Open cloze
exercise 1
Fill in the
gaps with one suitable word.
BBC Top Gear
star punches producer
BBC
Television has suspended _______ (1) of its biggest stars for reportedly
punching a producer. Reporters say Jeremy Clarkson, 54, the presenter of the
hugely popular programme Top Gear, got into a fight with the producer, Oisin
Tymon. ________ (2) was an argument about the lack of food available after
filming one of the shows. Mr Clarkson supposedly got angry with Mr Tymon over
this and hit (3) _______. The BBC immediately suspended the show's host and
announced they would not broadcast the next two programmes. Clarkson is so
popular worldwide that (4) ________ online petition started, calling for the
BBC to "reinstate" him. So far, more (5) _______ 400,000 people have signed it.
One of Mr
Clarkson's co-presenters, James May, (6) _______ not think the incident was so
serious. Mr Clarkson joked with
reporters yesterday. (7) ______ asked him where he was going as he got into his
car. He said he was going to the job centre. Clarkson also retweeted a message
from a fan to his 4.5 million Twitter followers. It read: "How (8) _______
the BBC not show the remaining episodes of Top Gear? Can't this be resolved
without making the fans suffer?" The show is broadcast in over 200
countries. Over 350 million people watch it. Clarkson has a history (9) _______
making racist comments (10) _________ other nationalities.
ANSWER KEY:
1 one 2 There 3 him 4
an 5 than 6 does/did 7 They
8 can 9 of 10 about
Open cloze
exercise 2
Fill in the
gaps with one suitable word.
U.S. circus to end use of elephants
One of the largest circus companies ________ (1) the USA will soon no longer have performing elephants ________
(2) part of its shows. The
Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus said it would stop using
elephants by 2018. All the 43 animals it currently uses will be moved to ________
(3) animal conservation centre in
Florida. There, the giant creatures will live out their retirement. The
decision came after a lot ________ (4) protests from the public. ________ (5) hundred years ago, people thought it was OK for animals to perform to
please humans. However, the world is different today and people are more
worried about the lives of the animals. The circus ________ (6) continue to use other animals, such as camels, dogs, horses, lions and
tigers.
Circuses ________
(7) been criticised for many years
by animal rights activists and the public who care about the treatment of
animals. Jessica Johnson, a spokeswoman for PETA (People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals) explained how elephants have a bad life in circuses. She
said: "________ (8) of the
elephants are painfully arthritic, and many have tuberculosis, so their
retirement day needs to come now." Many cities and towns in the USA have
banned the use of elephants for entertainment. This has made it hard for
circuses ________ (9) travel
around the country. Owners of the circus company said the decision to stop
using elephants ________ (10) not easy but understood that: "There's been somewhat of a mood shift
among our consumers."
ANSWER KEY:
1 In 2as 3an 4
of 5 One
6will 7 have 8
Many/Some/Most 9 to 10 was
Open cloze
exercise 3
Fill in the
gaps with one suitable word.
Scientists invent 'anti-ageing' chocolate
Imagine a new chocolate ________ (1) keeps you younger looking. It seems too good
to be true, ________ (2) a team of scientists believes they have
invented anti-ageing chocolate. A laboratory working with the UK's Cambridge
University ________ (3) been working
on a method to keep away wrinkles and keep the skin looking younger. It has
called its new product 'Esthechoc'. This ________ (4) a combination of the words 'esthetic' (meaning all things beautiful) and
'chocolate'. The new product is also called Cambridge Beauty Chocolate. The
makers will start selling it from next month. The laboratory has not said
anything about the price ________ (5), but it is likely to be quite expensive. The lab hopes young, rich
business executives will buy ________ (6).
The laboratory used a special chemical called an
antioxidant in the chocolate. The antioxidant they used is one that gives
flamingos their pink ________ (7). The scientists say that the antioxidant can bring parts of the skin of a
50 to 60-year-old person back to the levels of a 20 to 30-year-old. ________
(8) said people who ate the
chocolate could see changes in their skin within just three weeks. A spokesman
for the laboratory said it took a decade of research and trials with more ________
(9) 3,000 volunteers to produce Esthechoc. The
chocolate bar will only be sold in boxes of 21 bars – one a day ________
(10 ) three weeks. Other scientists
say more research is needed for people to know whether or not Esthechoc
actually works.
ANSWER KEY:
1 that 2 but 3 has 4 is 5 yet
6 it
7 color/colour 8 They 9 than
10 for
Open cloze exercise 4
Fill in the gaps with one
suitable word.
University
students take 'impossible' exam
Students at an English university ________ (1) angry about
their economics exam. The students have signed ________ (2) online
petition saying the exam questions were 'impossible' to answer. Nearly all the
100 students complained and signed ________ (3) petition. They want the
university to help them. The students say the exam had questions on topics that
were not in their course. They say there ________ (4) questions
with a lot of difficult maths that they had not been taught. One student said
he was told he would only need 'simple' maths. The students ________ (5) worried
that they will get lower test scores and a poorer degree.
The head ________ (6) the
department, professor Andy Dickerson, said the exam was fair. ________ (7) said the
level of maths ________
(8) the exams was the same as the
level taught to the students. Professor Dickerson also said the questions were
on topics the students ________
(9) studied. He said: "All
questions were based ________
(10 ) topics taught in the course
and for which further reading was provided." He said there was one
question that used a new term, but this was no problem because the question
explained the meaning of the term. The university says it will look carefully
at the results.
ANSWER KEY:
1 are 2 an
3 the 4 were 5 are 6
of 7 He
8 in 9 had 10 on
Open cloze exercise 5
Fill in the gaps with one
suitable word.
90-year-old
starts elementary school
A 90-year-old grandmother ________ (1) become the world's oldest
elementary school student. Priscilla Sitienei is ________ (2) a small village in Kenya. She has spent most of ________ (3) life working as ________ (4) midwife. She helps to deliver babies. She wants
to read and write so she ________ (5) pass on her nursing skills.
She wants to write down the herbal medicines she uses when she delivers babies.
She also wants to be ________ (6) to read the Bible. Sitienei
said she didn't go to school when she was younger. She knows she is old. She
wants to set an example to younger people. She wants all the village children
to study.
When Ms Sitienei first joined the school, the head teacher ________ (7) not think it was a good idea. Now he is very happy. He said Ms Sitienei is
a "blessing and a motivator". He said he was proud of her and that ________ (8) students love her and want to learn and play with her. He also said: "She
________
(9) doing well considering her age. I can say I have seen a big difference in
this school since she came." Ms Sitienei had a special message. She said:
"I want to say to the children of the world, especially girls, that
education will be your wealth." She added: "With education, you can
be whatever ________ (10) want."
ANSWER KEY:
1 has 2 from 3 her
4 a 5 can 6 able 7 did 8
all 9 is
10 you
