A2 Use of English Tests

Test 1:
Dolphins
Dolphins are different from the fish in the sea in many ways. They’re part of the family of whales.
They’re warm, they (1)…………… babies which stay with (2)…………… mothers for years, and
usually swim together in family groups called ‘herds’.
People think that dolphins are unusually clever animals. Dolphins ‘talk’ to one another and
understand each other very well and (3)…………… dolphins can learn to understand words in our
language. They also will (4)…………… instructions. They’re friendly and enjoy playing games,
too. You often see (5)…………… swimming near ships at sea.
Dolphins prefer to eat certain kinds of food which they can find even if it’s dark, (6)……………
they don’t need to drink. They get all the water that they need from the fish they eat.
1 A has B have C are having
2 A its B their C our
3 A many B any C a lot
4 A follow B following C followed
5 A him B it C them
6 A because B but C or
Test 2:
Ice cream
Fifty years ago, people only ate ice cream in the hot summer months – but now (1)…………… is
eaten at any time of the year. Who made the first ice cream is a question (2)…………… we can’t
answer, but we think an Italian adventurer called Marco Polo saw people (3)…………… ice cream
in China 700 years ago. He brought the idea back to Italy. It soon became very popular.
Ice cream then became very popular in France, (4)…………… only very rich people had enough
money to buy it. Before we had fridges, people used large pieces of ice from lakes to (5)
…………… ice cream cold. The first ice cream factory opened in America in 1851. Americans eat
more ice cream than (6)…………… other nationality – 23 litres per person per year!

1 A they B it C she 4 A but B so C or

2 A that B who C when 5 A keep B kept C keeping
3 A doing B making C liking 6 A all B any C each

Test 3:
Miniature paintings
Shammi Banu is a painter (1)…………… India. His family have painted very small paintings called
‘miniatures’ for (2)…………… years. Everything Shammi knows about painting was taught to (3)
…………… by his father. He was a great teacher. Shammi has taught many people to paint (4)
…………… 1997 and now he has British, American and Indian students in his classes.
Shammi uses things like plants and flowers to make (5)…………… the colours he needs for his
paints. Making them takes a long time. He breaks the plants into small pieces and (6)……………
washes them and puts them in the paint. When he has the colour he wants, he sometimes adds food
or blue to the paint to help it stay on the paper.

1 A for B from C of 4 A since B during C in

2 A many B a lot C much 5 A some B all C every
3 A it B him C them 6 A after B first C then

Test 4:
Rice
Did you know that for half the people in the world, rice is (1)…………… most important food?
Most of these people live in Asia (2)…………… a person might eat 90 to 180 kilograms of rice in
one year!
But where did rice come from? Indian people (3)…………… growing rice 5,000 years ago, but we
think that people first grew rice in China. The first Europeans that grew rice lived in Spain.
American settlers (4)…………… growing rice about 400 years ago.
(5)…………… are thousands of different kinds of rice. Wild rice grows in lakes in Canada and you
can sometimes find ‘hill rice’ growing like grass in dry fields. (6)…………… most rice grows in
about 15 centimetres of water in special flat fields called ‘paddies’.

1 A the B a C one 4 A wanted B decided C started

2 A when B how C where 5 A These B There C They
3 A were B was C are 6 A And B So C But

Test 5:
Jessica Thompson: young musician
Jessica Thompson comes from a very talented family. Her parents are (1)…………… artists. She
also has an older sister (2)…………… is a well-known athlete. Jessica has never been good (3)
…………… sport or art. But she plays the violin and the piano – and she plays (4)…………… very
well! She started playing when she was six and she’s been playing since then.
Jessica studies at a famous music school in London, but she also plays the piano in concerts. She’s
still a student and she spends many hours practising new songs. Jessica went on her first concert
tour (5)…………… Europe last year. She had her first concert in Paris. She had a great time.
‘It was incredible,’ she says. ‘After the concert, everyone shouted my name. I’ll never (6)
…………… it!’

