Answer Keys
PART 1
1 B — subject. Phrase subject to means that it has happened before and therefore very likely to happen again. Liable to means that it can happen, but less likely so. Context suggests that the probability is quite high. Other options do not fit here.
2 C — achieving. Achieve is the only word that collocates with price here.
3 C — potential. Potential buyers are people who are likely to be interested in what you are selling. Other words aren’t normally used with buyers.
4 A — clinch. To clinch a sale/deal is an informal expression meaning ‘to secure or to guarantee a sale’.
5 D — although. The second part of the sentence gives reason to renovate the place even though it logically makes sense not to, this is why we use although.
6 A — doing. To do up means ‘to renovate, to fix’.
7 B — room. Room for something here means space but in respect to place where people live. In other words if we are talking about a place where people reside then the word ‘room’ is commonly used when talking about free space.
8 D — stamp. To put your stamp on something means to give it a personal touch.
PART 2
9 on. To concentrate on something means to focus your attention on it.
10 although/though/while. Conjunctions with the meaning ‘despite that’. Any of the three can be used.
11 something. We can’t use ‘anything’ here as it would distort the meaning of sentence.
12 not. Pay attention not to put ‘aren’t’ here. The verb is already here, you only need to add a negative adverb.
13 have. Passive construction is used.
14 under. ‘To be under threat’ is an often-used collocation.
15 making. Context suggest using an ‘-ing’ word.
16 too. Do not make the common mistake of misspelling it as ‘to’. Misspelled words aren’t counted as correct answers.
PART 3
17 grandeur. Noun is needed here. A tricky word to spell, be attentive. Greatness does not fit here, as it is formed from the word ‘great’, not ‘grand’.
18 eruption. Eruption is what happens when a volcano becomes active and shoots hot lava.
19 Towering. The meaning is that the walls are very high. The word should be capitalised, it won’t be scored otherwise.
20 strength. A difficult word to spell right.
21 sheltered. Sheltered means ‘protected, covered’.
22 atmospheric.
23 unpleasant. ‘Or even threatening’ helps to understand that the other word has a negative meaning, so negative prefix should be used.
24 inescapable. Make sure you use the right negative prefix.
PART 4
25 of/about his chances of success. To be confident about something.
26 should make you (feel) calmer/ more calm. Keep in mind that with shorter words both forms (calmer/more calm) are acceptable.
27 have a really/very bad memory for. To have good/bad memory for something.
28 on the grounds of. On the grounds of = because of.
29 regret not helping. Simply putting ‘regret’ in without changing the rest of the sentence will be regarded as a mistake (e.g. ‘I regret that I didn’t help him’)
30 prevented from going away. Prevented from something.
PART 5
31 В. The author was most surprised by the fact, that she referred to Madrid as her home, even though she didn’t mean to — she did it subconsciously, without thinking. Answer A is incorrect — the arrival on time surprised her, but it wasn’t the most unexpected thing, as required by the question.
32 D. The example the author uses is not having a Social Security Number in the US. Answer A isn’t correct — the example with people in Brazil ‘talking behind your back’ doesn’t mean that people didn’t accept the author. It only goes to show communication problems. Constant travelling or being away from your relatives isn’t mentioned as a key reason for discomfort.
33 В. Practicality is the obvious advantage in the example. It was much easier for the author to cook and rest at her apartment in Spain rather than living in a tent in Patagonia.
34 A. Sentences two and three of paragraph starting with ‘But the feeling…’ talk about getting used to feeling at home in a gradual and slow way: sensation that is achieved over time, a slow progressing relationship. Last but one sentence: Slowly but surely, I learned to live the Spanish lifestyle.
35 D. Flamenco lovers refers to the dance style of the past, whereas clubbing is a more modern experience. Other answers do not imply both classical and modern aspects.
36 B. The author mentions that expats feel a period of ambiguity, feeling like new arrivals. Ambiguity is uncertainty or insecurity.
PART 6
37 A. Other commentators believe the prime benefit of volunteers is to learn back from the people they help. Commentator A on the other hand is convinced that the work should be ‘organised with the needs of the communities in mind’ rather than to benefit volunteers themselves.
38 D. Both commentators share the view that the experience is positive for volunteers themselves most of all. Commentator A is focused on host-country benefits. Commentator C talks of potential benefit for the country the volunteers comes from.
39 C. Both commentators complain about volunteers’ unrealistic and overly ambitious expectations to bring serious changes over a short period of their stay.
40 В. Commentators C and B talk about the shift in thinking about how the people that help can benefit from it.
PART 7
41 F. ‘He was trying to aestheticise retailing’ says Scragg, referring of course to Gordon Selfridge, mentioned in the very first paragraph. Next paragraph starts with how the Britain recognized the importance of commerce.
42 С. The next paragraph refers to ‘the course of her research’ — Scragg’s PhD on British art and the academic work associated with it.
4З А. The following paragraph describes the “photographic evidence”, mentioned in paragraph A. Present tense is used because the author describes the picture, the evidence.
44 G. The paragraph starts stating the importance of positioning, harmony and symmetry. This is what concludes the previous paragraph. It then ends with how in difficult time people need support, and the next paragraph continues the idea, pointing out that the economy is “once again in recession”.
45 В. “Selfridge’s remains an exception” — an exception to the trend of using other forms of advertising such as the Internet mentioned in the previous paragraph. It is implied that they attract customers in an old-fashioned ways — by making the shopping windows spectacular.
46 D. “One of the illustrations she will include” — refers to the publication in one of the popular journals mentioned before.
PART 8
47 В. The author believed that his stories should be an inspiration for future people of science so he included many ideas in his writing. (Sentence in the middle starting with ‘Gernsback was …’)
48 A. The ‘different process’ mentioned is how the clones are made — from various parts rather than grown.
49 C. Mark Twain is largely known for his non-science fiction books such as Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
50 A. The robots are those that threaten to make humanity extinct.
51 D. One but last sentence of Paragraph D explicitly states that the importance of such device would have been enormous.
52 B. The paragraph states that the author’s name ‘has been immortalised in the annual science fiction awards’.
53 B. ‘The mystifying title is itself a prediction of language used in text talk today’ suggests that author’s contemporaries had trouble understanding the title of the book.
54 C. The character uses the sci-fi analogue of the modern Internet to communicate with other people, unconfined by his prison cell.
55 D. ‘The long-running series’ is the only part that suggest it ran for a prolonged period of time to much joy of the viewers.
56 A. The controversy is concern of many people how machines can become independent and cause potential problems.