Answer Keys
Part 1
1 C – assessment. “Cost-benefit assessment” is a common collocation, meaning how much you stand to gain in comparison to how much effort you have put to it. “Audit” is normally reserved to financial context. “Review” is not precise enough. “Appraisal” is more fitting to understand value of an item or a person.
2 D – inherent.If something is inherent, it comes with it naturally, it is integral.”Implicit” means hidden, not shown directly, same with “underlying”. “Subdued” means not as strong as it can be.
3 A – manifests. This cognitive tax (the amount of intellectual fatigue) makes itself visible in the form of being less attentive. “Exhibits itself” is not a common phrase. “Unveils” means “reveals in an overt, intentional way”. To divulge means to disclose something e.g. information.
4 B – discarding. To discard something means to get rid of something, to throw something away because you no longer need it. “Dispense”- normally “dispense with”, and it doesn’t fit here structurally. Abolishing is about laws. Deleting is more fitting for software, and we are talking about a whole array of tech here.
5 A – deliver. “To deliver value” is a strong collocation that fits the context perfectly. Other options do not make contextually relevant collocations.
6 B – discretion. The preposition after the gap is key. To have discretion over something means to have the control over it. “Autonomy” would need the preposition “in”. “Sovereignty” is more fitting for political contexts. “Liberty” refers to general freedom from external restriction, whereas the phrase here requires a word meaning personal judgement, not a control imposed by some outside force.
7 D – object. Note that the words are all verbs! To challenge would mean to doubt, whereas here we are looking for verb expressing a much more direct opposition to the idea. “Dispute” is normally used to talk about objective facts rather than ideas. “Counter” requires a direct object, e.g. “to counter an idea/a claim”. In the absence of a direct object it doesn’t fit grammatically.
8 A – institute. To institute something is a highly formal verb meaning to establish some sort of a system, such as a rule or a regulation. “Erect” is more common for buildings or barriers. “Launch” is more apt for some kind of a project;”stabilise” is not about creating, but making something steady.
9 by. “by trial and error” is a strong set expression that means understanding how something works through practical means, not by researching the topic. Note that “through” doesn’t fit as it is not the part of the fixed expression.
10 involved/meant. Finding your way meant having to interact with people, using landscape and landmarks as reference and so on.
11 just/simply/merely. We are looking for an adverb to emphasize how the act of finding one’s way wasn’t just about knowing where you are, but something much more.
12 conversely. We need to contrast having to do the heavy lifting of finding the way yourself and delegating this task to technology, thus making it much easier, but also less rewarding.
13 what. “What is more” is a set expression that works great to reinforce the point by adding a new argument.
14 with/to. To be synonymous to/with something is to mean the same thing. Getting lost nowadays without digital means to come to your rescue means helplessness rather than temporary disorientation.
15 out. If you engineer something out of something else, it means you deliberately exclude it, so that it no longer is an integral part of it. There is no discovery in getting lost, not anymore.
16 where. The word “place” in the sentence helps us find the right word for the gap. This one is relies on your understanding the context of the sentence in general.
17 characteristic. A noun in the singular. The indefinite article here helps us avoid pluralising it, which you might feel tempted to do, as plurality might be suggested by “service stations” and “hotel lobbies”.
18 uniqueness. It is clear that we need a noun here. The only challenge here is getting the spelling right.
19 unfamiliarity. The phrase “It could be anywhere” suggests sameness, lack of unique identity. “A sense of placeless disorientation” helps us understand that we need a negative prefix- the speaker is likely to be unfamiliar with the place.
20 inauthentic. Not genuine. Note that “unauthentic” would be considered incorrect as it is a much less used variation, normally deemed wrong.
21 underlying. Not immediately obvious or noticeable. It takes a while to realise that the way these non-spaces feel is intentional.
22 interacting. We need a gerund here (“rarely doing something”). It is implied that people are too busy to engage in any kind of interaction with one another. “Acting” in the meaning of taking action is incorrect.
23 prolonged. A collocation you should be familiar with at C2, “prolonged exposure” means continued presence in certain conditions.
24 disorientation. A small tip is to avoid using -ing as far as possible as long as there is a so-called “real” noun.
25 necessitates the reopening of. The definite article is important here as “reopening” is countable and in the singular. “Necessitates reopening” is technically grammatically correct, but you have to use at least three words in the gap in CPE Use of English Part 4.
