Past Tenses Review - Key Word Transformation Exercise

This  is a key word transformation exercise for practicing the English Past Tenses. 

Read the given sentences and rewrite them using the words in brackets. 

Answers:

1. I intended to send the postcard yesterday, but I couldn't.  (going)
I was going to send the postcard yesterday, but I couldn't.

2. We used to talk until the wee hours after dinner on Saturdays.  (would)
We would talk until the wee hours after dinner on Saturdays.

3. John had the irritating habit of chewing gum in class. (always)
John was always chewing gum in class.

4. Lindsay wasn't always as kind as that. She changed a lot after she had her first child.  (be)
 Lindsay didn't use to be as kind as that. She changed a lot after she had her first child.

5. I felt so sad about the deterioration in Paul's condition. (worse)
I felt so sad that Paul was getting worse.

6. I was very keen on cooking in those days. (use)
I used to be very keen on cooking in those days.

7. I don't know if you want to come to the theatre with me tonight.  (wondering)
I was wondering if you would like to come to the theatre with me tonight.

8. I had to go past Mary's office so I decided to drop in. (passing)
I was passing Mary's office, so I decided to drop in.

9. Jerry had the accident before we got to his apartment. (by the time)
By the time we got to Jerry's apartment, he had had the accident.

10. What did you do at the moment of the crash? (when)
What did you do when the crash occurred?

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FCE Open Cloze : Exercise 2

First Certificate Multiple Choice Cloze Exercise 2

Tips: 

• Read the text for general understanding.

• The word must make sense in the context of the text as a whole.

• Decide which type of word each gap needs, e.g. preposition, reltive, conjunction, verb, adverb, etc.

Alert!!  See question 13--> It is CONSIDERATION (singular) and not considerations (plural). Thanks!

Answers:

(1) from (2) which  (3) who (4) upon (5) is (6) and  (7) this (8) the  (9) what (10) in   (11) taken  (12) of  (13) this (14) at  (15) if

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FCE Vocabulary Open Cloze on Body and Clothes Description

This is an open cloze exercise dealing with vocabulary 


related to body/appearance and clothes description.




Have a look at some of  the words you will find in the article:

Adjectives: unshaven,  greasy, old-fashioned, patched, double,flabby,frayed

Nouns: face-lift,  chin, lapels, stains,  plastic surgery, pimples, face-lift,  wig

As you read the article, (or after you've completed the exercise) pay attention to what the adjectives describe: either body, genearl appearance, or clothes. (Remember you can double-click on any word to get a definition from answer.com)  Good luck!

 Answers:

  (1) pimples  (2) bags  (3) greasy  (4) frayed  (5) face-lift  (6) creame  (8) patched

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FCE- Key Word Transformation Practice- Exercise 3

                                             

 First Certificate Key Word Transformation Practice: Exercise 3

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word in brackets. Use between two and five words.

Answers

1. You can't buy a better microscope than this one.

2. I had no idea how you felt about this matter.

3. I can hardly see the bus, let alone the number.

4. Jack had no objections to the idea I suggested.

5. We'd like to have a word with you about the new proposals.

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FCE Key Word Transformation Exercise 2

             

First Certificate Key Word Transformation Practice: Exercise 2

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word in brackets. Use between two and five words.

Answers

1.  This is the first time you have seen this play, isn't it?

2.  It doesn't matter which one you choose.

3.  Peter said that going there by myself wasn't a good idea.

4.  It's three days since the dog was fed.

5.  Students must be responsible for their own rooms.

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FCE Multiple Choice Cloze 2

This is a Cambridge Exam Practice for the FCE Paper Use of English: "Multiple Choice Cloze 2"

Read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C, or D) best fits each space and type it in the blank.