1 A two B both 2 A when B what C who

C pair
3 A for B at 5 A around B between C from
C by 6 A remember B forget C lose
4 A them B they
C their

Test 6:
Great white sharks
Great white sharks are one of the largest fish in the seas. They are grey with a white belly. They can
grow to more (1)…………… 6 metres long and are very heavy, often over 2,000 kilograms. Great
whites (2)…………… a variety of different sea animals including big seals, fish, turtles, dolphins
and small whales. They have about 300 triangular teeth so they can easily catch their food. They
can (3)…………… swim very fast because they have very strong tails. Great white sharks live in
cool seas and oceans all over the (4)…………… . Many people (5)…………… that sharks like to
attack and eat humans for fun. This isn’t true. Sharks only attack humans (6)…………… they are
curious or afraid, not for food.

1 A as B than C like 4 A island B country C world

2 A eat B eats C ate 5 A believe B tell C afraid
3 A well B also C too 6 A but B because C during

Test 7:
Tasmanian devils
Tasmanian devils are about the size of a small dog. They have a coat of dark fur with a few lighter
areas on some (1)…………… of their bodies. Their heads are large and they have very strong teeth.
In the (2)……………, Tasmanian devils lived all over Australia, but today they are only (3)
…………… on the island of Tasmania in the south-east of the country.
Tasmanian devils are meat-eaters and are active at night. They usually eat animals that are already
dead, but also catch (4)…………… like snakes, birds, fish and insects. Like many Australian
animals, including the kangaroo, Tasmanian devils are ‘marsupials’. This (5)…………… their
babies are very small when they are born. Their mothers carry them in a special pocket (6)
…………… a ‘pouch’ on the front of their bodies until they are big and strong.

1 A pieces B places C parts 4 A examples B things C ways

2 5 A means B decides C thinks
A history B past C century 6 A told B said C called
3
A found B looked C watched

Test 8:
 Dakota Fanning
Dakota Fanning was born on February 23rd 1994, in Georgia, USA. She began acting classes at a
very (1)…………… age and starred in her first TV advert when she was just five years old.
After that, she had a long and successful (2)…………… as a child actor in both TV shows and
films. In 2001, she (3)…………… an important prize for her part in the film I am Sam. Over the
next ten years, she acted with many big Hollywood stars, including Reese Witherspoon, Tom Cruise
and Kurt Russell.
Dakota Fanning is different from many child actors because her success continued as she (4)
…………… up and became an adult. In 2018, she (5)…………… to TV for the first time in ten
years, starring in a popular police drama set in the nineteenth century, (6)…………… The Alienist.

1 A small B early C little 4 A got B grew C went

2 A career B job 5 A returned B changed C arrived
C occupation 6 A said B told C called
3 A did B earned C won

Test 9:
Nettie Polano
Nettie Polano is an unusual university student. So what makes her (1)…………… from other
university students? Nettie is amazing – she started university when she was 14! Nettie is a teenage
genius – a teenager who is (2)…………… clever.
She completed primary school in four years and secondary school in only three years! Her teachers
saw she was much (3)…………… than other students her age when she was seven years old.
They (4)…………… Nettie’s parents how brilliant she was.
Two years later, Nettie’s parents decided to take her out of school. Nettie (5)…………… her school
studies at home with teachers who came to her house. Nettie studies science at university. She chose
this (6)…………… because she dreams of one day becoming the youngest person to travel into
space.

1 A strange B different C alone 4 A spoke B told C said

2 A especially B immediate C exactly 5 A finished B made C took
3 A older B bigger C better 6 A level B term C subject

Test 10:
Life before mobile phones
Today, (1)………… all teenagers have a mobile phone and cannot imagine life without one. But
most of their parents did not have a mobile phone when they were young – the (2)………… of one
did not even enter their heads.
Twenty-five years ago, young people did not (3)………… to their friends on the phone very much.
There were phones in the home, but these were used by the (4)………… family. Instead, young
people often met up with their friends and did a variety of activities with them.
Today, many parents are happy for their teenage children to have a phone. They think there are
good (5)………… for them having one. For example, if their children are out, they can call them to
(6)………… where they are and what time they will be home.

