brood
broomstick
foolscap
brooch
dissolve
result
possess
assist
Choose the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s).
Originally the builders gave me a price of $5,000, but now they say they underestimated it, and now it’s going to be at least $8,000.
Choose the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s).
Being a wise politician, Mr. Brown tends to reserve his judgments till he knows all the facts.
Choose the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s).
Their arguments are getting pointless, so they decided to just bury the hatchet and forget what happened.
Choose the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s).
He had never experienced such discourtesy towards the president as it occurred at the annual meeting in May.
Choose the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s).
Many animals, like the otter which uses a stone to crack mussel shells, are capable of using objects in the natural environment as rudimentary tools.
Choose the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s).
The ship went down although strenuous efforts were made to save it.
Probably no man has more effect on the daily lives of most people in the United States _____.
Everything looks very positive for the company, _____ the current investors do not default on their agreements.
Read the text and choose the best answer to fill in the blanks.
Very few of us would admit putting much trust in horoscopes and the fact that the movements of astronomical bodies to earthly occurrences affecting people's everyday lives.
We all know about the zodiac signs which reflect the position of the sun, the moon, and the planets at the moment of a man's birth and about the peculiar characteristics to them by astrologers. We say we will take these phenomena with a pinch of salt while we keep our eyes over them in every tabloid we lay our hands-on. Most frequently, we expect horoscopes to predict the future, to our optimistic mood with a piece of comforting information or to boost our ego by confirming the superlative features that we tend to attribute to our zodiacs.
However, there's no scientific evidence to the assumption that human existence is so closely with the parameters of the celestial bodies. Our curiosity in horoscopes may, then, stem our sheer fascination with the unexplained or the unpredictable as well as in the enticing insight into the future that the horoscopes offer, thus establishing the sense of our an extreme power over our own lives. An additional explanation is that humans tend to have a soft for any form of flattery, which is the fact to which astrologers and the horoscope writers seem to attach the greatest deal of weight.
Read the passage then answer the questions.
NOW FOR THE BAD NEWS: A TEENAGE TIME BOMB
They are just four, five, and six years old right now, but already they are making criminologists nervous. They are growing up, too frequently, in abusive or broken homes, with little adult supervision and few positive role models. Left to themselves, they spend much of their time hanging out on the streets or soaking up violent TV shows. By the year 2005, they will be teenagers - a group that tends to be, in the view of Northeastern University criminologist James Alan Fox, "temporary sociopaths - impulsive and immature." If they also have easy access to guns and drugs, they can be extremely dangerous.
For all the heartening news offered by recent crime statistics, there is an ominous flip side. While the crime rate is dropping for adults, it is soaring for teens. Between 1990 and 1994, the rate at which adults age 25 and older committed homicides declined 22%; yet the rate jumped 16% for youths between 14 and 17, the age group that in the early '90s supplanted 18- to 24-year-olds as the most crime-prone. And that is precisely the age group that will be booming in the next decade. There are currently 39 million children under 10 in the U.S., more than at any time since the 1950s. "This is the calm before the crime storm," says FOX. "So long as we fool ourselves in thinking that we're winning the war against crime, we may be blindsided by this bloodbath of teenage violence that is lurking in the future."
Demographics don't have to be destiny, but other social trends do little to contradict the dire predictions. Nearly all the factors that contribute to youth crime-single-parent households, child abuse, deteriorating inner-city schools - are getting worse. At the same time, the government is becoming less, not more, interested in spending money to help break the cycle of poverty and crime. All of which has led John J. Dilulio Jr., a professor of politics and public affairs at Princeton, to warn about a new generation of "super predators," youngsters who are coming of age in actual and "moral poverty," Without "the benefit of parents, teachers, coaches, and clergy to teach them right or wrong and show them unconditional love."
Predicting a generation's future crime patterns is, of course, risky; especially when outside factors (Will crack use be up or down? Will gun laws be tightened?) remain unpredictable. Michael Tonry, a professor of law and public policy at the University of Minnesota, argues that the demographic doomsayers are unduly alarmist. "There will be a slightly larger number of people relative to the overall population who are at high risk for doing bad things, so that's going to have some effect," he concedes. "But it's not going to be an apocalyptic effect." Norval Morris, professor of law and criminology at the University of Chicago, finds Dilulio's notion of super predators too simplistic: "The human-animal in young males is quite a violent animal all over the world. The people who put forth the Theory of moral poverty lack a sense of history and comparative criminology."
Yet other students of the inner city are more pessimistic. "All the basic elements that spawn teenage crime are still in place, and in many cases, the indicators are worse," says Jonathan Kozol, author of Amazing Grace, an examination of poverty in the South Bronx. "There's a dramatic increase of children in foster care, and that's a very high-risk group of kids. We're not creating new jobs, and we're not improving education to suit poor people for the jobs that exist."
Can anything defuse the demographic time bomb? Fox urges "reinvesting in children": improving schools, creating after-school programs and providing other alternatives to gangs and drugs: Dilulio, a law-and-order conservative, advocates tougher prosecution and wants to strengthen religious institutions to instill better values. Yet he opposes the Gingrich-led effort to make deep cuts in social programs. "A failure to maintain existing welfare and health commitment for kids," he says, "is to guarantee that the next wave of juvenile predators will be even worse than we're dealing with today." Dilulio urges fellow conservatives to think of Medicaid not as a health-care program but as "an anticrime policy."