Answers

(1) set up (2) unhospitable (3) region (4) endured (5) severe (6) (7) by (8) (9) prevent (10) furious (11) keep (12) outside (13)teach (14) get (15) trace

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Open Cloze: Rubber Ducks' Amazing Voyage Part Two

On this blog post: news article on how an accident helped researchers learn more about the currents in the Pacific Ocean (Part 2). Reading + CAE Open Cloze


Fill in the blanks with a corresponding linking word,



  Answers here.

Link to this blog
<p>Here's a <a href="http://englishdailyworkout.blogspot.com/2011/03/open-cloze-rubber-ducks-voyage-part-two.html" target="_blank">Nintendo D Sells Out, but Causes Eye Strain: Vocabulary Quiz and Listening Practice</a>.</p>

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Key Word Transformation with Present Perfect

In this grammar exercise you will practice the Present Perfect Tense by doing a "key word transformation" exercise similar to the ones practiced for the Cambridge First Certificate Exam.

If you are unsure of how and when the Present Perfect is used you can do the quizzes in these blogs first:

When to Use the Present Prefect

How to Form and Use the Present Perfect

Exercise

Rewrite each sentence using the word in capitals  so that the meaning stays the same. 

Example:
You have missed the beginning of the film. HAS
The film has already started.

Answer Key

1. I have lost my keys.

2. Paul has changed.

3. I have lived here for thirty years.

4. I haven not eaten Chinese food before/ I have never eaten Chinese food before.

5. Has anything happened?

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Open Cloze CAE Use of English

 Read the following article first and think which word best fits each space. Then complete the  article by filling in the blanks with the correct missing word. (During the exam you can write each word in the correct box on your answer sheet) Use only one word for each space.

Children and Convenience Food

          

        Nowadays, parents often feel guilty________ they don't give their children healthy food for ________ single meal.  Packaged food is frequently known as 'junk food' but ________ many  instances that simply isn't so. Of course children should eat well, ________ meals should also be relaxed, enthusiastic and compatible with family life today.

         And it's essential to remember that most parents of young children are, by definition, extremely busy people. Convenience foods are here to stay and they can be a valuable aid to the pursuit of happiness.  Parents must seek out the best and aim _________ a balance between real food and practicality.  With _______ these convenience foods, you can balance out the meal by adding something fresh and home-made.  When your children beg for ice-cream, give _________ frozen yoghurt with fresh fruit. Indeed a home where the fruit bowl needs refilling regularly is a home where people eat well.  The crucial point is balance.  _________ is at stake is your child's gastronomic happiness --and your own sanity.

Check the answers to this exercise in the comment below.

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Multiple Choice Cloze CAE Use of English

 Read the text below and then  decide which word  best fits each space. (Tip: read the whole text first trying to guess the words missing. Then read the text again, look at the options, and fill in the blanks with the correct word.)

  

Crocodiles

          Crocodiles see well, their eyes are equipped with three eyelids, each having a different function.  Their eyeballs slide back out of (1) ………….. way during an attack.  Should they lose one of their eight-centimetre-long teeth, a replacement is always ready.  A crocodile may go through (2) …………..thousand teeth during a lifetime of over seventy years.  Crocodiles cannot chew, as their teeth are (3) ………….. only to penetrate and hold.  These animals can attack any time of the year, but they are more active in the warmer months and when in (4) ………… of mates.  Underwater, crocodiles (5)  ………….. their victims at the water’s edge by sensing any movement in the water.  Once they have a hold on their victim, they drag it deep into the water to (6) ………….. it.  They then crush and swallow it.

          Many battles occur over mates.  About six weeks after mating, the female (7)  ………….. a nest, often on a river bank, and (8) ………….. about fifty eggs.  She then seals the nest for protection and also as a way of (9)………….. the temperature.  After ten to twelve weeks the baby crocodiles come out of the eggs: only about one percent of these (10)………….. make it to adulthood, as thousands die in flooding or are eaten by fish or bigger crocodiles.  In an  attempt to ensure a source of (11) ………….. animals, crocodile farms have been (12)………….. up, and a vast industry now exists in crocodile skin and meat.