26 had no alternative but to cancel. “To have no alternative but to + infinitive” means to have no other option. “But to” structure should by now be common knowledge to a C2 level test-taker. Note the change of the gerund “cancelling” into the infinitive form “to cancel”, as dictated by the fixed expression.
27 shook off/got over the effects of. Both phrasal verbs work great here to convey the message of overcoming something unpleasant.
28 was beyond the grasp of. If something is beyond one’s grasp, it is too complex for them to understand. Note how this is a fixed expression that shouldn’t be changed, e.g. “was beyond most of the committee’s grasp” is incorrect, because it changes the core expression “beyond the grasp of somebody”.
29 can’t/cannot have told you. “Can’t have done something” shows certainty about something not having happened.
30 on no extension being made/on there being no extension. Here we go with either a passive gerund structure or a complex gerund after “insist on”.
31 D. The paragraph contrasts stereotypical images of beekeeping (“rolling meadows”) with the unexpected reality (“concrete rooftops”), then makes an unexpected claim that cities could be healthier for bees than the countryside. Answer A is incorrect, as biodiversity is not the main topic. The focus is primarily on bees. The last sentence might be a distractor, but it just asks a general rhetorical question. Answer B isn’t good as the modal “should” distorts the suggested idea- they merely suggest that cities may offer better conditions for bees. Answer C: there is criticism of industrial agriculture, but no suggestion of irreversibility.
32 B. The main focus is that thanks to floral diversity, bees are less likely to starve. “To buffer against” here means to provide additional protection from something- in this case, food scarcity. Answer A: although the paragraph shows surprising richness in cities, biodiversity is not the main communicative goal. The writer is not arguing “cities are more biodiverse than we think”. Answer C: The focus is the outcome for bees, not urban design philosophy. Finally, Answer D doesn’t fit as the paragraph isn’t trying to criticise farming. Instead, it supports the urban argument. Rural agriculture is just background information, not the communicative aim.
33 B. Inexperienced beekeepers might cause harm to the preservation effort without realising it, all due to their poor skills in maintaining the hives. Answer A is not optimal, as this idea fits much better in paragraph four and six (“illusion of action”, “fashionable gesture”), not paragraph three. Answer C: competition with wild pollinators is mentioned, but this option reframes the paragraph as a structural critique of species hierarchy, which the text doesn’t develop. The real emphasis is not “managed bees are bad”, but “badly managed beekeeping is harmful”. Finally, just like with Answer A, Answer D is something that gets more attention in the paragraphs to follow. Keep in mind the paragraph limitations- you should only refer to the information given in that particular part of the text.
34 B. The writer says such projects may “offer the comforting illusion of action” and oversimplify complex problems- in other words, they present issues in an overly reassuring way. Answer A: institutional support is described, but not blamed. Answer C: the criticism is not that education replaces action, but that it gives the wrong idea of how complex the issue is. Answer D: the issue is not exaggeration of scale, the problem is that it might give false hope of how easily the problem can be solved.
35 A. The paragraph contrasts abstract ideas like “reducing carbon footprints” with the tangible, visible nature of beekeeping. You can see, feel and even taste the fruit of your labour within a reasonable scope of time. The opposite of Answer B can be found- the author makes it clear that the participation is more important than the honey itself. Answer C doesn’t seem to be mentioned. Answer D: Although anxiety is mentioned indirectly (“overwhelming”), the main focus is tangibility, not emotional therapy.
36 B. The conclusion stresses that beekeeping only succeeds when integrated into broader urban ecosystems, with regulation, habitat creation, and education- in other words, organic integration into the current system. Answer A: although regulation is mentioned, credibility is not the main issue- effectiveness is. Answer C: while public engagement is part of it, it is not presented as the primary function. No overt mentioning of government intervention can be seen in the text.
37 A. The last sentence of the opening paragraph reframes expertise as a matter of how perception is organised, rather than how much information is stored. Paragraph A picks this up explicitly by referring to “such findings” and moving into a theoretical reconsideration of knowledge and perception. Some general statements are given before any concrete examples are introduced, which makes perfect sense at the beginning of any text. It also prepares theoretical foundation for the chess and medical examples that follow. Paragraph H could fit, but it summarises cases, which haven’t yet been introduced (“these diverse cases”).
