ENGLISH OLYMPIAD SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Choose the correct answer:

1. This cake is not …….. good ………the cake my mother makes at home.

A) more / than B) so / that C) on / atD) such / that E) as / as

2. After one year ……… the university he gave ……….. his studies because his family moved ……….. another country.

A) in / out / up B) at / up / to C) for / off / inD) by / away / into E) with / out / towards

3. If you ….. not to tell anyone else, I …… you how much I paid for the jewelry.

A) would promise / will be telling B) promised / shall tellC) promise / will tell D) had promised / tell

E) have promised / would have told

4. In recent years, modern farming ……….. to many parts of the world.

A) expanded B) expandsC) will be expanding D) has expanded

E) will have expanded

5. Primary education from the age of six is ………… in many countries.

A) abolished B) deceitful C) obligatoryD) privileged E) informal

6. Only a mechanic can estimate the true ……… of the damage to the car.

A) depth B) extent C) accessD) admission E) excess

7. If human beings come too close to a nest, the birds ……… it temporarily.

A) disperse B) offend C) evacuateD) sweep E) abandon

8. He was ……… from his job for not coming punctually every day at nine o’clock.

A) deprived B) retired C) promotedD) frustrated E) dismissed

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence:

9. As soon as I phoned her ………….. .

A) I would hope to get a telephone call from herB) she had waited at the station for over an hourC) I would have told her what to doD) she was very determined to quit her jobE) I apologized for my mistake

10. ………, I decided to get a taxi.

A) As I had no idea about the identity of the driverB) Realizing I would never get on a bus during this rush hourC) No matter how practical it may seemD) Once I understood that it would take me very few minutes to walk to work E) So beautiful was the weather that

-----------------------------------------------------------

Complete the conversations:

11. Eve : How long have you been out of work? Byron: I’m not out of work now. I’ve just

started a new job. Eve: …………………………………… Byron: I answered an advert in the paper.

A) Have you had any experience?B) What sort of occupation did you have in mind before you started the job?C) How did you find the job?D) Is it a full-time job in a newspaper?E) How did you lose your previous job?

12. Thomas: I’m hungry, I’ll get two hamburgers and a coke. Would you like something to eat? Julia : ………………………………. Thomas: Oh, how about a cup of tea then? Julia : Sure, why not.

A) I don’t want anything to eatB) That sounds good, I want the same.C) I’m afraid I haven’t had anything to drink.D) What do you mean?E) Yes, please. I haven’t eaten anything since yesterday.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Choose the best option:

13. You haven’t been able to study and the teacher asks you a question that you can’t answer. You give your excuse to the teacher apologetically:

A) Why do you always ask me?B) I won’t answer your question. Ask another student.C) Excuse me, sir. I had a headache and I couldn’t study.D) I didn’t study. I know I’m going to fail anyway.E) My father told me not to study, so I didn’t.

14. You borrowed your sister’s camera without her permission and you broke it. You try to apologize to her and say that you will get it repaired soon, but she criticizes you for taking it without asking and says:

A) I’m terribly sorry; I’ll buy you another one soon.B) You should have let me know before borrowing it. Then it would have been less upsetting for me.C) Don’t worry; you are always doing the same thing. I’m used to it.D) If it were a good camera, it wouldn’t have broken down.E) Why don’t you get it repaired for yourself and I will buy a new one for myself.

-----------------------------------------------------------Insert the most suitable sentence:

15. Long ago the people of the South Seas sailed the Pacific Ocean in giant canoes. ……………….. . Today these islands are known as Oceania. The 25 000 islands in Oceania are very small and only a few thousand are inhabited.

