Answer Keys
Part 1
1 A – bear. If you cannot bear to do something, it means the decision is too difficult to make. ‘Cannot decide’ shows uncertainty, which is not the case here.
2 C – necessity. When you do something out of necessity, you do it because it needs to be done, rather than because you want to do it. Option A – ‘reason’ could have been used in the plural form, otherwise we would require an indefinite article.
3 D – comes. ‘When it comes to something/when it comes to doing something’. ‘B – concerns’ could work here without the preposition that comes right after the gap.
4 C – across. ‘Across the street’ is a colloquial expression that means ‘very close, nearby’.
5 B – matter. ‘No matter’ is equal in meaning to ‘it doesn’t matter, there is no difference’.
6 C – members. A close family member.
7 D – plenty of. We need a positive word that conveys the idea that the child has enough time to adapt to the new schedule. ‘B – lots’ could work if the text went ‘lots OF time’.
8 D – do. Doing the best for somebody means that you try your best to assure that their life is as good as it can be. ‘C – have’ would focus more on what you give them in terms of things, possessions. ‘B – give’ needs the preposition ‘to’: ‘to give something TO somebody’.
Part 2
9 as. Here ‘as a kid’ means ‘when I was a kid, during my childhood’.
10 like. Examples of ‘other things’ are introduced using this word.
11 It. We use a grammar called ‘cleft sentence’ where we put the subject at the very beginning to make it the focus of the sentence, highlighting that it was the brother of the writer who introduced her to skateboarding.
12 into. If you get somebody into something, you make them interested in it or make them involved in it.
13 be. A rather simple structure, ‘to be honest’ is used to make some kind of confession.
14 when. ‘Dark’ here refers to the part of the day, after the sunset.
15 with. The writer wanted to compete with her brother.
16 off. If something pays off, you get the long-awaited positive result of your hard work.
Part 3
17 height. Some students might get confused that ‘high’ and ‘height’ have the same root because the letter ‘e’ missing from the former. We are clearly looking for a noun here, and naturally, the word like ‘highness’ will not work. A general rule in FCE Use of English Part 3 is to avoid making a noun using suffixes like -ing as well.
18 construction. The process of constructing the wheel is meant here.
19 exciting. The only adjective that fits the context here. There is also the adjective ‘excitable’, but it is used to talk about a person that is easily excited.
20 imaginative. Created with a lot of thought and imagination put into it.
21 drawings. The plural form is necessary as it is dictated by ‘were’ that follows the gap, meaning that the previously used noun was in the plural form.
22 ideal. The place that would fit best for such a grand structure as the London Eye.
23 surprisingly. A common introductory phrase, which means that such long construction time didn’t come as unexpected.
24 recognition. Recognition is realising that somebody has accomplished something grand.
Part 4
25 know the cost of. The tricky part here is understanding whether the key word is a noun or a verb (as all three forms of ‘cost’ verb are the same). Hopefully, the past perfect usage in the original sentence will not confuse you.
26 should not have deleted. We need the present perfect to highlight the fact that the file has already been deleted.
27 due to the bad. ‘Due to something’ is a common structure to show a reason for something (normally, something bad).
28 had better not be. ‘Had’ is an integral part of this set phrase that acts like a warning or a strong recommendation.
29 has been translated. Another case where the present perfect is needed to stress the fact that the action has already taken place
30 not phone unless she gets. ‘Unless’ means that the negative form is already in place, so ‘not’ is not needed, otherwise we end up with a double negative that is rarely used in English.
Part 5
31 D. Last sentence of paragraph one summarises his key strength – the ability to be hit repeatedly without going down. There is nothing said about him not being aggressive enough or not fighting back.
32 C. It is said that the book is ‘likely to gain a wide readership’ – in other words, it will be interesting to many people, not just his fans. Answer A is wrong as it is based on the collective stories of other wrestlers. The opposite of answer D is said about the novel – ‘there is far more to it than that’.
33 B. The wording might be confusing, but the following context clears things up. The sentences that come after the underlined part focus on his family – their unusual professions for an up-and-coming wrestling champion.
34 D. His parents didn’t expect him to stay interested in wrestling because it was likely he would get injured and give it all up. Answer B is misleading, because ‘proper training’ would probably mean skills that can be used in wrestling. The parents instead insisted on getting a proper education – which focuses more on the academic skills.
35 C. Even though he is mentioned as resenting (hating) the fact, he came to accept it later. Wrestling and acting go hand-in-hand and one without the other does not look real enough.
36 A. This might sound like a too simplistic answer – but it is indeed about characters. What he probably means here is that, when wrestling, you pretend to be somebody else. This is pretty similar to writing, where you create an imaginary person and their adventures.
Part 6
37 D. The special effects mentioned in sentence D are then explained in the remainder of this paragraph. Sentence F does not fit, as the ‘reason’ for their success is not ‘technical’, but lies in the usage of stunning visuals.
38 G. The producers know where to stop – that means, they are careful with what elements to borrow from the games. Copying everything is likely to end poorly for the movie. The word ‘doomed’ here is crucial to understanding, it means ‘very likely to fail’.
39 F. ‘One reason’ refers to the reason why gamers are usually not happy with movies based on their favourite titles. The ‘technical’ part is that the game gives you more opportunity to see the action from multiple points of view, which is impossible in the movies because it would cost too much to make.
40 B. ‘Suspense’ is another word that helps you pick the right sentence. Suspense is nervous expectation, the element that keeps you on the edge of your seat because you really want to know what is going to happen next.
