learn

5. A) lead B) spend C) hold D) waste

6. A) keep B) waste C) spare D) pass

7. A) escape B) leave C) remain D) retire

New York City: Nostalgia for the Old Neighbourhood

Life is made up of little things: some unimportant memories from childhood that, in fact, shaped your character. I 1 ______ on Third Avenue in midtown Manhattan during the 1950s-60s where family life was centred around old 2 ______ of flats and small stores. Third Avenue was my old neighbourhood and it had character. It was 3 ______ with working families of Italian, German and Irish origin. We shopped together with all those people and their kids played together. Third Avenue influenced the way our family lived. I absorbed the street life. It gave me an 4 ______ that I could not have received in any other place. To me, it was home.

In a recent walk around Third Avenue my eyes 5 ______ signs of the old neighbourhood but couldn’t find any. If I hadn't been born here and someone described the area, it would be 6 ______ to believe. It wasn't because a few buildings had changed – everything had changed. The transformation began in the late 1950s and 60s when corporations replaced the old neighbourhood. In the early 1960s, the houses were pulled down. Families were forced to 7 ______, the small stores went out of business and the old neighbourhood was changed forever. And now there is a lack of character in the transformed neighbourhood.

1. A) brought up B) grew up C) went up D) got up

2. A) blocks B) houses C) groups D) sets

3. A) covered B) held C) loaded D) filled

4. A) knowledge B) information C) education D) training

5. A) looked after B) looked for C) looked through D) looked at

6. A) hard B) easy C) strange D) heavy

7. A) stay out B) take out C) move out D) go out

To Hear A Child

I believe in patience. I live as a volunteer residential counselor in a small group home. These boys have brought joy and happiness into my life; they have made me laugh and made me proud. However, they have also challenged me, made me angry and tested my patience.

Each day we start anew, going about a 1 ______ routine. I drive them to school, pick them up, cook for them and help with homework. We spend the evenings 2 ______ about what happened during the day. I meet their teachers and study for tests with them. They are the last people I see each night and the first ones I hear in the morning. They have become a 3 ______ of my life. I am twenty-two and am beginning to understand the love of a parent.

I could not have come this far without patience. They do not think like miniature adults and it is not fair to expect them to. 4 ______ my expectations of them are high, I must remember that so much of what they see and understand is for the first time. First loves, first failed test, first time feeling the need to break away from the nest. I must have patience with them, because there is still a child within that comes out when I least expect it.

This world is a fast-paced, fast food, fast-internet place. 5 ______, no matter how fast things move, children will be children. I believe they will mature quicker and with more tools if I am patient. I see it in their eyes. Over time, sad eyes can glisten again, but only if I am 6 ______ of the fact that it takes them longer to get somewhere.

I see around them a world that expects too much of them. They come 7 ______ too many things that give them too much sadness. They listen to me, respect me and understand reason but not always when I want them to. This opportunity has given me wisdom but only when I was patient enough to hear a child.

1. A) daily B) common C) average D) traditional

2. A) discussing B) debating C) talking D) saying

3. A) bit B) part C) parcel D) piece

4. A) also B) altogether C) although D) thus

5. A) nevertheless B) nevermore C) although D) therefore

6. A) common B) familiar C) aware D) acquainted

7. A) through B) along C) upon D) across

Bo

It was raining. The rain started early in the morning and it seemed, that it would never stop. Looking out of the window, Bo was thinking about his telephone conversation. Raindrops spattered the windshield as the taxi sliced through 1 ______ traffic on Park Avenue. There were too many cars as usual. When it had skidded to a halt at the curb, Bo gave a ten-dollar bill to the driver. That included a very generous tip. He 2 ______ his point of destination and was ready to take on Frank Ramsey. He had called Ramsey that morning from the Yale club and demanded the meeting. Ramsey had tried to avoid it but Bo insisted and Ramsey gave 3 ______.

At the building’s revolving doors, Bo glanced back over his shoulder through the rain and noticed a woman standing on the sidewalk a short distance away. In the dim light he could not get a clear picture. She 4 ______ so much like Tiffany. She was wearing a yellow top and had long blond hair. Standing absolutely 5 ______ beneath her umbrella while everything around her moved, she seemed to be gazing sraight at him. His heart 6 ______, the way it always did when he saw her. He couldn’t help it. Bo strained to 7 ______ sight of her as he was jostled into the doorway. When he cleared the doors, the woman had already disappeared.