A) They traveled great distances and settled on thousands of islands, including Hawaii.B) However, in 1893 Queen Mary agreed to give up her throne to protect her people from overseas threats.C) When people from places all over the world come to live in the U.S.A. they enrich the nation.D) The culture of the island is unique.E) The Queen is remembered today for her bravery and struggle to keep Hawaii from being taken over by foreign settlers.16. In fact, the spider is a great engineer. …………………. . In a lifetime a single spider will produce several kilometers of it. They use it to catch food. They use it to wrap their eggs. And many spiders use it as a lifeline, which stops them from falling.

ENGLISH DEPARMENT 1

ENGLISH OLYMPIAD SAMPLE QUESTIONS

A) Spiders produce silk of strength , but only 0.005 millimeters thick.B) Take the spider web for example, it is so common and can be found in every garden.C) It also bites and its bite is poisonous.D) It is valuable to man because it eats large amounts of insects.E) The radials of the web are connected between the base lines and the centre of the web.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Income in the U.S. is distributed unequally. Although the U.S. is considered to be a middle-class society, the poorest of the country earn only 5 percent of the income while the richest earn 44 percent of the income. In 1998, 11 percent of U.S. adults and 21 percent of U.S. children were at poverty levels. Many of these people lack the education necessary to hold down a job in this technological society. Prices for necessities like food and housing have increased more rapidly than the minimum wage. Consequently, the poor have become poorer in terms of their ability to pay for these necessities.

17. The main topic of the passage is the …………. .

A) rich living in the U.S.B) poverty of poor childrenC) unequal distribution of income in the U.S.D) reason why the government provides food for the poorE) ideal life of American citizens

18. According to the passage, being well-educated is essential to …………… .

A) find a good jobB) improve the understanding of societyC) overcome the problems of the environmentD) get food and shelterE) distribute the income evenly

-----------------------------------------------------------

Choose the best sentence to complete the dialogue:

19. Ann: ………………………….. Brian: No, that’s not necessary!

A) Could you bring some more material?B) Can you help me?C) Shall I pack your suitcase?D) Do you have any problem?E) Is my partial success important for you?

20. A: ……………………………. B: Two miles downstream.

A) Couldn’t it be built near here?B) How long does it take to get there?C) The rock formation here is suitable, isn’t it?D) Do you think it is a long way from London to Leeds?E) Where will the new bridge be constructed?

-----------------------------------------------------------

Choose the best answer to fill in the blanks in the text:

Cuba has great potential resources, both agricultural and mineral, but it’s mainly (21)……… that (22) ……….. . The island is in normal years the world’s largest producer of sugar, (23) ………. only by the Russian Federation. When Castro came to

power, Cuban sugar accounted for about one-fifth of world production and one-third of world exports. The climate and (24) ……… of the soil of Cuba are very well suited for sugar-cane, and the island was (25) ……….. source of supply to the United States.

21. A) one B) the further C) the former D) latest E) the later

22. A) was developed B) has been developed C) have developed D) has developed

E) have been developed

23. A) rivalled B) rivaling C) was rivalled D) has rivaled E) rivals

24. A) many B) much C) the number D) none E) plenty

25. A) the nearest B) more C) nearerD) much more near E) the most

-----------------------------------------------------------

Find the sentence that is closest in meaning to the sentence given in bold:

26. I left her a note last time in case she thought someone had pinched her watch.

A) I left her a note last time so that she would think someone had pinched her watch.B) So as to avoid misunderstanding, I left her a note last time saying that someone had pinched her watch.C) A note left by me last time could have prevented her from thinking that someone had pinched her watch.D) If only I had left her a note last time, then she wouldn’t think someone had pinched her watch.E) I left her a note last time, otherwise she might have thought someone had pinched her watch.

27. To me, the weather never seems as bad abroad as it does at home.

A) For me nowhere abroad is the weather more pleasant than it is at home.B) The weather always seems better abroad than it’s at home to me.C) I don’t expect the weather to be worse abroad than at home.D) When compared to the pleasant weather abroad the weather at home seems quite better to me.E) Everywhere I’ve been, the weather doesn’t seem any better than it’s at home.

2