41 C. What is not true for video games is that you have much more information available compared to what we get in the movies. We need to know where to go, what door to open, and so on. The mystery element is often not the crucial part of gameplay.
42 A. A key difference is brought up in sentence A – games are interactive, we can influence them, take an active part in what is taking place on the screen. This is, naturally, not the case with movies.
Part 7
43 B. Sue doesn’t find it fun to do calculations day in, day out.
44 C. Barry was ‘steered away’ from pursuing the same career. This means that his mother didn’t want him to do the same thing.
45 D. At first, Ruth wanted to become a teacher. Later, she found that nowadays they have to work increasingly more, taking their work home as well, so now she seems to have changed her mind.
46 A. Graham’s father tried to ‘push him into taking up’ the same craft – becoming a self-employed construction worker.
47 D. Ruth’s choice to do accounting for a living was not at all affected by her father’s opinion.
48 A. The construction business is what Graham’s family has been doing for several generations.
49 B. Sue is worried that even if she chooses to do what her mother does, she won’t have many chances to get a job like that, since there are very few openings in that particular field.
50 A. As Graham’s dad probably expects him to take over the family business, they are likely to have a tough conversation once his father realises that Graham has different plans.
51 C. Not many people manage to become successful in the acting business, according to Barry.
52 D. According to the extract, teaching can feel very rewarding.
Vocabulary
The vocabulary below is meant to help you with the more difficult words. If the word isn’t on the list then you are either supposed to know it or it is too specific to be worth learning and you don’t have to know it to answer the question. Symbols in brackets mean part of speech (see bottom of the list). Sentences in italics give examples of usage for some more complex words and phrases.
And remember — you are not given a vocabulary list (or a dictionary) at your real exam.
Part 1
Reliable (adj) – something or somebody you can trust. The information he provides us with has always been reliable so far.
Give something up (phr v) – to stop doing it – can be used for both positive and negative activities, e.g. ‘to give up your job’, ‘to give up smoking’.
Child minder – a person who looks after your children, picks them up from school, cooks for them, and so on; usually because you can’t do it yourself because of your job or other activities.
Settle in (phr v) – to spend sometime at a new place or doing something new in order to better understand how it is, to become more acquainted with or comfortable with it.
Part 2
Get up to something – (usually used negatively) to do something that others would find dangerous or bad. Teenagers always get up to all sorts of questionable things, either as a dare, to impress their peers, or as a personal rebellion against something.
Mess about – to act in a playful, non-serious way. During our summer break, we would either play video games or mess about the town.
Get into something – to start doing something or to become interested in it. When I was seven, I got into competitive sports.
To give something a go – (informal) to try something to see if it works or whether you enjoy doing it.
Streak (n) – (here) a period of something. His workaholic streak lasted for six months, after which he felt completely burned out.
Pay off – if something pays off, it means you get the desired result from it.
Part 3, 4
Landmark (n) – a big, either manmade or natural object that stands out and usually is the most interesting part of the place, that acts as a way to recognise it.
Ferry (n) – a large ship to transport people and vehicles from one side of a lake or river to the other.
Part 5
Turned (v) – (here) who became someone else. A chef turned entrepreneur, for example, is a person who used to cook and now runs a business.
Hulk (n) – a large and heavy person.
To take a hit – (here) to get hit without getting knocked out or discouraged by it.
Smack (v) – hit somebody with the flat part of your hand, either palm or the outside of the hand.
Go down (phr v) – to get knocked unconscious.
Subtlety (n) – the quality of being subtle – not easily visible or apparent.
Bullied (adj) – harassed by others, forcing them to do something they do not like. A practice that is more common among teenagers.
Have a go at somebody – (here) – to attack somebody.
Turning point – a situation that changes something important. Leaving my daytime job and rejoining the university was a turning point for me that eventually led to the much better life I have now.
Learn the ropes – to learn the basics of something, especially the practical aspects of it.
Dissuade (v) – if you dissuade somebody from (doing) something, you try to convince them not to do it. The opposite is ‘to persuade’.
Label (n) – (used figuratively here) a stereotype associated with something or somebody. Salespeople usually have a label or a person who tries his best to be likeable in order to exploit people around them.
Part 6
Decade (n) – a period of ten years.
Turnover (n) – a financial term that means the total amount of money involved in business.
Harvest (v) – (here) collect something valuable, in this case profits.
Appealing (adj) – attractive or interesting.
Discard (v) – to get rid of something because it is no longer needed. We discarded the old books because nobody seemed to be interested in reading anymore.
Rippling (adj) – moving in waves. Hot air could be seen rippling off the scorching surface of the road.
Comprise (v) – to consist of something. Our company comprises several branches across the globe.
Doomed (adj) – if something or somebody is doomed, they are almost guaranteed to fail. The project to merge the two brands was doomed from the very beginning.
A fortune – a lot of money. If something costs a fortune, then usually it means that it is too expensive to afford.
Part 7
Discourage (v) – if you discourage somebody from something, it means you try to convince them not to do it.
Partner (n) – (when talking about business) either a high-ranking employee or owner of part of the business.
Put pressure on somebody – to force somebody to do something, either psychologically or physically.
Put off (phr v) – to make somebody feel unwilling to do something. I was put off when she told me I would have to perform duties of two people but only get salary for one.
To come in handy – to become useful, to find its use. Computer skills are almost guaranteed to come in handy nowadays, no matter what kind of work you do.
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