Pham Thu – Bien Hoa Gifted High School

PRACTICE TEST 1 – GRADE 9 (FOR GIFTED STUDENTS)

SECTION ONE: LISTENING (13 POINTS)

Part 1: Listen and fill in each blank with ONE word from the recording. You will hear twice. (8 points)

I’m going to begin this section of my talk by saying something about only children, that is children without
(1) ……………………………………. Historically, only children were relatively uncommon. However, these days, as
families are becoming smaller, being an only child has become relatively more common. There are many
reasons for this trend – social, (2) ………………….…………….. and political, which I won’t go into at this point.
However, I will say that having an only child generally means that (3) …………………………………. resources can be
concentrated on the one child. And I would add that, by them I mean not just money but also care and
attention.
Only children have frequently been seen as different from children with brothers or sisters and subjected
to negative (4) ……………………………………. . They are often considered to be less (5) …………………………………. of
others – i.e. less able to accept differences, to allow those with different points of views to say and do as they
like. Not surprisingly, they are sometimes said to be less (6) ……………………….……………… than other children – in
other words, less able to work effectively with others. On the other hand, only children are often highly
regarded for their (7) ………………………………………., that is to say, their ability to make their own decisions
without being unduly influenced by others. In short, the picture that’s emerging is of children who are rather
(8) ………………….…………………., that is not quite ‘normal’ in social terms.
Part 2: Listen to the lecture extract about birth order and personality and choose the correct answer A, B, or
C. You will hear twice. (5 points)

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SECTION TWO: PHONETICS (4 POINTS)

Part 1: Choose the word whose underlined part is differently pronounced from that of the others.
1. A. method B. bathing C. bathroom D. width
2. A. wondered B. reviewed C. increased D. clarified
Your answers:
1. 2.

Part 2: Choose the word whose main stress is placed differently from that of the others.
1. A. exception B. linguistic C. paragraph D. specific
2. A. atmosphere B. volcanic C. disposal D. emission
Your answers:
1. 2.

SECTION THREE: LEXICO – GRAMMAR (18 POINTS)

Part 1: Give the correct tense or form of the verbs in brackets in the following sentences. (5 points)
When I bought a new house, I (1. ask) for a telephone. The post office (2. tell) me (3. wait), but I (4. wait) for a
year now and my phone still (5. not come).
Your answers:
1. 2. 3.
4. 5.

Part 2: Choose the best answer A, B, C or D to each of the following questions. (10 points)
1. Please, _____ her to lock the door carefully if she goes out tomorrow.
A. say B. talk C. remember D. remind
2. The harder you try, _____.
A. the most success you achieve B. you achieve the more success
C. the more success you achieve D. the better you achieve success
3. I am sure he didn’t break your vase _____ purpose.
A. in B. with C. for D. on
4. It is usually impossible to tell the difference between _____ twins.
A. same B. similar C. identical D. alike
5. Jamie: Let’s go to the Botanical Garden, shall we?
Joshua: _____
A. It’s such nonsense! B. Actually, I don’t want her to get involved.
C. Yes, that sounds good. D. Well, what friends are for!
6. She’s certainly a _____ writer; she has written quite a few books this year.
A. prolific B. fruitful C. fertile D. valuable
7. We decided to celebrate by going out and painting the town _____.
A. purple B. red C. gold D. brown
8. The university’s programs _____.
A. only come second after Harvard B. are second only to those of Harvard
C. are first except for Harvard’s D. are second place from that of Harvard
9. Nobody understands what the strange man has said, _____?
A. do they B. don’t they C. doesn’t he D. does he
10. The first people to live in _____ Hawaii were the Polynesians, who sailed there in large canoes from The
Pacific Islands about 2,000 years ago.
A. now where is B. now this is C. the place is now D. what is now
Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Part 3: Complete each of the following sentences using the correct form of the word in brackets. (3 points)
1. She became well-known as a consistent (OPPOSE) of slavery.
2. Many scientists argue that dinosaurs developed extensive (NOSE) passages with membranes to cool their
skin surfaces.
3. He laid the (FOUND) for the movements against racism in many Latin American countries.
Your answers:
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1. 2. 3.

SECTION FOUR: READING (10 POINTS)

Part 1: Read the text and choose the word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks. (5 points)
Large modern cities are too big to control. They (1) ____ their own living conditions on the people inhabit
them. City-dwellers are obliged by their environment to (2) ____ a wholly unnatural way of life. They lose
touch with the land and rhythm of nature. It is possible to live in such an air-conditioned existence in a large
city (3) ____ you are barely conscious of the seasons. A few flowers in a public park (if you have the time to
visit it) may remind you that it is spring or summer. Some leaves (4) ____ to the pavement may remind you
that it is autumn. Beyond that, what is going on in nature seems totally irrelevant. All the simple, good things
of life like sunshine and fresh air are (5) ____. Tall buildings blot out the sun. Traffic fumes pollute
atmosphere. Even the distinction between day and night is lost. The flow of traffic goes on unceasingly and the
noise never stops.
1. A. exert B. influence C. impose D. affect
2. A. impress B. express C. adapt D. adopt
3. A. in which B. that C. where D. who
4. A. clinging B. ascending C. joining D. attaching
5. A. at a loss B. at a premium C. out of touch D. beyond belief
Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Part 2: Read the text and fill in each of the numbered blanks with ONE word that best fits. (5 points)
The computer, the marvel of the machine (1) _____, has been in use since 1946. It can multiply two ten-
digit numbers in 1/1,000 second, a problem that would (2) _____ an average person five minutes to do with
pencil and paper. Some computers can work faster than any person can. Is it any wonder that they are
sometimes (3) _____ “thinking machine”?
In rooms with computers, the temperature has to be exactly right, not too high and not too low. No dirt at
(4) _____ can get into the computers. For example, one worker cannot use his computer now if he is eating a
sandwich. How we use them is for us, (5) _____ the computer to decide.
Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

SECTION FIVE: WRITING (5 POINTS)

Part 1: Finish each of the sentences in such a way that it means exactly the same as the sentence printed
before it. (2 points)
1. “If I were you, I would try my best to learn English,” Jane said to me.
→ Jane advised …………………………………………......................................... .
2. I was not surprised that she did very well in her exam.
→ It came as ………………………………………………………………………………………….. .
Part 2: Use the word given in capital at the end of the original sentence to complete the second sentence so
that it means exactly the same as the printed one before it. Do not change the given word. (3 points)
1. I put on ten kilos and then I decided to go on a diet. BY THE TIME
→ ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2. I’m sorry I can’t talk to you now. I’m going to work in a minute. ABOUT TO
→ ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. I don’t want the others to think of me as a burden. THOUGHT
→ ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Total: 50 points
The end
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