1. A) solid B) heavy C) hard D) difficult

2. A) achieved B) arrived C) entered D) reached

3. A) to B) on C) in D) off

4. A) stared B) gazed C) looked D) glanced

5. A) inert B) static C) quiet D) still

6. A) set B) sank C) moved D) dropped

7. A) keep B) hold C) take D) give

The secret tunnel

In the middle of our village, there is a beautiful old church, which dates back to the beginning of the Middle Ages. It was rebuilt several times, but some of its parts, including the foundations, are 1 ______.

Well, 2 ______ about restoration, a while ago they decided to install a heating system there, as it gets cold in winter. Some of the local boys volunteered to help, including myself.

The benches were connected in stacks, so it was hard work to lift or to push them away, but we managed it. Most of the church floor was covered with marble-type slabs, but under some benches there were just some ancient-looking bricks.

We got really 3 ______, as we had heard stories about an old underground passageway leading from a crypt below the church to the castle in the nearest city. It is twelve miles 4 ______.

So, a friend of mine and I started to dig down there. It was relatively easy to pull out the top layer of bricks, and underneath them we found soil, which also moved easily as it was completely dry. We found that one side of the hole was so soft that you could just 5 ______ a stick through it. It was obviously that passageway! Then some workmen came in and told us to stop. Just fancy that! We had to stop at the most exciting moment.

After a few days, the workmen put a layer of hard cement over the entire floor, so our find remained a mystery. But I won’t give 6 ______. I still hope to go there some day and find that secret tunnel. Maybe, that will become the greatest 7 ______ of the 21st century.

1. A) natural B) original C) real D) genuine

2. A) commenting B) telling C) saying D) speaking

3. A) excited B) amazed C) annoyed D) animated

4. A) away B) far C) off D) about

5. A) shift B) pull C) push D) remove

6. A) in B) up C) on D) at

7. A) innovation B) invention C) discovery D) development

Mark’s Visit to Ravenscar

Mark and Fenella were the first to arrive at Ravenscar. Mark had not been to Ravenscar for a long time, but even so he had not forgotten the spectacular A22 ______ from the library windows. As he and Fenella were ushered into the room by Cecily Deravenel, he A23 ______ his best not to rush over to the windows to enjoy the view.

“It’s lovely to see you both,” Cecily was A24 ______, and then her face broke into smiles. “Ah, here’s Bess, your greatest admirer, Fenella. And Nanny with the other children.”

A moment later Fenella and Cecily were surrounded by the youngsters, all clamoring for attention, and Mark took the opportunity to walk to the other end of the room. Mark always thought that A25 ______ up children was so boring.

Turning around Mark allowed his eyes to sweep the room for an admiring moment, taking in long shelves of books, several memorable paintings, and the handsome antiques, made of dark, ripe woods. There were A26 ______ sofas and chairs arranged near the huge stone fireplace. A27 ______ the warm weather, a log fire was blazing. It was a pleasure to be in such a nice room.

His eyes settled on Fenella, who was momentarily preoccupied with the youngsters, and he had to admit he had never seen such beautiful children in his life. They might have just stepped out of a portrait by one of the greatest artists of the eighteenth century, Thomas Gainsborough, George Romney, Sir Joshua Reynolds. Suddenly he A28 ______ he had had children.

1) look 2) gaze 3) view 4) stare

1) wanted 2) longed 3) wished4) willed

1) made 2) held 3) kept 4) did

1)saying 2) speaking 3) telling 4) talking

1) Although 2) Unlike 3) Instea 4) Despite

1) raising 2) bringing3) rearing 4) growing

1) comfortable 2) relaxing 3) convenient 4) suitable

Vicky

Vicky Forth was an optimist, and she had been for all of her life; even when she was a child, her A22 ______ had been positive.

Her glass was always half full, never half empty; tomorrow would be a much better day than today; the future was full of promise and success. She A23 ______ her best to look at the bright side of things.