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Open Cloze: FCE Use of English

First read the whole text below and think of the word which best fits each space and then do the exercise.  Remember that you can only use ONE word in each space. The missing words could be articles, auxiliaries, pronouns, verbs in their different forms, part of a phrasal verb, and  linkers. (More FCE - Free Practice Tests here)

  In some cases, there might be more than one possible answer. Look at the underlined word in the text. If that were a gap, the answer could be either anyone or anybody.


                                                                                Shoulder Surfing

Many people now carry plastic cards for various purposes. These cards (1)........ be used for buying things or taking money from a machine. They are also used for making telephone calls, (2)........ later appear on your, or your company's bill. Normally, you can use the number by (3)........, without having the card with you. This means that anyone who knows your number can use it to make phone calls or buy things by phone. The phone will appear on your bill, which may not get (4)........ several weeks later.

At banks, hotels and airports and other crowded places (5)..... people use these cards, a new type of criminal has appeared. Known (6)..... 'shoulder surfers', they look over people's shoulders and memorise the numbers they see. They have trained (7)........ memories to remember long numbers and they often work (8)........ teams and share the information they have collected. One businessman left his telephone card in a public phone box. Realising (9)........ he had done, he hurried back. The card was still there but he knew the number might have (10)........ taken, so he called the phone company. His card was cancelled immediately, (11)....... than five minutes after he had left it. But in (12)........ few minutes, four hundred illicit phone calls had been made using his number.

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Key Word Transformation: FCE Use of English

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word in brackets. Use between two and five words. You have 15 minutes to complete the exercise.  (More FCE - Free Practice Tests here)

Example:
John said he was sorry he had lost the tickets. (APOLOGISED)
John apologised for losing the tickets.

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FCE Word Formation

Use the word in brackets (the stem) to form a new word with which to fill the gap. To do this exercise, you need to decide if the word missing is an adjective,  a noun, a verb, or an adverb. You might need to add a prefix or a suffix to the stem given in brackets too.   (More FCE - Free Practice Tests here)

Example,

Throughout history, women have had (responsible) ............. for healing the sick.

We have "things" (concrete or abstracts) so we need a noun. Responsible is an adjective... We need another word in the family, but it has to be a noun. The noun is RESPONSABILITY.

Answer: Throughout history,  women have had responsability for healing the sick.

Take the quiz 

FCE Exam Practice: Use of English --Word Formation » quiz software

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Multiple Choice Cloze: FCE Use of English

 The Use of English paper tests your knowledge in vocabulary and grammar. This is a sample of the first part of the paper -Multiple Choice Cloze. (More FCE - Free Practice Tests here) .

Read the text below (it is also in the quiz) to get a general idea of what it is about. Then do the quiz.

            Life was once simpler than it is today, although it was also harder and life (0)..........  was shorter. Early human beings lived by (1)........... food, hunting and fishing.  About 11,000 years ago, agriculture (2)........ in what is now the Middle East.  Crops were grown, animals reared and (3)......... homes built. The landscape began to change, although at first it was hardly (4) because the world's population was so (5)......... It has been (6) ........ that, 10,000 years ago, there were only about eight million people, and even 2,000 years ago there was still only about 300 million.

             As the world's population (7) ............, the countryside was changed by farming, mining, and the (8)........... of larger settlements.  During the late 1700s, the industrial revolution began in Britain.  Machines replaced hand labour  and steam replaced animal (9) ........... . Coal was used to make iron, which (10) ..........  steam-powered machines to be built.  Factories increased in (11) .......... . and cities grew in (12) ............. Industrialization gradually (13) ........... to other countries.  Improved (14) .......... of farming led to big increases and the world's population began to grow at a rapid (15) .........., from 900 million in 1800 to over 5,000 million at the end of the twentieth century.

Cambridge First Certificate Exam Practice: Use of English » test maker

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