SELF-REINFORCEMENT TGAT insight EXERCISE 2

Name:

Section I: Speaking Skill

Part I: Question-Response

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following

conversations.

Section I: Speaking Skill

Part I: Question-Response

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following

conversations.

1. A: I’ve heard you went to Tom’s last night. __________?
B: It was good. I met a lot of old friends.

1. How was the party

2. Do you like partying

3. Have you found out about parties

4. What happened at the party

2. A: It’s Friday night. __________?
B: Nothing definite. Pat said she might drop by.

1. You haven’t seen Pat recently, have you

2. Do you have any plans for this evening

3. Did you enjoy yourself last night

4. Are you having a blast

3. A: Oh dear, I left my key in the car again.
B: __________
A: Really! Nice to know that I’m not the only one.

1. You have to use a padlock.

2. You’re the only one who does this.

3. Have you checked the trunk?

4. I do that very often myself.

4. A: I’m really nervous about the job interview tomorrow.
B: __________.

1. You’ll pull through

2. You’ll get by

3. You’ll go along

4. You’ll come through

5. A: My admission test is coming soon, but I’m so busy right now.
B: Maybe you should __________.

1. cut back on your hours at school

2. put off your assignments

3. take up a new hobby

4. come up with a study schedule

Part II: Short Conversations

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following
conversations.

Part II: Short Conversations

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following
conversations.

Situation: Two employees talk with each other
Jeff: Why were you late for the budget meeting this morning?
Bill: Sorry, I overslept. _____6_____.
Jeff: Again? Maybe you should buy a new one before _____7_____.

6.

1. My car would not start

2. My alarm clock didn’t go off

3. My laundry did not come on time

4. My budget was minimal

7.

1. you’re fired

2. it breaks down

3. the budget is used up

4. it no longer functions

Situation: Two friends talk about hobby.

Cate: What do you like to do in your free time, Sarah?

Sarah: Well, to be honest, reading books is my all-time favorite hobby.

Cate: _____8_____. I mean, you’re so good at socializing and so outgoing

that I have a hard time imagining you doing an activity that

_____9_____.

Sarah: I’ll take it as a compliment, but that’s why you shouldn’t _____10_____.

Situation: Two friends talk about hobby.

Cate: What do you like to do in your free time, Sarah?

Sarah: Well, to be honest, reading books is my all-time favorite hobby.

Cate: _____8_____. I mean, you’re so good at socializing and so outgoing

that I have a hard time imagining you doing an activity that

_____9_____.

Sarah: I’ll take it as a compliment, but that’s why you shouldn’t _____10_____.

8.

1. I never would have guessed

2. I didn’t know you were that capable

3. You may have bitten off more than you could chew

4. You should cut yourself some slack

9.

1. seems adventurous or thrilling

2. requires extended concentration

3. not solitary or introspective

4. needs physically active or engaging

10.

1. make actions speak louder than words

2. bite the hand that feeds you

3. judge a book by its cover

4. put all of your eggs in one basket

Section II: Reading Skill

Part I: Text Completion

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following

passage.

Section II: Reading Skill

Part I: Text Completion

Directions: Choose the best answers to complete the following

passage.

There are some specific characteristics that make 􀁽the Wimbledon Tennis

Championships” unique. Wimbledon is the only major tennis tournament

___11___ on grass. But that’s not the only reason ___12___ it is so special.

Wimbledon is an excellent organization. It may give the impression that

nothing has changed over the decades, ___13___ in reality, everything is

continuously improving and modernizing. Every novelty ___14___ the desire

to present tennis of the highest quality ___15___ the traditional environment

of an English garden.

There are some specific characteristics that make 􀁽the Wimbledon Tennis

Championships” unique. Wimbledon is the only major tennis tournament

___11___ on grass. But that’s not the only reason ___12___ it is so special.

Wimbledon is an excellent organization. It may give the impression that

nothing has changed over the decades, ___13___ in reality, everything is

continuously improving and modernizing. Every novelty ___14___ the desire

to present tennis of the highest quality ___15___ the traditional environment

of an English garden.

11.

1. to play

2. played

3. playing

4. to be playing

12.

1. for

2. why

3. since

4. therefore

13.

1. so

2. as

3. while

4. as if

14.

1. requires

2. denies

3. insists

4. reflects

15.

1. within

2. at

3. on

4. without

Part II: Reading Comprehension
Directions: Read the passage and choose the best answer to each
question.