1 A already B nearly C easily 4 A whole B full C extra

2 A idea B thing C difference 5 A ways B reasons C sorts
3 A say B tell C speak 6 A look out B go out C find out

Test 11:
Hip-hop
Hip-hop is more than just a (1)………….. of music. For people who love hip hop, it is often a (2)
………….. of life. The words in the songs are very important as well as how people dance and the
how they (3)………….. .
Hip-hop started in the Bronx area of New York City in the 1970s. But like all music, hip-hop had its
beginnings in (4)………….. kind of music. In the case of hip-hop, this music was African-
American music, and some even say African music. Since the 1990s hip-hop has (5)…………..
very popular all over the world. People have enjoyed hip-hop for more than forty years already.
Like rock and roll, it will probably (6)………….. to be popular for many more years!

1 A song B band C type 4 A another B different C other

2 A fashion B way C reason 5 A begun B arrived C become
3 A dress B wear C show 6 A stay B continue C keep

Test 12:
The Galapagos Islands
The Galapagos Islands are in the Pacific Ocean, about 1000 km off the coast of Ecuador. There are
thirteen main islands and seven smaller islands, as (1)………….. as a number of large rocks. The
largest island, which is called Isabella, is 4670 square km.
The islands are famous for their wide (2)………….. of plants and animals.
The nineteenth-century British scientist Charles Darwin visited several of the islands and (3)
………….. the many different animals and plants he saw there.
Today, over 30 percent of the plants and animals on the Galapagos Islands cannot be found
anywhere else in the world, so many people who are (4)………….. in nature visit the islands. (5)
………….., it is important that the islands are (6)………….. safe for the many animals that live
there.

1 A soon B well C much 3 A learnt B studied C looked

2 A kind B sort C variety 4 A special B interested C pleasant
5 A.However B. Actually C. 6 A put B kept C taken
Unfortunately

Test 13:
Philo T. Farnsworth
Philo T. Farnsworth was born in the USA in 1906. As a child, he was very interested in science and
electricity and spent a lot of time (1)…………… about it. He also won a national (2)……………
for young engineers when he was just 13.
When he was 20, Farnsworth (3)…………… his own business. In 1927, he showed everyone his
new idea: a (4)…………… of sending pictures using electricity. Many other people were working
on ideas for a machine to do this, but Farnsworth’s was the first that had no moving parts. In fact, it
was the first true electronic TV.
After many business problems, Farnsworth had success in 1938 when another company (5)
…………… him $1 million for his idea. He is not very famous these (6)……………, but, as the
father of electronic television, Farnsworth changed the world.

1 3 A became B turned C started

A learning B studying C understanding 4 A plan B way C thing
2 5 A offered B took C sold
A game B match C competition 6 A times B days C years

Test 14:
Sally Ride
Sally Ride was born on 26th May, 1951, in California, USA. After high school, she went to
Stanford University to study physics. While she was there, she saw an advertisement in her
university newspaper (1)………….. women to join the US space programme. Six women, including
Sally, were (2)………….. to become astronauts. On 18th June 1983, Sally became the first
American woman to fly into space. Six days later, on 24th June, she (3)………….. to Earth.
When Sally (4)………….. working as an astronaut in 1987, she started teaching at the University of
California. She wanted to find ways to get more people, (5)………….. girls, interested in studying
science and mathematics. She also found time to write science books for children about (6)
………….. space.

1 A inviting B showing C looking 5 A especially B exactly C clearly

2 A thought B decided C chosen 6 A exploring B going
3 A completed B returned C arrived C travelling
4 A ended B closed C stopped

Test 15:
Eric Koston
Eric Koston is one of the world’s best-known skateboarders. He was born in Thailand, but his
family (1)…………… to the US when he was a baby. His love of skateboarding began at the (2)
…………… of 11, when his older brother gave him a skateboard. It was an old, broken board, but
he learned how to skateboard by watching other kids and then he (3)…………… by himself every
day.
Three years later, he was so good that a company that made skateboards offered him a summer (4)
…………… . That’s when he (5)…………… to make skateboarding his life. Since then, Eric
has (6)…………… many international competitions, made boarding videos and starred in a
skateboarding video game. Now he owns a successful company making sports shoes and clothes.

