Exámenes de cursos anteriores
Práctica gramatical
Actividades de vocabulario
Wednesday 27 May 2015
Tuesday 26 May 2015
Para el miércoles 27 de mayo
- Make sentences from the words in
brackets:
a.
What’s Linda doing? I’m not sure (she may / watch / television)
b.
I wonder why Tom didn’t phone me. (he must / forget)
c.
Why did you go home so early? (you needn’t / go / home so early)
d.
Why didn’t you ask me to help you? (I would / help / you)
e.
Why weren’t you here earlier? (you ought / be / here earlier)
- Rewrite the sentences starting with the words given.
a. I’m sorry but I can’t repair this lamp.
I’m sorry, but this lamp…
b. We won’t get there before dark if we don’t
start out early.
Unless we…
c. It’s too bad that Bernice isn’t here
with us.
I wish…
d. It was wrong to take that book without
asking.
You shouldn’t…
e. He found a job as a carpenter in 1995.
He came to this country then.
In 1995, when…
f. “I’m going to the cinema tomorrow”,
Edward told me.
Edward told me that…
g. I finally met the teacher. You had told
me about him.
I finally met the teacher about…
h. I’m sure that your son broke the window
while he was playing.
Your son must…
i. The athlete didn’t win the race because
she fell.
She would…
j. We’ll finish building our house in July.
By August,…
- Translate into
English:
a.
Al principio no pudimos ver la película
puesto que el cine estaba cerrado.
b.
Por esta razón, creo que otro centro
comercial en nuestra ciudad no es necesario.
c.
El dinero no es lo más importante del
mundo. No obstante, todo el mundo lo quiere.
d.
En mi opinión, su blog no está bien
escrito. Además, no estoy de acuerdo con sus opiniones.
e.
Fue difícil entenderlo debido a su acento.
- Fill the gaps
with the right preposition:
a. They have always been very kind
_________ me.
b. Everybody was surprised __________ the
news.
c. I don’t enjoy my job any more. I’m fed
up __________ it.
d. Why are you always so jealous __________
other people?
e. Who was responsible _________ all that
noise?
f. The film was different ____________ what
I’d expected.
g. Your writing is similar __________ mine.
h. The letter I wrote was full ____________
mistakes.
i. Let’s go! I’m tired _________ waiting.
j. The city centre was crowded ___________
tourists.
“Why do we enjoy mysteries so much?”
Have
you ever thought about that? Detective stories and legal thrillers are among
the most popular genres in literature. Murder mysteries are the only genre of
literature which offers you the chance to figure out the story for yourself.
Readers love to catch the killer before he or she is revealed. Detective
stories are really a game, a puzzle to solve. The reader must put together the
clues, and if you do this one step ahead of the detective, you feel really
proud.
In no
other genre does a team of people spend so much energy to understand the identity
of one person. We usually focus on the murderer, but it is really the dead who
is the star. To solve the murder, the team of detectives must know the victim’s
history. They have to find out who would want to kill them and why. In looking
for the killer, they use their brain power to deduce the truth behind the
appearances the killer has created. In a mystery, death is explained through
reasoning. You can see the dark side of people, but you know that justice
prevails. Good will defeat evil.
People
who like detective stories usually love forensics shows like CSI or Bones. They
are a new variation on an old formula: instead of solving crimes with guns and
car chases, the ‘good guys’ use microscopes and DNA, and the investigators,
like any detective of the past—Sherlock Holmes or Miss Marple, for example—are
intelligent guardians of justice, caught in a battle against an equally
intelligent criminal.
I * COMPREHENSION
(3 points; 0.5 points each)
ANSWER QUESTIONS
1-3 ACCORDING TO THE INFORMATION GIVEN IN THE TEXT. USE
YOUR OWN WORDS.
- _____________ are among the most popular literary genres.
a. Murder mysteries b.
Legal thrillers c. Detective stories d.
A, B, C are correct
- In the new forensics shows there are...
- a. No guns b. No dead people c. No crimes d. No microscopes.
ARE THESE
STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR
PHRASES FROM THE TEXT.
- In this type of genre, the protagonist
is the dead.
- You feel good when you discover the
murderer before the detective does
- In detective stories the criminal
isn’t brought to justice.