How right she had been to encourage her daughter to be optimistic, to set her sights on Oxford University. Women were not yet admitted to membership of the University, but they could A24 ______ lectures, take courses, and sit for examinations. Grace Rose would be able to do all of these things, and would be well A25 ______ after by Vicky’s dear old friend Millicent, now widowed, who had a lovely new house in Oxford. It had been an inspired idea to write to her. Vicky was relieved and happy for her daughter, who was a wonderful student. She hoped to be a historian one day. Vicky always thought that A26 ______ up children was so exciting.

She remembered that her husband was waiting for her downstairs. After A27 ______ on her dress and stepping into matching rose-colored shoes, Vicky went back to her dressing-table and selected a pair of diamond earrings and a matching brooch made of silver. She looked at herself in the large looking glass in one corner of the room. Vicky A28 ______ she liked her appearance.

1) bringing 2) rearing 3) growing 4) raising

1) made 2) did 3) kept 4) held

1) approach 2) position 3) attitude 4) viewpoint

1) determined 2) chose 3) decided 4) resolved

1) visit 2) attend 3) observe 4) present

1) wearing 2) trying 3) holding 4) putting

1) watched 2) seen 3) viewed 4) looked

A strange girl

Stephen pulled up the collar of his coat as he walked along the platform. Overhead a dim fog clouded the station. He was A22 ______ trains move slowly, throwing off clouds of steam into the cold air. Everything was dirty and smoke-grimed.

Stephen thought with revulsion: “What a foul country – what a foul city!” He had to A23 ______ that his first excited reaction to London – its shops, its restaurants, its well-dressed attractive women – had faded. Supposing he were back in South Africa now… To A24 ______ the truth, he felt a quick pang of homesickness. Sunshine – blue skies – gardens of flowers. And here – dirt, grime and endless crowds – moving, hurrying, jostling.

He got on a train and passed along the corridor, looking for a place. The train was full. It was only three days before Christmas. He A25 ______ to go to his parents for Christmas… And then, suddenly, he caught his breath, looking into a carriage. This girl was different. Black hair, rich creamy pallor, the sad proud eyes of the South… It was all wrong that this girl should be sitting in this train A26 ______ these dull drab looking people. She should be somewhere splendid, not squeezed into the corner of a third class carriage.

He was an observant man. He did not fail to A27 ______ the shabbiness of her black coat and skirt, the cheap quality of her gloves. A28 ______ splendor was the quality he associated with her. He thought: “I’ve got to know who she is and what she’s doing here.”

1) used 2) kept 3) held 4) took

1) spot 2) observe 3) remark 4) note

1) Nevermore 2) Nevertheless 3) Although 4) Therefore

1) admit 2) agree 3) adopt 4) accept

1) between 2) besides 3) among 4) along

1) say 2) talk 3) speak 4) tell

1) looking 2) watching 3) staring 4) gazing

Amos

It wasn’t unusual for Amos to go to Deravenels on Saturday, even though the offices were closed over the weekend. He A22 ______ to go to tidy up his paperwork and do other small jobs he couldn’t attend to during the week.

But on this Saturday morning he had a specific purpose when he arrived at the grand old building on the Strand. The uniformed doorman A23 ______ Amos close his umbrella and take off his raincoat. Then he touched his cap and said, “Good morning, Mr. Finnister”.

Amos had come to the office to A24 ______ a few telephone calls. His first call was to the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, where he quickly discovered the records office was not open on weekends. He then dialed Ravenscar and was put through to Edward Deravenel.

“Good morning, Amos,” Edward said. “I’m assuming you have some news for me.” Amos then relayed all the information he had gathered the night before.

“Well done, Amos!” Edward exclaimed. “Thank you for going into all this A25 ______. I knew I could depend A26 ______ you. My wife will be happy as I am to know everything; it’s been such a mystery all these years. To A27 ______ the truth, I think that Grace Rose should also know what happened to her mother. It will finally put her mind at rest.”

“I agree, sir. I will telephone you on Monday”. Amos walked home, A28 ______ no attention to the heavy rain. He felt happy.

