TOEFL EXERCISE 4 Study each of the passages, and choose the best answers to the questions that follow. PASSAGE ONE (Questions 1-3) Until 1996 the Sears Tower was the tall est building in the world, worl d, with more than a hundred stories. It is located in Chicago, whose nickname is the Wi ndy City. The combination of a very tall building in a city with such weather conditions leads to a lot of swaying in the breeze. On a windy day, the top of the building can move back and forth as much as three feet every few seconds. The inside doors at the top of the building open and close, and water in sinks sloshes back and forth. 1. The Sears Tower is probably (A) as tall as the Empire State Building (B) no longer the tallest building in the world (C) taller than any other building (D) still the highest building in the world 2. It can be inferred from the passage that Chicago (A) has moderate weather (B) is generally warm (C) has humid weather (D) usually has a lot of wind
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3. It is implied in the passage that the upperlevel doors in the Sears Tower open and close because (A) the building was poorly constructed (B) people go in and out so often (C) the building moves in the wind (D) there is water in the sinks
PASSAGE TWO (Questions 4 - 6) The most common last name in the English-speaking world is Smith, which was
taken from the job of working with metals. A sil versmith, for example, is someone who works with the metal silver. Historical records indicate that the use of this last name is at least 700 years old. Today, there are more than 3.3 million Smiths living in the United States and perhaps another million Smiths living in other English-speaking countries worldwide. 4. It can be inferred from the passage that family names (A) were always taken from the area where a family lived (B) were short names (C) had little or no meaning (D) could be taken from jobs 5. Which of the following is implied about the Smith family name? (A) it is definitely not more than 700 years old. (B) it existed 600 years ago. (C) It did not exist 500 years ago. (D) it definitely was not in use 1,000 years ago.
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6. In England there are probably (A) more Smiths than there are i n the United States (B) more than a million Smiths (C) fewer than a million Smiths (D) no families with the name of Smith
PASSAGE THREE (Questions 7 - 9) On the hardness scale, corundum immediately follows diamond, whi ch is the
hardest mineral in the world. Corundum is perhaps better known by the names of its gemstones, ruby and sapphire. Basically, gem corundu m is divided into two groups: corundum that is red in color is called ruby, and corundum that is any other color is called sapphire. Pure corundum is clear, but pure corundum is rarely found in nature. If small amounts of the chemical substance chromic oxide (Cr 2 O2) got into the crystal structure when it formed millions of years ago, then the corundum tur.ned a deep, rich red and became ruby. Red is not the only col or that corundum can take on. Ot her chemical substances enter into the crystal structure of corundum, and it can take on a variety of other colors. Most people associate blue with sapphires, and certainly when corundum contains impurities that turn it blue, it is called sapphire. However, corundum can have a variety of other colors—e.g., green or purple—and still be called sapphire. 7. It can be inferred from the passage that corundum is (A) the hardest mineral in the world (B) not as hard as sapphire (C) the second hardest mineral (D) a rather soft mineral 8. Chromic oxide is probably what color? (A) Clear (B) Blue (C) Red (D) Green
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9. Yellow corundum is most likely called (A) gold (B) chromic oxide (C) ruby (D) sapphire
TOEFL REVIEW EXERCISE (Skills 1-4): Study each of the passages, and choose the best answers
to the questions that follow. PASSAGE ONE (Questions 1-5) Before ballpoint pens or fountain pens, pens were made from goose feathers. These goose feathers, called quills, were sharpened and dipped into inkwells, wh ere they absorbed enough ink to write a few words. It was necessary to keep an inkwell very
close by, as frequent dipping was necessary. These quill pens were one of the earliest products “designed” specifically for leftand right-handed people. Feathers from the left wing of the goose worked best for right handers because of the way that the feathers arched. Feathers from the right wing were preferred by left-handers. 1. Which of the following is the best title for this passage? (A) Early Ballpoint and Fountain Pens (B) Quill Pens for Lefties and Righties (C) Where Quill Pens Came From (D) Various Uses for Goose Feathers 2. According to the passage, a quill came from (A) a tree (B) a bird (C) a piece of metal (D) a fountain pen 3. The passage indicates that a quill pen could hold enough ink to write (A) one or two pages (B) for about one hour (C) a couple of words (D) numerous sentences
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4. Which of the following is NOT true about quill pens, according to the passage? (A) Left-handers were unable to use quill pens. (B) Left-handed people generally preferred quills from the right wing. (C) Right-handers could use quill pens. (D) Right-handed people generally preferred quills from the left wing. 5. It can be inferred from the passage that quill pens (A) are still used regularly today (B) are preferred over ballpoint pens (C) are the best pens for left-handers (D) are no longer used much
PASSAGE TWO (Questions 6-10) The English names of the last four months of the Gregorian calendar (September,
October, November, December) have rather interesting histories. The Gregorian calendar is a twelve-month calendar, so these months are the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth months respectively. However, their names do not reflect their positioning in the calendar. The name September comes from the Latin word septum, which means “seven.” This month was originally the name o f the seventh rather tha n the ninth month. Similarly, the name October comes from the Latin octo (“eight”); the name November comes from the Latin novem (“nine”); the name December comes from the Latin decem (“ten”). 6. The main topic of this passage is (A) the origin of certain month names (B) the Gregorian calendar (C) the numbers in Latin (D) ten- and twelve-month calendars 7. The first month on the Gregorian calendar is probably (A) March (B) May (C) January (D) December 8. The passage states that in the original version of the calendar, September was the name of (A) the sixth month (B) the seventh month (C) the eighth month (D) the ninth month
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9. It can be inferred from the passage that November (A) used to be the ninth month of the year (B) is no longer part of the Gregorian calendar (C) has always been the eleventh month (D) was not part of the original Gregorian calendar 10. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage about December? (A) It is the twelfth month on the Gregorian calendar. (B) Its name is derived from a Latin word. (C) Its meaning comes from t he number ten. (D) It has 31 days.
PASSAGE THREE (Questions 11 - 15)
Different types of relationships exist between living things. One type of relationship is parasitism, in which one partner benefits while the other loses. A very different type of relationship is symbiosis, in which both partners benefit. An example of a parasitic r elationship exists between the stone crab and sacculina, a type of barnacle. The sacculina attaches it self to the stone crab. It then eats into the crab, and the stone crab b ecomes disabled. An example of a symbiotic relationship exists between the hermit crab and th e calliactis anemone. The anemone attaches itself to the crab, but it is not a parasite because it does not harm the crab; it feeds on food that is dropped by the crab. The anemone even helps the crab by protecting the crab from other predators with its tentacles.
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11. The subject of this passage is (A) two different kinds of relationships among living things (B) parasitic relationships (C) relationships that are mutually beneficial to living things (D) symbiosis 12. Which of the following is NOT true about parasitic relationships? (A) There are two partners in a parasitic relationship. (B) One partner in a parasitic relationship hurts the other. (C) The stone crab can b e part of a parasitic relationship. (D) A parasitic relationship is usually symbiotic. 13. According to the passage, what does sa cculina eat? (A) The stone crab (B) Barnacles (C) Food dropped by the crab (D) Other parasites 14. The calliactis anemone (A) is a parasite (B) harms the hermit crab (C) eats into the hermit crab (D) assists the hermit crab 15. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage? (A) All crabs are involved in parasitic relationships. (B) All crabs are involved in symbiotic relationships. (C) Some crabs are involved in s ymbiotic relationships, while others are not. (D) Crabs are involved in neither parasitic nor symbiotic relationships.
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