- Miss Marple is one of the CSI
investigators.
II * USE OF ENGLISH
(4 points)
6. FIND IN THE TEXT
ONE SYNONYM FOR “opportunity” (noun).
7. GIVE A NOUN WITH
THE SAME ROOT AS “proud” (adjective).
8. FILL IN THE GAP
WITH THE CORRECT OPTION: “The police looked ..... the accident”(up/ after/ out/
into)
9. FIND IN THE TEXT
THE WORD WHICH HAS THE FOLLOWING DEFINITION: “Something which serves to guide
or direct in the solution of a problem or mystery.”
10. JOIN THE
FOLLOWING SENTENCES USING A RELATIVE. MAKE CHANGES IF NECESSARY: “Agatha
Christie was the best selling mystery writer of all time. Her husband was an
archaeologist.”
11. REWRITE THE
FOLLOWING SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING ITS MEANING. BEGIN AS INDICATED: “If your
friend doesn’t come before ten, he will miss the train.” Unless.........
12. GIVE A QUESTION
FOR THE UNDERLINED WORDS: “Agatha Christie wrote ninety-three books.”
13. TURN THE
FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO THE PASSIVE VOICE: “People were accusing me of the
robbery.”
14. Rewrite the
following sentence: I´d prefer her to
spend the night with us using RATHER.
15. Write this sentence using Reported Speech:
“Are you interested in detective stories?”, Ann asked.
III * PRODUCTION (3
points)
16. WRITE A
COMPOSITION OF APPROXIMATELY 120 WORDS ABOUT THE PROPOSED TOPIC AND FOCUS
STRICTLY ON IT:
Write a review or a
summary of a book or film which you have enjoyed.
Friday 22 May 2015
Para el lunes 25 de mayo
- Complete each sentences with a
suitable form of the verb in brackets (infitinive or gerund):
a.
I really miss ______________ (play) tennis like I used to.
b.
Martin failed ______________ (pay) the rent on time again.
c.
It’s not worth ________________ (buy) a return ticket.
d.
I promise I won’t forget ________________ (feed) the cat.
e.
Would you mind ______________ (look) after the baby?
- Rewrite each
sentence so that it contains the word in capitals:
a. Jack said that he hadn’t cheated in the
exam. CHEATING
b. I think it would be a good idea to take
the train. SUGGEST
c. My neighbour said he would call the
police! THREATENED
d. I needed a drink of water and so I
stopped running. TO
e. Mark is too young to go to the disco.
ENOUGH
- Translate into
English:
a.
Hoy en día la mayoría de los adolescentes se
emborracha los fines de semana.
b.
Las personas mayores viven solas aunque
tengan hijos solteros.
c.
Personalmente pienso que los estudiantes prefieren
los ordenadores a los libros.
d.
Es un hecho que algunos anuncios son
aburridos mientras que otros son inolvidables.
e. En resumen, el concierto fue una pérdida
de tiempo y de dinero.
- Rewrite each
sentence beginning as shown:
a. I’d prefer you not to wear jeans to the
office. I’d rather…
b. We won’t get there on time without
taking a taxi. Unless…
c. “I wouldn’t go swimming on a day like
this, if I were you, Tom”. Brian advised…
d. Although she had twisted her ankle,
Sally still won the race. Despite her…
e. Mike enjoys playing golf more than I do.
I don’t…
f. I regret selling my car. I wish…
g. Nobody has cut the lawn for weeks. The
lawn…
h. I’m sure Dick didn’t mean to offend you.
Dick can’t…
i. Have you got a smaller size than this?
Is this…
j. Would you like to go out for a drink? Do
you feel…?
COMING DOWN TO EARTH
A
hot shower and a new wife helped two astronauts come down to earth after six
months in orbit. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and U.S. astronaut Edward
Lu landed in Kazakhstan after an unproblematic flight from the International
Space Station. The crew, accompanied by Spaniard Pedro Duque, who was on a one
week mission, arrived as planned. Lu said the exciting life on the 16-nation
orbital platform had amply compensated for not enjoying common comforts.
