TOEFL IELTS Reading Exercise 06

This exercise is helpful for both TOEFL and IELTS test takers.

Gases in the air

(Level - Easy)

We hardly ever notice the mixture of gases that surround us. We only realize it if there is a strong wind, or when fog or smog cuts off our view into the distance. Yet we depend on the air in many ways. It provides the oxygen that we breathe. Plants, on which all animals depend for food, could not live without the carbon dioxide in the air. And it is a barrier, hundreds of miles deep, protecting us from the burning ultra-violet rays of the sun. Fast-moving pieces of stone called meteoroids are burnt up when they enter the atmosphere from space, before they can reach the ground. And cosmic rays, which are made up of fragments of atoms traveling from distant parts of space, are slowed down before they can do damage.

1. It is obvious in the passage that we ----.

A) nearly are not aware of the combination of gases in nature
B) do not depend on the air due to its complexities
C) are unconscious that there is strong wind around us
D) have no inclinations to learn something more about air
E) notice the advantages of the mixture of gases


2. It is stated in the passage that air ----.

A) provides us with carbon dioxide
B) enables the plants to get enough oxygen to breathe
C) is vital both for human beings and plants
D) makes it difficult to protect us from ultra-violet rays of the sun
E) has the cosmic rays which are made up of fragments of atoms which damage the atmosphere


3. Meteoroids ----.

A) cannot reach the ground as theyare
B) are made of pieces of atoms
C) have great power to protect us from cosmic rays
D) damage the ground
E) travel from distant parts of space




1. A  2. C  3.A

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TOEFL IELTS Reading Exercise 04

This exercise is helpful for both TOEFL and IELTS test takers.

Edna Ferber
(Level - Hard)

1      Edna Ferber (1887-1968) was a popular American novelist in the first half of the twentieth century. She embarked on her career by working as a newspaper reporter in Wisconsin and soon began writing novels. Her first novel, Dawn O’Hara, the Girl Who Laughed, was published in 1911, when she was only twenty-four years old.

2     Her big break came with the novel So Big (1924), which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Literature. The main conflict in the novel is between a mother who places a high value on hard work and honor and a son who repudiates his mother’s values, instead preferring the easier path to fortune and celebrity. Like many of Ferber’s novels, this novel features a tenacious female protagonist with strong character who struggles to deal with ethical dilemmas about the importance of status and money.

3      Probably the best known of Ferber’s novels was Show Boat (1926), which tells the story of a Southern woman married to a charismatic but irresponsible man who leaves her with a daughter she must take great pains to support. In 1927, the novel was made into a musical that has endured to the present.

4     Other well-known novels by Ferber include Cimarron (1930) and Giant (1952), both of which were made into movies. These were epic novels about the settlement and growth of the West, centering on strong female lead characters who marry men lacking the same strength of character.

1. The phrase embarked on in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to:
a) took a trip to
b) started out on
c) improved upon
d) had an opinion about

2. The word break in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by:
a) rupture
b) revelation
c) opportunity

3. The word places in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by
a) locates
b) puts
c) recites
d) positions

4. The word repudiates in 2 is closest in meaning to
a) refuses to accept
b) lives up to
c) tries to understand
d) makes the best of

5. The word protagonist in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to
a) arch enemy
b) voracious reader
c) skilled worker
d) lead character

6. The phrase take great pains in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to:
a) work diligently
b) recognize hurtfully
c) accept unequivocally
d) hurt agonizingly

7. The word endured in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to
a) lasted
b) tested
c) waited
d) limited

8. The word epic in paragraph 4 could best be replaced by
a) lengthy narrative
b) detailed non-fictional
c) emotionally romantic
d) rousing Western

9. The phrase centering on in paragraph 4 could be replaced by
a) circling around
b) pointing to
c) focusing on
d) arranging for
d) rest

Answer key: 1.B 2.C 3.B 4.A 5.D 6.A 7.A 8.A 9.C


More Exercises:
TOEFL reading Exercise 05

TOEFL IELTS Reading Exercise 03

Parasitic Plants
(Level - Medium)

1      Parasitic plants are plants that survive by using food produced by host plants rather than by producing their own food from the Sun’s energy. Because they do not need sunlight to survive, parasitic plants are generally found in umbrageous areas rather than in areas exposed to direct sunlight. Parasitic plants attach themselves to host plants, often to the stems or roots, by means of haustoria, which the parasite uses to make its way into the food channels of the host plant and absorb the nutrients that it needs to survive from the host plant.

2     The world’s heaviest flower, a species of Rafflesia, is a parasite that flourishes among, and lives off of, the roots of jungle vines. Each of these ponderous blooms can weigh up to 15 pounds (7 kg) and can measure up to 3 feet (1 m) across.

1. The word "umbrageous" in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to:
a) moist
b) well lit
c) shaded
d) buried

2. "Haustoria" in paragraph 1 are most likely:
a) offshoots from the parasite
b) seeds of the host plant
c) fruits from the host plant
d) food for the parasite


3. The phrase "make its way into" in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to
a) outline
b) eat
c) develops
d) penetrate

4. The word "ponderous" in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to
a) smelly
b) hidden
c) mature
d) heavy

5. The word "across" in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by
a) in diameter
b) on the other side
c) at a distance
d) inside and out

Answer key: 1.C 2.A 3.D 4.D 5.A

More Exercise:
TOEFL Reading Exercise 04

TOEFL - Dress Code

Do you want to look like this on your TOEFL Test day?

DO NOT MAKE THE MISTAKE THAT I DID!
Do not take too much stress on the day of TOEFL you look like a GHOST!
Reason?
The picture they will take before your test will be on your Result!!!!
So try to look decent.... at least. 
I understand the pressure but who wants a ZOMBIE on certificate?
So - 
{Boys - Shave!}
{Girls - Look fresh!}
{Dress code}
- anything will do, that makes you comfortable - but consider the air condition inside! Dress up in layers, so you can adjust!
- no BRIGHT color!
- no stripes please.
{Don't forget  your glasses to wear if you have one! It will be a long exam.}
{Its good to  to have a handkerchief . What if the table you are assigned has dust.}
{Should avoid jeans - You will know after the 3rd hour - Remember, you will be sitting the whole time}

{ATTENTION GIRLS - 

YOU WILL BE WEARING A HUGE HEADPHONE DURING THE TEST!

SO WHAT WILL YOU BE WEARING ON YOUR EARS???

MAKE SURE ITS "NOTHING"}

These are some tips for today. I will update it later.

TOEFL Fear Fact # 01