1) looked2) watched3) stared4) gazed

1) in2) at3) on 4) of

1) bringing 2) paying3) drawing 4) turning

1) do2) give 3) make 4) take

1) worry2) bother3) mess4) trouble

1) took2) kept3) held 4) used

1) tell2) say 3) speak4) talk

Before Christmas

Vicky gave this party every year, just before Christmas. She A22 ______ to do it before the war and she was doing it now, when the war was over. It was always the same people who came. It struck her suddenly how clannish they all were, but then the Deravenels in particular were somewhat addicted to their family. Vicky knew that she could always depend A23 ______ her relatives in a crisis.

She was A24 ______ the guests greet each other and share the news. Vicky thought of her sister-in-law Kathleen, not present tonight. Vicky missed her presence. When Will had arrived tonight, he had A25 ______ that Kathleen was really sick. “But not Spanish flu,” he had added swiftly, observing the look of apprehension crossing her face, “just a heavy cold.”

Fenella’s voice brought her out of her reverie, and she looked across at her old friend, who was saying, "How is Charlie feeling?"

“He’s relieved he is safely home, but his wounds still hurt and he feels depressed..." She looked at Fenella as if A26 ______ advice.

"Mr. Ridgely made a remark to me the other day that he wished there was somewhere wounded soldiers could go, to have some sort of recreation, talk to other soldiers," said Fenella.

“That’s an interesting idea” Vicky glanced at the others, A27 ______ a brow. “Don’t you agree?”

“To A28 ______ the truth, I do,” Stephen answered, always ready to back his wife in her project. “I think such a place would be quite marvelous for the wounded men who are now coming home.” Fenella nodded.

1) tell 2) say 3)speak 4) talk

1) falling2) heaving 3) rising 4) raising

1) accepted2) agreed 3) admitted4) adopted

1) looking 2) watching 3) staring4) gazing

1) took 2) kept 3) held4)used

1) on2) at 3) in 4) of

1) searching 2) asking 3) seeking4) posing

Music lessons

It was a hard winter for Mother. She sometimes pleaded with Father but no one could ever tell Father anything. He continued to stand like a rock against stopping my music lessons.

To A22 ______ the truth, Father had certain natural gifts for debate. In the first place his voice was powerful and stormy, and he A23 ______ to let it out at full strength. As a second gift, he was convinced at all times that his opponents were wrong. Hence, even if they won a point or two, it A24 ______ them no good, for he dragged the issue to some other ground then, where he and Truth could prevail. When Mother said it surely was plain enough that I had no ear for music, what was his reply? Why, he said that the violin was the noblest instrument A25 ______ by man. Having silenced her with this solid premise he declared no boy should expect to learn it immediately. It required persistence. Everything, he had found out, required persistence. His motto was, “Never give A26 ______ ”.

He said that Mother should be stricter with me, if necessary, and make me try harder. He also said that none of us realized what he had had to go A27 ______. Mother started to cry and said, “But you’re downtown, you don’t have to hear it”.

Father was outraged. His final argument, I remember, was that my violin had cost twenty-five dollars, if I didn’t learn it, the money would be wasted, and he couldn’t afford it. But it was put to him that my younger brother Julian could learn it instead. Father was defeated, though he did not A28 ______ it, and I was set free.

1) say 2) tell 3) speak 4) talk

1) used 2) kept 3) held4) took

1) made 2) gave 3) took 4) did

1) discovered 2) explored3) invented4) opened

1) up2) of 3) in 4) on

1) over2) into3) down4) through

1) agree 2) admit 3) adopt 4) accept

Margaret

Old Margaret was just the kind of cook that we wanted. Lots of cooks can do rich dishes well. Margaret couldn’t. But she A22 ______ to cook simple, everyday dishes in a way that made our mouths water. Her apple-pies were the best pies I’ve ever tasted.

But to A23 ______ the truth, even Margaret sometimes miscalculated. A large, royal-looking steak would be set before Father, which, upon being cut into, would turn A24 ______ to be underdone. Father’s face would darken with disappointment. He would raise his foot and stamp slowly and heavily three times on the rug.

At this solemn A25 ______, we would hear Margaret leave the kitchen below us and come up the stairs to the dining-room door.

“Margaret, look at the steak.”

Margaret would peer with a shocked look at the platter. She would then seize the platter and make off with it.