"It's a small price to pay not to be able to eat your favorite food or
take a shower if you have the opportunity to live and work in space," he
told a news conference. "But that being said, that first hot shower felt
really good." Having married his fiancée Ekaterina Dmitriev in August via
a satellite video link from space, Malenchenko went straight into married life
enthusiastically. "Life continues on earth and we've got lots of
plans," he said. The astronauts said they had been able to keep in touch
with their families from the station via e-mail and video telephone. "I
missed my family and fiancée, but we had very good communications on board and
we were able to talk," said Lu. "I didn't feel very much separated
from my loved ones on the ground."
COMPREHENSION
(3 points)
a) MULTIPLE
CHOICE:
1)
One
of the daily comforts astronauts cannot enjoy in orbit is...
a. a nice talk with family
b. a good film c. a hot
shower d. a radio program
2)
Who
was Ekaterina Dmitriev?
a. Malenchenko's fiancée b. Malenchenko's
wife c. Duque's wife d. Lu's fiancée
b) ARE
THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH WORDS OR PHRASES FROM
THE TEXT. (0.5 points per answer)
3)
Pedro
Duque was in orbit for six months.
4)
The
orbital platform was exclusively a Russian and American enterprise.
5)
Living
in the orbital platform was so stimulating that astronauts could manage without
ordinary comforts.
6)
The
Russian astronaut got married while in space.
(B) USE OF ENGLISH (4 points)
7) Give one opposite for EXCITING
(adjective) (line 5) (0.25 points)
8) Give one synonym for CONTINUE
(verb) (line 9) (0.25 points)
9) Find in the text the word which
has the following definition: “a group of people working on a spaceship” (noun)
(0.25 points)
10) Give an adjective with the same
root as ENJOY (verb) (line 5) (0.25 points)
11) Give one synonym of FILTHY (0.25
points)
12) Give a noun with the same root
as ENTHUSIASTICALLY (0.25 points)
13) Rewrite the sentence as indirect
speech: “You can't park here” The police officer told me...
14) Give a question for the
underlined words: (0.5 points) Edward Lu met his fiancée after Christmas.
15) Use the words in the boxes to
make a meaningful sentence. Use all and only the words in the boxes without
changing their form. (0.5 points)
station had a
Malenchenko walk the around
16) Turn the following sentence into
passive: The astronauts are giving the journalists a lot of information (0.5
points)
17) Complete the following
conditional sentence: If I ever went to space… (0.5 points)
(C) PRODUCTION (3 points)
18) Write a composition (80-100
WORDS) Choose ONE of the following options. Specify your option.
a) Are dangerous professions
attractive for young people today? Why?
b) Do you like science fiction
stories/films? Why?
Wednesday 20 May 2015
PARA EL JUEVES 21 DE MAYO
1.
Rewrite each
sentence beginning as shown, so that the meaning stays the same:
a. What a pity I don't have curly hair.
I wish my...
b. I didn't know your number, so I
didn't call you.
If I...
c. What time did we get to Paris?
Could
you tell me...
d. I regret not visiting the Louvre
the last time I was in Paris.
I
wish...
e. Put more salt in or you won't be
able to taste it.
Unless...
f. I think we should go now.
It's
time...
g. “If I were you, Harry, I wouldn't
take the job”, said Brenda.
Brenda
advised Harry...
h. Please give me money instead of a
present.
I'd
rather you...
i. Lucky you were here, or the house
would have caught fire.
If...
j. Someone broke into Peter's house
last week.
Peter had...
2.
Put in the missing
preposition:
a. a. Please come in and sit down. I'm
sorry _________ the mess.
b. He's very brave. He's not afraid
_________ anything.
c. Gordon got married _________ a
woman he met when he was studying at college.
d. Don't ask me to decide. I'm not
very good _________ making decisions.
e. The plan has been changed but
nobody seems to know the reason __________ this.
f. She works quite hard. You can't
accuse her ________ being lazy.
g. Who's going to look __________
your children while you're at work?
h. I prefer this chair ________ the
other one. It's more comfortable.
i. “Do you like staying at hotels?”
“It depends _________ the hotel”.
j. What's funny? What are you laughing _________?
3.