Ferns were once thought to be magical plants. That’s because they
bear neither flowers nor fruit nor seeds, yet a new plant emerges, seemingly
out of nowhere. We now know that ferns grow from spores, but there was
a time when it was believed they did bear flowers. According to a legend,
ferns bore flowers before the birth of Christ. When Jesus Christ was born,
the plants around his birthplace burst into bloom in celebration, with
the exception of the ferns. For this failure, ferns were condemned to
a flowerless state from that day on.

According to another legend, ferns flowered only at night. The flowers,
which were said to be of beautiful blue color, opened very quickly and just
as quickly faded, which was why no one ever saw them. The flowers were
then replaced by golden seeds that ripened by midnight, but as no one had
ever seen a fern seed, it was thought that they were invisible, like
the flowers.

It was believed that the possession of the invisible seeds would also
make one invisible. Consequently, many devious plans were devised to secure
the valuable fern seed. One plan involved 12 pewter plates stacked on top
of one other and held under the fern plant at midnight on St John’s Eve
(June 24), the only time the invisible seeds would ripen and fall from
the plants.

According to the legend, the falling seeds would pass right through
the first 11 plates before landing on the 12th. Only then could they be
obtained – if one was careful enough. More often than not, however,
the slightest gust of wind would blow them away, so if the collector did not
become invisible afterwards, he would know he had failed to secure
the invisible seeds.

As late as the 1800s, some scientists insisted that ferns must have
flowers and seeds like any other plants. It was only later that they realized
ferns propagated by spores, which differ from seeds in that they consist of
a single cell. Seeds, on the other hand, consist of many cells and contain
young underdeveloped plants. It is almost magical how a tiny seed can grow
into a huge tree. But it seems there are plants that are more magical than
others.

Ferns were once thought to be magical plants. That’s because they
bear neither flowers nor fruit nor seeds, yet a new plant emerges, seemingly
out of nowhere. We now know that ferns grow from spores, but there was
a time when it was believed they did bear flowers. According to a legend,
ferns bore flowers before the birth of Christ. When Jesus Christ was born,
the plants around his birthplace burst into bloom in celebration, with
the exception of the ferns. For this failure, ferns were condemned to
a flowerless state from that day on.

According to another legend, ferns flowered only at night. The flowers,
which were said to be of beautiful blue color, opened very quickly and just
as quickly faded, which was why no one ever saw them. The flowers were
then replaced by golden seeds that ripened by midnight, but as no one had
ever seen a fern seed, it was thought that they were invisible, like
the flowers.

It was believed that the possession of the invisible seeds would also
make one invisible. Consequently, many devious plans were devised to secure
the valuable fern seed. One plan involved 12 pewter plates stacked on top
of one other and held under the fern plant at midnight on St John’s Eve
(June 24), the only time the invisible seeds would ripen and fall from
the plants.

According to the legend, the falling seeds would pass right through
the first 11 plates before landing on the 12th. Only then could they be
obtained – if one was careful enough. More often than not, however,
the slightest gust of wind would blow them away, so if the collector did not
become invisible afterwards, he would know he had failed to secure
the invisible seeds.

As late as the 1800s, some scientists insisted that ferns must have
flowers and seeds like any other plants. It was only later that they realized
ferns propagated by spores, which differ from seeds in that they consist of
a single cell. Seeds, on the other hand, consist of many cells and contain
young underdeveloped plants. It is almost magical how a tiny seed can grow
into a huge tree. But it seems there are plants that are more magical than
others.

16. What is the main idea of this passage?

1. Ferns are not magical plants, but they grow from spores

2. Despite tireless efforts to secure fern seeds, they remain invisible.

3. Fern flowers and seeds were condemned when Jesus was born.

4. Fern flowers yield spores and then quickly fade by midnight.

17. Which of the following is TRUE about fern flowers?

1. They bloom a beautiful blue color.

2. They are replaced by golden seeds at midnight.

3. They can be seen with the naked eye.

4. Ferns do not produce flowers.

18. According to the legend, which of the following is NOT true about fern seeds?

1. Nobody has ever seen or possessed them.

2. They disappear quickly by midnight.

3. They can only be secured on Christmas Eve.

4. A gust of wind can easily blow them away.

19. What does the pronoun “they” (paragraph 4) refer to?

1. The devious plans to secure fern seeds

2. The plates used to collect the fern seeds

3. The falling invisible fern seeds

4. The fern flowers that produce invisible seeds

20. Which word is closest in meaning to “propagated” (paragraph 5)?

1. reproduced

2. burst

3. stacked

4. insisted 154