Father and Margaret were united by the intense interest they both took in cooking. Each understood the other instinctively. I have to A26 ______ that they had a complete fellow-feeling. Mother’s great interest was in babies. She loved her children and her happiness depended A27 ______ them. She wanted to keep Father pleased somehow, and if it was too difficult or impossible she didn’t always care about even that.

At table it was Father who carved the fowl, or sliced the roast lamb or beef. I liked to A28 ______ him take the knife and go at it. And usually the cooking had been as superb as the carving. Sometimes it was so perfect that Father would summon Margaret and say in a low voice, “You are a good cook”.

1) out2) of 3) over 4) into

1) accept2) agree 3) admit 4) adopt

1) used 2) kept 3) held4) took

1) sign 2) signal 3) gesture 4) movement

1) on 2) of 3) in 4) at

1) look 2) see 3) gaze 4) watch

1) speak 2) tell 3) talk 4) say

Pierre and Faniry

At the age of twenty-one, Pierre – that was the name of the winegrower – had been sent by his father to spend some time with his uncle in Madagascar. He A22 ______ at the island and within two weeks he fell for a local girl called Faniry, or "Desire" in Malagasy. You could not blame him. At seventeen she was ravishing. In the Malagasy sunlight her skin was golden. Her black, waist-length hair, which hung straight beside her cheeks, framed large, fathomless eyes. It was a genuine love at first A23 ______, for both of them. Within five months they were married. Faniry had no family, but Pierre's parents came out from France for the wedding, even though they did not strictly A24 ______of it, and for three years the young couple lived very happily on the island of Madagascar.

Then, one day, a telegram came from France. Pierre's parents and his only brother had been killed in a car crash. Pierre took the next flight home to A25 ______ the funeral and manage the vineyard left by his father. Faniry followed two weeks later. Pierre was grief-stricken, but with Faniry he A26 ______ down to running the vineyard. His family, and the lazy, idyllic days under a tropical sun, were gone forever. But he was very happily married, and he was very well-off. Perhaps, he reasoned, life in Bordeaux would not be so bad. Pierre thought he had married an angel, but soon he found A27 ______ that he was wrong. He had A28 ______ a fatal mistake in marrying Faniry.

1) out 2) over 3) of 4) in

1) done 2) set 3) made 4) put

1) stayed2) lodged 3) dwelled 4) settled

1) attain 2) attend 3) appear 4) apply

1) admit 2) agree 3) approve 4) accept

1) reached 2) arrived3) got 4) came

1) sight 2) view 3)look 4) gaze

Cathy

Cathy spent many hours during her lunch breaks poking around the dress shops before she bought the appropriate outfit for the Trumpers’ housewarming party. Her final A22 ______ was a sunflower yellow dress which the shop assistant described as suitable for a cocktail party. Cathy became fearful at the last minute that its lack of length might be too daring for such a grand A23 ______. But when Simon came to pick her up his immediate comment was “You’ll be a sensation.” His assurance made her feel more confident.

A24 ______, she forgot all her doubts the moment the butler invited them inside. While others drank champagne and helped themselves from the trays of canapés, she A25 ______ her attention to pictures.

First came a Courbet, a still life of magnificent rich reds, oranges and greens; then a Picasso of two doves surrounded by pink blossoms. She A26 ______ looking at them but she gasped when she first saw the Sisley, a stretch of the Seine with every paint of pastel shading being made to count.

“That’s my favourite,” said a voice from behind her. Cathy turned to see a tall, dark-haired young man give her a grin that must have made many people return his smile.

“Quite beautiful,” she A27 ______. “When I was younger I used to try and paint a little myself, and it was Sisley who finally convinced me I shouldn’t bother.”

“Good heavens,” the young man said. “An expert in our presence.” Cathy smiled A28 ______ her new companion. “Let’s have a look at some more works in the upper corridor.”

1) Otherwise 2) However 3) Nevertheless 4) Although

1) pleased 2) enjoyed 3) amused 4) entertained

1) approved 2) accepted3) admired 4) admitted

1) drew 2) kept 3) turned 4) paid

1) at 2) to 3) on 4) of

1) choice 2) selection 3) preference 4) option

1) accident 2) incident 3) occurrence 4) occasion

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