Rewrite each
sentence using a modal verb:
a. Is it necessary for me to bring my
passport?
b. I am sure the cat is in the house
somewhere.
c. I am sure that John is not the thief.
d. What would you advise me to do?
e. It's possible for anyone to break
into this house.
4.
Make one sentence
from each group of sentences using relative pronouns:
a. I was sitting next to a boy in the
exam. He told me the answer.
The boy ...
b. My friend Albert has decided to buy a
motor-bike. His car was stolen last week.
My friend Albert,...
c. This is the bank. We borrowed the
money from it.
This is the bank from...
d. A goal was scored by a teenager. He
had come on as substitute. This goal won the match.
The goal...
e. I lent you a book. It was written by
a friend of mine. She lives in France.
The book...
Time
Banks
|
1
2
3
4 5 6
7
8 9 10 11
12
13 14 15
16
17 18 |
We all know about
banks for money, and banks for blood, but now it seems there are banks for
time.
Time Banks, an
American concept which first started in 1980, operate today throughout the
Unlike traditional
barter systems, Time Banks enable members to receive from one person and
donate to another. One elderly lady spent time visiting a disabled neighbour,
and in exchange, her kitchen was redecorated. Another woman accumulated time
so that she could “buy” luxuries, such as massages. Services offered range
from music and language instruction to wardrobe reorganisation, eyebrow
plucking and plant watering.
One obvious advantage
of Time Banks is that they allow people access to services that might
otherwise be too costly. However, there are also other benefits. These
schemes build community spirit, which is hard to create today because the
population is so mobile. They also help people who may feel that they have
little to offer to realise that they are valuable contributors. Many people
never use the hours they accumulate, while others donate their time to people
in need.
There is an old saying
in English that “time is money”. With Time Banks, this is truer than ever!
|
I*
COMPREHENSION (This section consists of six items combining ‘True/False’ and/or
‘Multiple Choice’ questions) (3
points)
CHOOSE AND WRITE THE CORRECT OPTION (A,
B, C or D). (0.5 points each)
1. People that contribute time to the Time
Bank …
(a) can
exchange their time for cash. (c)
can deposit their hours in Time Banks in America
(b) can
receive only the same type of England
and Spain
service in return. (d) are entitled to an equal amount of time in return.
service in return. (d) are entitled to an equal amount of time in return.
2. Why are Time Banks
important in modern society?
(a) They
help people buy luxuries. (c)
They aren’t like traditional barter systems.
(b) They
help build a sense of community. (d)
They help people who have little to offer.
ARE
THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR
PHRASES FROM THE TEXT. (0.5 points each)
3. Time Banks were first
started in the USA
4. Some services are
worth more than others.
5. Members can only
receive services from people they’ve donated to.
6. People
must withdraw the time they deposit in time banks.
II* USE OF ENGLISH (4 points; questions 7-12, 0.25 points each; 13-17, 0.5
points each)
7. give one synonym for “instruction”
(noun) AS IT IS USED IN THE TEXT (line 11).
8. Give one opposite for “costly” (adjective)
AS IT IS USED IN THE TEXT (line 14).
9. Find in the text the word which has the
following definition: “to permit something to happen”.
10. Give a noun with the same root as “truer”
(adverb).
11. Which word IS NOT AN ADJECTIVE? costly
/ lively / quickly / elderly
12. Fill in the gap with the correct form of the verb
in brackets: Are you interested in …… (meet) my friend?
13. Turn the
following sentence into the passive voice: A Time Bank member will
perform an hour of service.
14. Join the following sentences using AN
APPROPRIATE LINKER. (DO NOT USE and, but or because.) Make changes if necessary: One
woman accumulated over 100 hours. She doesn’t want
to receive any services.
to receive any services.
15. Give a
question for the underlined wordS: One elderly lady visited her
disabled neighbour.
16. Use the words in the boxes to make a
meaningful sentence. Use all and only the words in the boxes without changing
their form:
17. Turn the
following sentence into REPORTED SPEECH: “Jackie wanted to meet me at
the theatre,” he said.
III* PRODUCTION (3
points)
18. WRITE A COMPOSITION
OF APPROXIMATELY 120 WORDS ABOUT THE TOPIC PROPOSED. YOU MUST FOCUS STRICTLY ON
IT.
Community service should be required of every
citizen.
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