(Source: Time Magazine)
The age group which commits the highest rate of crime is _____.
Clara and Phil are discussing women and men in society.
Clara: "As I see it, women often drive more carefully than men."
Phil: "_____”
Kate and Jackie are talking about the plan of the English club meeting next week.
Kate: “Do you think Mary's coming to the English club?”
Jackie: “_____”
Jenifer and John were talking about their study at school.
Jennifer: “I thought your English skill was a lot better, John.”
John: “_____”
Louisa: “Oh, no! I left my book at home. Can I share yours?”
Will: “_____”
Mary: “Your new hairstyle is quite attractive!”
Sheila: “_____. I think it makes me look 10 years older.”
Choose the correct order to make a conversation.
a. But I heard how much the tickets cost, and they are expensive.
b. Did you hear that the opera starts here in July?
c. I’ve always dreamed of going to the opera.
d. Yes, but it’s worth it to do something you’ve always wanted to do.
e. I know. I really think we should go.
Choose the best way to rearrange the following sentences in order to make a meaningful conversation.
a. This nice pearl necklace is locally sourced from the nearby sea.
b. I’d like to get a souvenir for my mum.
c. If you buy it in a bigger store, they will even charge you an arm and a leg for this.
d. How can I help you?
e. Uhmmm, I think a bracelet would be a better choice.
f. Well, it’s a bit pricey.
Choose the best way to rearrange the following sentences in order to make a meaningful conversation.
a. Sorry, I overslept. My clock didn't go off this morning.
b. Well, if it breaks down again tomorrow, I'll definitely buy a new one.
c. Maybe by then it'll be too late.
d. Your clock never works. Perhaps you should buy a new one.
e. What do you mean "too late"?
f. By that time you'll be fired.
g. That's right, even though I did set the alarm last night.
h. Again?
Choose the best way to rearrange the following sentences in order to make a meaningful conversation.
a. Really? How much is it?
b. What happened?
c. Maybe you can lease a car. It doesn't cost much. I know Toyota is running a promotion.
d. That's a good deal. I might wanna consider it.
e. Yeah, I've thought about that, but I can't afford a new car. I'm broke.
f. I don't even want to talk about it. My car broke down.
g. Why didn't you show up for class this morning?
h. Zero down and $219 per month.
i. The engine seems to be busted. It's driving me crazy!
k. Wow. Have you thought about getting a new car?
Choose the best way to rearrange the following sentences in order to make a meaningful conversation.
a. Throw it away and buy a new one?
b. You know what you can do?
c. Why bother? Just buy a new watch. It doesn't cost much. Besides, I just can't put up with this thing anymore.
d. No, you don't have to. You only need to put your watch back ten minutes every day.
e. Yeah, that's what I'm doing.
f. That's funny. My watch always loses ten minutes a day.
g. I'm serious. Every morning I set my watch by the radio, but it still loses ten minutes.
h. My watch always gains ten minutes a day.
i. So you put your watch back ten minutes every day?
k. No kidding.
Choose the sentence CLOSEST in meaning to the sentence given.
Upon proving that they hadn't even been in the city on the day of the robbery, the police let the suspects go.
Choose the sentence CLOSEST in meaning to the sentence given.
Obviously, the machinery in our production line has become much too obsolete to deal with our volume of business.
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After his novel, Jude the Obscure was attacked by critics for being immoral, Thomas Hardy never wrote fiction again, but instead focused on poetry.
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Picasso was such a talented artist that he never seemed to find it difficult to quickly run off a painting or a sculpture, and this resulted in a huge body of work.
Choose the sentence CLOSEST in meaning to the sentence given.
Developments in the science of genetic engineering may, in the future, lead to the first human being born without an actual mother or father.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
The US economy has been generating strong economic growth over the past few years. However, the wages of the average worker have actually fallen.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
Mohandas K. Gandhi took over control of the Indian National Congress. Before that, the idea of an independent India had been little more than a dream.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
Both Wat Phrae Kaew and Wat Arun in Bangkok are lovely temples worth visiting. Moreover, the first one contains the Emerald Buddha.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
Henderson, Nevada, has become a suburb of Las Vegas. During World War II, it was the place where the army had a large magnesium plant.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
Many athletes are trained to the peak of physical perfection. In addition, they are tempted to use illegal performance-enhancing drugs.
Read the passage and choose the correct answer.
(1)________. People visit the Grand Canyon Park not to go walking and running but mainly to look at the view. (2)_________. The distance from the Skywalk to the bottom of the Grand Canyon is 1219 meters. It is a platform whose walls and floor are built of glass (3)________. Up to 120 people are allowed to stand on it at the same time. It opened in 2007 and (4)_______ thousands of people have used it. You have to wear special covers over your shoes to avoid scratching the grass beneath your feet. (5)______ makes you feel like a bird floating high up in the air.
Choose the correct answer for (1)
Choose the correct answer for (2)
Choose the correct answer for (3)
Choose the correct answer for (4)
Choose the correct answer for (5)