1 A changed B moved C left 4 A career B job C work

2 A year B time C age 5 A thought B felt C decided
3 A practised B 6 A won B taken C tried
taught C followed

Test 16:
Art you can eat
Yujia Hu was born in China, but moved to Milan, in Italy, when he was eight. His family have a
Japanese restaurant there. When Yujia left school, he (1)………….. a course at an art school, but he
didn’t complete it. (2)………….., he went to work in the family restaurant as a sushi chef. Sushi is a
Japanese dish made of rice, with fish and vegetables.
Yujia is a big (3)………….. of basketball, and a few years ago he (4)………….. to start using sushi
to make models of the faces of famous players. His next idea was to make little shoes, usually
trainers, out of sushi. It (5)………….. him about 30 minutes to make each shoe. Yujia doesn’t serve
the sushi shoes to customers at his family’s restaurant, but he (6)………….. photographs of them
online.

1 A got B held C began 4 A believed B understood C decided

2 A Instead B Really C Maybe 5 A spends B takes C delays
3 A partner 6
B fan C member A sends B shares C joins

Test 17:
An unusual holiday
Most people go on holiday to get away from work. But in the beautiful Scottish village of Wigtown,
it’s (1)…………… to rent a flat above a bookshop, and work as the (2)…………… of the bookshop
for a week. This holiday is very popular with people who love books and who have always (3)
…………… their own bookshop.
However, this is a holiday, so people staying there don’t have to work very hard. They can (4)
…………… the opening hours of the shop, and they just have a few jobs to do, such as (5)
…………… the shelves with books.
Guests also get a bike, so they can (6)…………… the area when the shop is closed. The holiday is
so popular that the flat is fully booked for the next three years.

1 A able B possible C available 5 A putting

2 A manager B colleague C customer B adding C filling
3 A hoped B wanted C decided 6 A look B ride C explore
4 A think B find C choose

Test 18:
The London Marathon
In 1979, two British men called John Disley and Chris Brasher (1)…………… to run the New York
Marathon. This 42-kilometre race goes through the city, past many of its famous tourist sights.
Disley and Brasher found that it was very different from marathons in the UK.
At that (2)…………… in the UK, nobody was interested in marathons, but in New York, there were
large (3)…………… of people watching. Afterwards, the two men had the (4)…………… of
starting a similar race in London.
The first London Marathon was in 1981, and over six thousand runners (5)…………… part. Since
then, the race has happened every year, and has become popular with runners from all over the
world. Over a million people have completed it, and it is (6)…………… on TV in nearly 200
countries.

1 A thought B said C decided 4 A idea B answer C fact

2 A year B day C time 5 A stayed B took C made
3 A members B crowds C visitors 6 A shown B made C held

Tet 19:
Walter Bonatti
Walter Bonatti, one of the greatest alpine mountain climbers of all time, was born in Italy in 1930.
As a child, he (1)…………… his holidays in Bergamo with his uncles. He loved the mountains
there, and at the age of 18, he (2)…………… to climb the highest and most difficult ones. He was
one of the (3)…………… people to do this and he was very (4)…………… at it.
He went on to climb many other mountains, including the famous K2 in the Himalayas. At the age
of just 35, he decided to (5)…………… his climbing career. However, he continued to work as a
mountain guide and photographer. He also wrote several books about his climbing (6)……………,
which are read in all Italian schools.

1 A travelled B went C spent 2 A became

B began C turned
3 A early B first C soon 5 A shut B close
4 A successful C end
B interested C popular 6
A experiences B occupations C subjects

Test 20:
Camels
Camels are one of the only large animals that can live happily in the Sahara Desert. The hot weather
and strong winds are not a (1)…………… for them. Also, they do not need to eat or drink every
day, and this (2)…………… them very useful to the people who live there.
Camels begin working at the age of about four years old and don’t stop until they are around 25 to
30. They can carry people or things a very long (3)……………, and because of this they are
sometimes (4)…………… the ‘ships of the desert’.
These days, there are roads across some (5)…………… of the Sahara, so buses and lorries are
often (6)…………… . However, in places where there are no roads, camels are still the only type of
transport.

1 A trouble B mistake C problem 5 A parts B examples C things

2 A gets B has C makes 6 A put B used
3 A way B path C road C done
4 A described B said C called