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 from 24 to 28.
Experiments have proved that children can be instructed in swimming at a very early age. At a special swimming pool in Los Angeles, children become expert at holding their (24)___  under water even before they can walk. Babies of two months old do not appear to be reluctant to enter the water. It is not long before they are so accustomed to swimming (25)_____  they can pick up weights from the floor of the pool. A game that is very popular (26) _____ these young swimmers is the underwater tricycle race. Tricycles are lined up on the floor of the pool seven feet under (27) ___. The children compete against each other to reach the other end of the pool. Many pedal their tricycles, but most of them prefer to push or drag them. Some children can cover the whole length of the pool without coming up for breath even once. Whether they will ever become future Olympic champions, only time will tell. Meanwhile, they should (28)_____ those among us who cannot swim five yards before they are gasping for air.
(27) 
A.age                          
B.ground                    
C.water                      
D.sun

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.
Event organisers should plan everything carefully so as to leave nothing to ______. 
A.possibility
B.mistake
C.opportunity
D.chance

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.
The White House, the official home of the United States president, was not built in time for George Washington to live in it. It was begun in 1792 and was ready for its first inhabitants. President and Mrs. John Adams, who moved in on November 1, 1800.When the Adamses moved in, the White House was not yet complete, and the Adamses suffered many inconveniences; for example, the main staircase was incomplete, which hindered movement from floor to floor, and the future laundry yard was merely a pool of mud, so wet laundry was hung in the unfinished East Room to dry. Thomas Jefferson, the third president, improved the comfort of the White House in many respects and added new architectural features such as the terraces on the east and west ends.When the British forces burned the White House on August 24, 1814, President Madison was forced to leave. All the remained after the fire was the exterior walls, the interior was completely destroyed. It was not until December of 1817 that the following president, James Monroe, was able to move into a rebuilt residence. Since then, the White House has continued to be modified but has been continuously occupied by each succeeding U.S president.
It can be inferred from the passage that John Adams was:
A.The first president of the United States. 
B.The second president of the United States.
C.The third president of the United States . 
D.The fourth president of the United States.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined bold word(s) in each of the following questions.
It would be unfair to judge Jacob on such a brief acquaintanceship with him.
A.pleasant conversation         
B. slight friendship
C.quick companionship    
D.mild similarity

TV advertising in the late afternoon tends to _________ young children.
A.target
B.point
C.focus
D.aim

He suffered from constant .................        ( sleep)
A.sleeplessness
B.asleep
C.overslept
D.sleepy

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.
His achievements were partly due to the  _________ of his wife.
A.assistance
B.assisted
C.assist
D.assistant

A.facility      
B.characterize    
C.irrational 
D.variety

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 25 to 29.
HISTORY OF POTATO CHIPS
Peru’s Inca Indians first grew potatoes in the Andes Mountains in about 200 BC. Spanish conquistadors brought potatoes to Europe, and colonists brought them to America. Potatoes are fourth on the list of the world’s food staples - after wheat, corn, and rice. Today, Americans consume about 140 pounds of potatoes per person every year, while Europeans eat twice as many.
One of our favourite ways to eat potatoes is in the form of potato chips. While Benjamin Franklin was the American ambassador to France, he went to a banquet where potatoes were prepared in 20 different ways. Thomas Jefferson, who succeeded Franklin as our French ambassador, brought the recipe for thick-cut, French fried potatoes to America. He served French fries to guests at the White House in 1802 and at his home, Monticello.
A native American chef named George Crum created the first potato chips on August 24, 1853, at Moon Lake Lodge in Saratoga, New York. He became angry when a diner complained that his French fries were too thick, so he sliced the potatoes as thinly as possible, making them too thin and crisp to eat with a fork. The diner loved them, and potato chips were born. In 1860, Chef Crum opened his own restaurant and offered a basket of potato chips on every table.
Joe “Spud” Murphy and Seamus Burke produced the world’s first seasoned crisps, cheese & onion and salt & vinegar chips, in the 1950s in Ireland. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, crisps are what we, in the United States, call potato chips, while their chips refer to our French fries. Ketchup-flavored chips are popular in the Middle East and Canada. Seaweed-flavored chips are popular in Asia, and chicken-flavored chips are popular in Mexico. Other flavors from around the world include: paprika, pickled onions, béarnaise, meat pie, chili crab, salmon teriyaki, borscht, Caesar salad, roasted sausage, firecracker lobster, roast ox, haggis and black pepper, olive, and spaghetti.
(Adapted from https://en.islcollective.com)
Potato chips are called _____ in the United Kingdom.
A.fries
B.crisps
C.lobsters
D.potatoes

Task 1. Choose the best answer.
The chemicals were ____ they caused serious damage to the environment.
A.poisonous so that         
B.poisonous such that
C.so poisonous that       
D.such poisonous that