Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

The Chinese consider the first day of the new year to be a very_____(23) day. They celebrate the day irrespective of whether they are rich or poor. The Chinese call every year by a new name. The Chinese new year celebration is the most important_____(24) of the Chinese. Usually preparation of the celebration of the New Year is made weeks ahead. Cakes of various kinds are made, the houses are cleaned and____(25). A kind of red cloth bearing the words “Prosperity” and “Happiness” is ____(26) on the walls. The children wear new dresses as part of the custom.

Question 23: A. important B. normal C. unimportant D. long Question

24: A. year B. day C. festival D. occasion Question

25: A. blocked B. decorated C. decorating D. paint Question

26: A. hung B. write C. paint D. Wrote

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

THE FOUR-YEAR SPREAD OF BUBBLE TEA ACROSS THE UK

     Four years ago bubble tea was relatively unknown in the UK, but the drinks are now ubiquitous on High Streets, from cities to small towns, writes Lucy Townsend.

     It is often brightly coloured, sometimes served with milk, with a layer of jelly-like globules - tapioca balls - that settle (23) …………. the bottom of the cup. Drunk through an extra thick straw with a spoon-shaped tip, it is a mouthful of tea and chewiness - both a drink and a snack.

     Chorley in Lancashire got its first bubble tea bar in July. Huddersfield has ‘Bubble n Shake’, there is a mobile bubble tea van in Bristol, and it can be (24) ……………. in cities from Glasgow to Portsmouth.

     Bubble tea hails from 1980s in Taiwan. It was an evolution from the country's street tea vendors (25) …………….. began experimenting with fruity flavours and colour to entice customers. The “bubble” actually (26) ………….. the froth on top of the drink which comes after it is violently shaken - some cafes use a machine especially for shaking. How the tapioca balls arrived in the drink is a matter of debate - though the most common story is that product development manager Lin Hsiu Hui (27) ………….. sitting in a staff meeting and poured the tapioca from her pudding into her Assam iced tea. The result was considered delicious.

     While growing in the UK, bubble tea is even more popular in Germany, according to the market research firm Mintel. Even McDonald's has started serving it.

23. A. down                 B. in                             C. at                         D. out

24. A. discovered        B. found                      C. searched              D. sought

25. A. which                B. where                      C. who                                 D. whom

26. A. stands for          B. regards to                C. describes             D. refers to

27. A. have been         B. is                             C. has been              D. was

• Read the following passage and mark the letter (A, B, C, or D) on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

                                                                                        SMARTPHONES - A NECCESITY

Smartphones have spread beyond the boardroom and keeping a close eye on what's new is Mike Lazaridis, chief executive of RIM, the company that makes the BlackBerry smartphone. His device may no longer be quite as trendy as it once was but it is still (21) .................. − particularly for Argentinian milk farmers. Mr. Lazaridis says: "I like the way it's being used by the farmers so they are always up to date. Milk is a (22) .................. item, so delivery and production standards are incredibly important." He is reminded of the company's early days: "This is where we started in 1987, with a wireless vertical data business for the Swedish lumber (23) .................., and then on to fire brigades, ambulances, and garbage trucks."

    While the BlackBerry was quick to (24) .................. itself as the accessory of choice for business professionals such as Wall Street traders, the cheaper price (25) .................. and new, more colorful handsets now (26) .................. offer have opened it up to a much wider market. Mr. Lazaridis says: "It was obvious that business people and self-employed professionals would buy the BlackBerry, but we were not expecting the (27) .................. we had from ordinary consumers."

    The greatest challenge for RIM, however, could lie in an economic (28) ..................., when individuals and companies alike may see devices like the BlackBerry as luxuries they can (29) .................. without. The company has to make its product indispensable to the lifestyles of consumers or prove that they bring a real (30) .................. on investment for business users.

_{+ ANSWER:}

21, A. constructive     B. functional     C. active     D. operative

22, A. perishable     B. short-lived     C. decaying     D. destructible

23, A. manufacturers     B. enterprise     C. commerce     D. industry

24, A. install     B. establish     C. create     D. demonstrate

25, A. designs     B. programmes     C. plans     D. systems

26, A. at            B. on             C. for            D. under

27, A. return     B. retort     C. reply     D. response

28, A. downturn     B. tall     C. decrease     D. drop

29, A. make      B. carry      C. do      D. stay

30, A. return      B. gain      C. interest      D. profit

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

Question 2

A. media

B. bulletin

C. programme

 D. journalism