38 H. After the chess example, the text needs a generalising bridge before moving to medicine. This then flows naturally into “This insight has consequences beyond the chessboard…”. You might feel tempted to choose B, but it’s not optimal. The missing paragraph must generalise the chess point, not switch domains, so there is no need to introduce the AI example just yet.
39 D. This gap sits right after: “sometimes before they can articulate the reasoning behind them.” Paragraph D directly develops this idea: discomfort, difficulty verbalising, post-hoc explanation. It tightens the psychology before the text widens again to mechanics and editors. Paragraph C could fit, but it focuses on teaching, which is brought up later on.
40 E. Paragraph E fits here because it directly anticipates and supports the contrastive move in the main text.
The paragraph after this gap warns that expert perception may miss an out-of-pattern case. Paragraph E expands this idea into a fuller account of vulnerability, explicitly naming the paradox of over-learned patterns and linking them to error. Its tone and content are clearly aligned with the “less reassuring side” of expertise and prepare the ground for shifting from description to implication.
You might be tempted to use Paragraph H here, but aside from the fact we have already found a good place for it (but we might not know this), it acts as a summary (a generalisation), but we need more contrast in this paragraph, which Paragraph E achieves.
41 F. As we have explored the potential risks of expertise in the paragraph before gap 41, we shift towards expertise cultivation. The focus here is on developing it slowly, having real life experience, designing a learning environment that prioritises exposure. Paragraph G is thematically similar, but it focuses on institutions (schools, colleges) rather than the process of thinking and educating. Paragraph E is still stuck in the problem statement (experts likely to still make mistakes), which makes “This has important implications…” after gap 41 feel out of place.
42 C. Paragraph C explains how (and why) experts might have difficulties conveying the message, whether it is explaining their own reasoning or communicating the idea to their students. It then transitions to the beginning of the paragraph after gap 42: “This is not to glorify intuition…”.
You might feel like using Paragraph D. However, here the focus shifts from decision-making to instruction and transmission.
43 G. The final paragraph draws conclusions about education and entrenched models. It fits nicely, scaling the argument up to systems and curricula. It also introduces as a socio-educational implication before the philosophical closing metaphor. While Paragraph B might feel like the right choice, at this point it comes in too late in the text.
44 B. Tomas mentions his sense of time getting “recalibrated”. This means having a changed idea of what is perceived to be the norm. Speaker D also mentions the time aspect, but it focuses on cycles.
45 D. Henrik explicitly revises the narrative of “escape” and reframes his move as a shift in mode of engagement (attentiveness, tempo, perception), not fleeing from the city.
46 C. Leila enjoys the city atmosphere because it “unsettles” her in a good way. It is a source of sought-after challenge for her, not something that causes stress or discomfort. Speakers A and D link living in the city to exhaustion.
47 A. Mara mentions the vibrant energy of the city she used to feed off of becoming “oddly thin”. Although Henrik mentions exhaustion as well, it set in after he had moved.
48 D. Getting enthused means becoming enthusiastic about something, in this case because of some external factor. Henrik mentions the city being both stimulating and exhausting. Mara brings up something similar, but in her words there is no contrast between getting stimulated and feeling tired.
49 A. Now that Mara no longer lives in the city, she has a different perspective on it. She enjoy visiting, but the pressure to perform all the time has been lifted off. Henrik is mentioned to visit the city occasionally, but for him it is just about not being there too often rather than experiencing it differently.
50 C. Leila was desperate for a break and she found it by relocating to the city. Although “continuity” is normally used positively, in Leila’s case it wasn’t welcome and she was seeking a way to escape from it.
51 A. The city was the place that would allow Mara to “reinvent herself daily”.
52 D. Henrik points out how the “tempo” (the rhythm) was the biggest change. The change of the place by itself didn’t feel like having a huge impact on his life.
53 C. The phrasing might feel a bit confusing here, especially the last part: “not fully inhabiting it”. It means not dealing with the daily constraints, routines, compromises, and boredom of that life; keeping it as an idea or fantasy, rather than a lived reality. Leila doubts that she really misses the peace and quiet of the countryside lifestyle. She fantasises about going back, but “only from a distance”- that is, she isn’t seriously considering it. Mara is said to miss living in the city sometimes, but she doesn’t seem to be making it a problem.
